Dispositional explanations for obedience

Question 1

what did adorno claim

Answer 1

a particular personality type is more liekly to obey an authority - a high level of obedience is a psychological disorder

Question 2

what was adornos procedure

Answer 2

• investiagted cases of an obedient personality in a study of 2000+ middle class white americans and their unconscious attitudes towards other racial groups
  – developed a F scale to measure the relationship between a person’s personality type and predujiced beliefs

Question 3

what did an F scale measure

Answer 3

relationship between a persons personality type and predujiced beliefs

Question 4

what is a fascist

Answer 4

someone who believes in a totalitarian state rule by a supreme leader who controls everything and treats people harshly

Question 5

what were adornos findings

Answer 5

• those who scored highly on the scale identified with strong people and were contemptuous of the weak
• they were conscious of their own andx others status
• high scores had a particular cognitive style > they had fixed sterotypes about other groups, there was a strong positive correlation between authoritarianism and predujice

Question 6

conclusion of adornos findings

Answer 6

obedience is part of the personality and is not caused by situational factpors

Question 7

AO3 of Adorno

Answer 7

• people may chnage their answers to be seen as ‘better’
• low population validity

Question 8

what is an authoritarian personality

Answer 8

a distinct personality pattern characterised by strict adherence to conventional values and a belief in absolute obedience or submission to authority

Question 9

what are the characteristics of the authoritarian personality

Answer 9

rigid beliefs in conventional values
general hostility to other groups
intolerant of ambiguity
submissive attitudes towards authority figures

Question 10

what is the origin of the authoritarian personality

Answer 10

harsh abd punitive upbringing: little love and much punishment > fear of parents / hatred of parents > excessive respect for authority figures ? hate and anger displaced onto other

Question 11

where does the origins of the authoritarian personality come from

Answer 11

Freuds idea that adukt personality is determined by childhood experiences

Question 12

AO3 for authoritarian personality

Answer 12

+ evidence to support > Milgram did a follow up study and those who were fully obedient scored hgiher on tests of authoritarianism
- F scale measures tendency towards extreme far right ideaology but far left people can also be obedient (chinese maoism) > limited theory
- can’t be applied to majority of a coutrys population > pre war germany, millions of people displayed obedient and racist personailities and they cant all have the same