Factors affecting obedience: Situation and CUlture

Question 1

Situational factors

Answer 1

Legitimacy
Proximity
Behaviour of others

Question 2

Culture factors

Answer 2

Individualism-collectivism
Power distance index

Question 3

Legitimacy

Answer 3

Reducing legitimacy reduces obedience

Question 4

Proximity

Answer 4

Increasing distance reduces authority
Milgram telephonic instructions
Latane’s concept of immediacy in SIT
Milgram’s variation study, obedience reduced to 40%

Question 5

Behaviour of others

Answer 5

Milgram had two confederates who refused to carry on with study, obedience dropped to 10%

Question 6

Individualism-collectivism

Answer 6

Obedience differs in different cultures

Question 7

Difference in individualist and collectivist

Answer 7

Individualist - values personal autonomy and self-reliance
Collectivist - loyalty to group

Question 8

Who’s more obedient individualist or collectivist

Answer 8

Individualist = less obedient
Collectivist = more obedient

Question 9

Power distance index refers to

Answer 9

Refers to how accepting people are of hierarchical order and inequality in society

Question 10

PDI cultures obedient

Answer 10

High PDI cultures cultures - like being told what to do
Identification with values of high PDI culture lead a person to be highly obedient, people from low PDI cultures more likely to disobey

Question 11

Situation strength

Answer 11

Meeus and Raaijmakers (1995) asked participants to deliver increasingly unkind insults to confederate applying for job
90% gave all insults
36% when experimenter left room
16% when they witnessed two rebellious people
Suggests obedience decreased through legitimacy, proximity and behaviour of others

Question 12

CA to situational strength

Answer 12

There were individual differences Milgram’s variations
Personality key part of explanation

Question 13

Application of situation

Answer 13

Countryside -> no rule enforcers
Gramann et al found giving information about reasons behind rules, increased obedience
Help protect sites in country

Question 14

Culture strength

Answer 14

Kilham and Mann
Low level of obedience in Australia (28%), which scores low PDI
Dolinski found high level of obedience in Polan (90%) a country with high PDI

Question 15

Weakness of culture

Answer 15

Blass 2012 calculated mean of 66% obedience rate for 8 non-US Milgram replications, 61% for US replications
Some variation, but not much
Obedience may be universal social behaviour and culture does not have much affect