A Level Social Influence

Question 1

Explanations for Obedience: Milgram shock study- AIM

Answer 1

Wanted to know why Germans killed Jews during the Holocaust

Question 2

Explanations for Obedience: Milgram shock study- PROCEDURE

Answer 2

• Would people obey to a authority when being given instructions to harm someone
• Lab experiment, teacher or learner, pp was always given teacher as learner was FAKE (‘Mr Wallace’)
• put in separate rooms, experimenter in LAB COAT, told teacher to shock learner when giving incorrect answer (fake shocks fake cry from leaner)……. Shocks increased with every wrong answer from 15-450 volts (V)
• if pp refused, experimenter (in LAB COAT) gives 4 prods to continue, with last one being= you have no other choice but to continue

Question 3

Explanations for Obedience: Milgram shock study- RESULTS

Answer 3

• ALL pp went to 300v, 65% going to 450v

- 18 variations of study eg. When experimenter (in LAB COAT) prompted from phone obedience dropped by 20.5%

Question 4

Explanations for Obedience: Milgram shock study- EVALUATION OF MILGRAM (A03)

Answer 4

-lacked ecological validity, carried out in a lab
IRL people would not be asked to harm a stranger, therefore findings can’t be generalised to real life
-gender bias, all male study, can’t be generalised to women
-good value for understanding social psychology, used standardised procedure as it was a LE, can give us insight into why the Germans harmed the Jews

Question 5

Explanations for Obedience: Milgram shock study- EVALUATION CONTINUED (A03)= ETHICAL ISSUES

Answer 5

-DECEPTION, leave pp feeling embarrassed, however lying was necessary
-Milgram also DEBRIEFED pp after experiment
84% said ‘glad to be involved’ aftern
-PROTECTION FROM HARM; pp put into very stressful situations with 3 pp having seizures

Question 6

Explanations for obedience: Situational factors

Answer 6

Proximity and location
-Study done at Yale university (Milgram)
When moved to run down offices obedience fell 48% suggesting that location affects obedience
-when order was given over the phone obedience fell 20%

Uniform

• lab coat gives high status
• when experimenter was in every day clothes obedience fell

Question 7

Explanations for obedience: Agentic state and limitations

Answer 7

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Question 8

Explanations for obedience: legitimacy of authority

Answer 8

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Question 9

Dispositional explanation: authoritarian personality and limitations

Answer 9

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