Dispositional explanations for obedience

Question 1

What are dispositional factors

Answer 1

Individual characteristics that affect behaviour e.g personality

Question 2

What is the F-scale

Answer 2

Questionnaire that measures fascist tendencies

Question 3

What is an authoritarian personality

Answer 3

Dispositional explanation for obedience
Proposed by Adorno et al
Collection of personality traits that makes a person respect authority due to strict childhood parenting

Question 4

What is scapegoating

Answer 4

Displacing feelings that can’t be placed on authority onto inferior people

Question 5

Why do people have the authoritarian personality

Answer 5

Strict childhood parenting made love feel conditional to them based on their behaviour. The hostility/anger can’t be let out and therefore builds up and is let out on inferior people once they grow up

Question 6

Aim of Adorno et al’s study

Answer 6

Discovering Americans unconscious views towards other racial groups

Question 7

Adorno et al’s procedure

Answer 7

2000 middle class Caucasian American participants
Tested using F-scale for fascist tendencies which is thought to be the core of the authoritarian personality

Question 8

Findings of Adorno’s study

Answer 8

High scores on F-scale identified strong people who disrespected the weak
High scoring people cared more about status and showed respect to authority
High scoring people had a certain cognitive style which lead to them stereotyping others

Strong correlation between authoritarianism and prejudice

Question 9

Adorno’s conclusion

Answer 9

People with an authoritarian personality are more obedient to authority and more respectful
Believe that society requires strong leadership

Question 10

A03’s for dispositional explanation for obedience

Answer 10

Methodological issues - Social desirability
Correlational study - Unable to establish cause and effect/there could be a third variable
Effect of dispositional factors is over exaggerated - Milgram suggests that situational variables are the primary cause for obedience regardless of personality

Question 11

Issues and debates for dispositional explanation for obedience

Answer 11

Nomothetic vs ideographic
Doesn’t take into account those who had good relationships with parents but still have an authoritarian personality
People may react to authority differently