9 - milgram ao1 Flashcards
what did milgram want to find out?
if ordinary american citizens would obey an unjust order from an authority figure and inflict pain on another person because they were instructed to
what was milgram’s sample?
40 male participants from a range of occupations and backgrounds
what sampling did milgram use?
volunteer
what did milgram advertise his experiment as?
punishment and learning
how were participants and confederate in milgram’s study assigned to their roles as teacher and learner
randomly, but real participants was always teacher
what was the task of milgram’s study
teacher would read learner a series of word pairs and test their recall. learner would indicate choice using system of lights. teacher told to administer shock for wrong answer and increase voltage after each mistake
how was the teacher in milgram’s experiment convinced it was real?
teacher watched learner being strapped to electric chair, given sample electric shock
as the shocks in milgram’s experiment increased what happened to the recorded screams?
became louder and more dramatic
at 180 volts in milgram’s study what did the learner complain of
a weak heart
what did the learner do at 315 volts in milgram’s experiment
became silent, giving the illusion he was unconscious or dead
when did milgram’s experiment stop
when the teacher refused to continue or reached 450 volts
if the teacher tried to stop milgram’s study, what would the experimenter do
respond with a series of prods, for example ‘the experiment required that you continue’
how did milgram go around the problem of informed consent?
following the experiment the participants were debriefed
how many of milgram’s participants went to at least 300 volts
all
how many of milgram’s participants went to the full 450 volts?
65%
what did milgram conclude
under the right circumstances ordinary people would obey
what were milgram’s variations?
proximity, location, uniform,
what was the method in milgram’s proximity variation
teacher and learner in the same room
in milgram’s proximity variation how many participants administered the full 450 volts
40%
why did obedience levels fall in milgram’s proximity variation
because the teacher was able to experience the learners pain more directly
what was milgram’s more extreme proximity variation
teacher had to force learners hand directly onto the shock plate
what percentage of participants in milgram’s extreme proximity variation obeyed to the full 450 volts?
30%
what did milgram conclude about the proximity between teacher and learner?
closer the proximity, the lower the level of obedience
what was milgram’s authority figure proximity variation
after the experimenter had given the initial instructions they left the room. all subsequent instruction were provided over the phone
in milgram’s authority figure proximity variation, what percentage of people obeyed to the full 450 volts
21%
what was milgrams location variation
conducted study in a run down building in Bridgeport, connecticut. no longer associated with yale university, carried out by research association of bridgeport
in milgrams location variation what percentage of participants administered the full 450 volts
47.5%
what does milgrams location variation show about the impact of location on obedience
less credible locations resulting in a reduction in the level of obedience
what was milgrams uniform variation
the experimenter was called away and replaced by another ‘participant’ in ordinary clothes (confederate). the man in ordinary clothes came up with the idea of increasing the voltage every time the learner made a mistake
what percentage of participants in milgrams uniform variation obeyed to the full 450 volts
20%
what does milgram’s uniform variation demonstrate?
the dramatic power of uniform and legitimate authority
what is legitimate authority?
the perceived right of an authority figure to have power and control over others
