milgram

Question 1

define obedience

Answer 1

the tendency to comply with commands from an authority figure, which you would not have done on your own/ independently.

Question 2

define dissent

Answer 2

an individual disagrees with the orders of action given by the authority figure. This does not mean they will disobey.

Question 3

define disobedience

Answer 3

when an individual refuses to carry out the actions ordered by an authority figure.

Question 4

aim 1963

Answer 4

• to see the level of obedience when someone is ordered to give out an electric shock by an authority figure
• to test the “germans are different” hypothesis

Question 5

sample 1963

Answer 5

• 40 men, all aged 20-50 years old
• various occupational backgrounds
• all from the New Haven area in America

Question 6

how was the sample in 1963 collected?

Answer 6

• volunteer sampling
• local newspaper advert asking for volunteers to take part in a study of memory
• the ppts were paid $4.50
• the ppts included high school teachers, salesmen, engineers and postal clerks

Question 7

procedure 1963 (6 marker)

Answer 7

1. the ppt and the stooge were together in one room
2. took part in a rigged draw, where the ppt was always the teacher and the stooge was always the learner.
3. the ppt was then leaded into the room where the learner was strapped to chains and an electrode attached to a electric shock generator.
4. the ppt was told the straps were to limit excessive movement
5. the ppt was given a sample shock of 45V and where sent into another room
6. they were told the learner had to guess the right word pairs
7. if they got one wrong the ppt would give an electric shock that increased by 15V each time to the learner
8. verbal prods were used by the experimenter when the learner was shocked, “you have no other choice, you must go on”
9. if the ppt refused to obey after the 4th verbal prod the experiment was terminated
10. the experimenter wore a grey technicians coat
11. lab experiment + volunteer sampling (explain this) + took place at yale uni + ppts paid $4.50
12. sample mark
    teacher + learner in separate rooms

Question 8

method 1963

Answer 8

lab experiment

Question 9

quant results 1963

Answer 9

• all ppts went up to 300V
• 65% went up to 450V

Question 10

qual results 1963

Answer 10

• 14/40 ppts had nervous laugher
• those who went up to 45% showed extreme stress, sweating, trembling, stuttered speech, nervous laughter
• 3 ppts had uncontrollable seizures
• one experiment had to be halted as 1 ppt has a seizure

Question 11

conclusions 1963

Answer 11

• the study took place in yale uni, which is prestigious so may have made the ppts obey the experimenter
• the average person will obey an authority figure if they are legitimate even if it harms an innocent individual and goes against their morals, it is just human nature

Question 12

give 2 strengths of 1963

Answer 12

High in validity as Milgram used a large sample size of 40 men aged 20-50 years old to see if they would obey an authority figure when being told to give an electric shock. Therefore, any anomalies with high or low levels of obedience will be averaged out and will not skew the data, so the results will be accurate.

High reliability, due to the use of a standardised procedure. For example all 40 men were recruited from volunteer sampling from a local newspaper advert asking for volunteers for a study of memory, they were all paid $4.50, all took part in the rigged draw where the teacher was always the ppt and the learner was always the stooge and where the teacher was given a sample shock of 45V. Therefore, the study can be tested for a consistency of findings of if people will obey an authority figure when being ordered to give out electric shocks.

High in validity. For example, deception occurred as the ppts were told that it was a study of memory and there was also a rigged draw to allocate the spaces of the teacher and learner, but the ppt was always the teacher. Ppts did not know they weren’t actually hurting the learner. Therefore, decreasing demand characteristics as you know that the ppt was not trying to impress the experimenter by disobeying them or doing what they thought the experimenter wanted by looking at their facial expressions, so their natural obedient behaviours could be displayed.

Question 13

give 2 weaknesses of 1963

Answer 13

Low in generalisability as all 40 ppts were men and they were all from the New Haven area in America. Therefore, the sample is not representative of levels of obedience to an authority figure in a wider population that is not men. The sample is ethnocentric and androcentric. Some cultures may praise obedience more than others which may have affected the results. So the study lacks credibility.

Lots of ethical issues, for example the ppts were deceived into believing that they were shocking the learner upto 450V and they took part in the rigged draw where the learner was always the stooge. For example, 3 ppts had seizures. Therefore, the study uses deception and lies to the ppts and the study may have caused psychological harm to the ppts as they actually believed they were hurting someone. After the study they may have felt terrible about themselves.

Low mundane realism as the task involved shocking a learner for getting word pairs incorrect. Electrocuting people is not seen as normal activity that regularly happens, so the task is artificial and unrealistic. Therefore, the results of the levels of obedience to an authority figure are not representative of actual life.

