Explanations for Obedience Flashcards
What is the Agentic State?
Its’s a mental state where we feel no personal responsibility for our behaviour as we believe ourselves to be acting for an authority figure. This frees us from the demands of out concisiences.
What are three main components of the agentic state?
- Autonomous state
- Agentic state
- Moral strain and coping with moral strain
What is the Autonomous state?
To be independant or free. Behave accordingly to their own principles. Opposuite of agentic state .
What is the Agentic state?
Freedom from responsibilty for our actions . freedom from our conscience. Obeying orders.
What is moral strain and coping with moral strain?
Individual carrying out orders may not want them to do them, feel’s it is wrong and uncomfortable but do so for the percieved greater good.
What is Legitimacy of authority?
An explanation for obedience that suggests we are more likley to obey people who we percieve to have authority over us. This authority is justified by the individuals position of power within a social hierarchy.
What makes up Legitimacy of authority?
- Societal structures promote legitimate authority figures
- We are socialised to recognise Legitimate authority figures.
- Problems arise when legitimate authorities become destructive.
- Destructive authority was shown clearly in Milgram’s studies.
How are we socialised to recognise authority figures?
From a young age we have been socialised into this eg : obeying parents , teachers and paramedics.
In the agentic state what happens ?
The individual gives up their free will and no longer sees themeselves as acting independantly they are carrying out someone elses decisions.
What is moral strain ?
Feeling uncomftable or disstressed as a consequence of going against your own concionce.
How do we cope with moral strain?
We use physchological defence mechanisms such as denial or reppresssion.
What happens in the autonomous state?
We are aware of consequenses and responsiblities and act and think as an independant.
