Milgram

Question 1

Milgrams key theme + area

Answer 1

Key theme = responses to people in authority
Area = social area

Question 2

Aim

Answer 2

To investigate the tendency for destructive obedience

Question 3

Context

Answer 3

In relation as to why German soldiers followed hitler.

Question 4

Method

Answer 4

40 male volunteers told they were asking part in a learning experiment. They took role of teacher + confederate took role of learner (rigged that way). Teacher giving what they thought were painful shocks to confederate whom they believed to be a ppt too. Shocks increased 15v for every wrong answer and went to a max of 450v.
At 300v learner banged on wall c begged. After they went silent

Question 5

Standardised prompts

Answer 5

1. “Please continue”
2. “The experiment requires you to continue”
3. “ it is absolutely essential that you continue”
4. “ you have no other choice to continue”

Question 6

Results

Answer 6

100% of ppts went up to 300v
65% gave full 450v
Most ppts showed signs of stress when giving shocks = sweating, breakdowns, asking for reassurance, seizures

Question 7

Conclusion

Answer 7

People are surprisingly obedient to orders given by people in authority. However become distressed when obeying orders to hurt another person

Question 8

Usefulness

Answer 8

Useful as it created a change in attitudes about factors causing wars, not disposition of people that cause wars but obedience to authority

Question 9

Ethics

Answer 9

Debriefed but after, caused psychological + physical harm

Question 10

Ecological validity

Answer 10

Low as rare that you’d be giving someone shocks for answering a question wrong. But ppts showed higher demand characteristics due to prestigious nature of Yale

Question 11

Generalisability

Answer 11

Low as all were men, similar ages, all from north east America

Question 12

Reliability

Answer 12

Highly replicable as it was standardised