Explanations For Obedience (Situational) Flashcards
What was the primary objective of the Milgram experiment?
To investigate the extent to which people will obey instructions that may harm others
Conducted at Yale University.
What is obedience in the context of the Milgram experiment?
When a person changes their behavior in response to a direct order from an authority figure.
Define ‘Agentic State’.
A mental state where a person sees no responsibility for their actions, believing they are acting for an authority figure.
What percentage of participants administered the maximum shock of 450V?
65%.
What factor significantly influenced obedience in the Milgram study?
Legitimacy of authority.
Fill in the blank: People are more likely to obey individuals they perceive to have _______.
[authority].
How did the location of the experiment affect obedience rates?
Obedience decreased to 48% when moved to a rundown office.
What was the effect of proximity to the learner on obedience rates?
Obedience decreased to 40% when the learner was in the same room.
What was the obedience rate when the teacher was required to hold the learner’s hand on the shock plate?
Obedience decreased to 30%.
How did the uniform of the authority figure affect obedience?
Obedience decreased to 20% when instructions were given by someone in casual clothes.
True or False: The Milgram experiment found that the more prestigious the setting, the higher the obedience rates.
True.
What is a key situational factor that influenced obedience in the Milgram study?
Proximity of the authority figure.
What were the results regarding visual cues and empathy in the Milgram experiment?
Visual cues of someone else’s pain triggered empathetic responses, lowering obedience.
Fill in the blank: The Milgram experiment demonstrated that formal settings can cause people to _______.
[obey].
What percentage of participants showed obedience when the authority figure was in a lab coat?
Higher rates of obedience compared to when the authority figure was in casual clothing.
AO1 Situational Variables
Are external factors that influence the levels of obedience. Milgram investigated obedience through studying the extent to which a participant would obey to shock a confederate if they incorrectly recalled the list of words they learned. In his first study, 65% of all 40 participants obeyed to the experimenter and shocked the participant to 450 volts. All went to 300 volts
AO1 Milgrams Variation Studies
Investigated situational variables by replicating his original experiment in different situations. Some examples include: location of experiment, proximity of learner and the legitimacy of the authority figure. Milgram found that when the experiments location was changed to a run down office from originally being done at Yale university, the rate participants shock to 450V decreased to 48%. Authority, casual clothes, decreased to 20%. Proximity of learner and teacher in same room, decreased to 50%. Participant hand on learner, decreased rate to 30%.
Strength- Hofling et al FINISH
Studied obedience