Question 14

application

Answer 14

High application to society as Milgram found that 65% of ppts went up to 450V and all ppts went up to 300V. Therefore, showing that obedience levels in students can be increased in schools and in prisons and workplaces if staff wear symbols of authority, so more positive behaviours can be created. The study also tells us that the germans are not different from the Americans in terms of obedience removing the stigma surrounding them. We can also prevent WW3 from occurring if we know how it started.

Question 15

aim telephonic instruction

Answer 15

to see whether obedience levels are affected when orders are given over a telephone by an authority figure.

Question 16

sample telephonic instruction

Answer 16

40 men, same as 1963

Question 17

procedure telephonic instruction

Answer 17

1. experimenter gave instructions to ppt at start
2. left the ppt alone in the room with the electric shock generator and a telephone by which the learner and experimenter communicated by.
3. rigged draw took place to allocate spaces
4. verbal prods were delivered over phone
5. they were told the learner had to guess the right word pairs
6. everything else same as 1963

Question 18

results telephonic instruction

Answer 18

• only 20.5% of ppts went up to 450V
• ppts resisted the experimenters orders over the phone
• ppts would tell the experimeter they were increasing the shock levels but actually were giving the lowest shock on the board.

Question 19

conclusion telephonic instruction

Answer 19

the physical presence of an authority figure is important for obedience

Question 20

give 2 strengths of telephonic instruction

Answer 20

High in validity as Milgram used a large sample size of 40 men aged 20-50 years old to see if they would obey an authority figure when being told to give an electric shock. Therefore, any anomalies with high or low levels of obedience over the phone will be averaged out and will not skew the data, so the results will be accurate.

High reliability, due to the use of a standardised procedure. For example all 40 men were recruited from volunteer sampling from a local newspaper advert asking for volunteers for a study of memory, they were all paid $4.50, all took part in the rigged draw where the teacher was always the ppt and the learner was always the stooge and where the teacher was given a sample shock of 45V, all ppts spoke to the experimenter over the phone instead of in person. Therefore, the study can be tested for a consistency of findings of if people will obey an authority figure when being ordered to give out electric shocks over the phone.

High in validity. For example, deception occurred as the ppts were told that it was a study of memory and there was also a rigged draw to allocate the spaces of the teacher and learner, but the ppt was always the teacher. Ppts did not know they weren’t actually hurting the learner. Therefore, decreasing demand characteristics as you know that the ppt was not trying to impress the experimenter by disobeying them or doing what they thought the experimenter wanted by looking at their facial expressions, so their natural obedient behaviours could be displayed.

Question 21

give 2 weaknesses of telephonic instruction

Answer 21

Low in generalisability as all 40 ppts were men and they were all from the New Haven area in America. Therefore, the sample is not representative of levels of obedience to an authority figure over a telephone in a wider population that is not men. The sample is ethnocentric and androcentric. Some cultures may praise obedience more than others which may have affected the results. So the study lacks credibility.

Lots of ethical issues, for example the ppts were deceived into believing that they were shocking the learner upto 450V and they took part in the rigged draw where the learner was always the stooge. For example, 3 ppts had seizures. Therefore, the study uses deception and lies to the ppts and the study may have caused psychological harm to the ppts as they actually believed they were hurting someone. After the study they may have felt terrible about themselves.

Low mundane realism as the task involved shocking a learner for getting word pairs incorrect due to orders of an experimenter over the phone. Electrocuting people is not seen as normal activity that regularly happens, so the task is artificial and unrealistic. Therefore, the results of the levels of obedience to an authority figure are not representative of actual life.

Question 22

application

Answer 22

High application to society as it tells authority figures like police to be more present as people are more likely to behave accordingly, creating more positive behaviours in society. For example, the obedience levels dropped to 20.5% up to 450V compared to Milgrams original experiment where they were 65%. Therefore, in turn we can prevent more crime from occuring as obedience levels will increase, bettering society.

Question 23

aim rundown office block

Answer 23

to see if location has an affect on levels of obedience when being ordered to give out electric shocks by an authority figure

Question 24

sample rundown office block

Answer 24

same as original

Question 25

procedure rundown office block

Answer 25

• ppts told it was a private firm conducting research for industry
• located in a downtown shopping area
• in office building near an industrial city called Bridgeport
• no visible ties to Yale uni
• conducted in a 3 room office
• lab was sparsely furnished, but clean and respectable in appearance
• everything else same

Question 26

results rundown office block

Answer 26

• lower obedience rate of 45% of ppts going up to 450V
• 2 ppts refused to give lowest shock of 15V
• behaviour was more relaxed

Question 27

conclusions rundown office block

Answer 27

setting is not as important for obedience compared to the presence of the authority figure

Question 28

aim ordinary man gives orders

Answer 28

to see if the levels of obedience of ppts when being given orders by an ordinary man to give out an electric shock were different to when they were given by an authority figure.

Question 29

sample ordinary man gives orders

Answer 29

• smaller sample size of 20 ppts
• 3 ppts and 2 confederates

Question 30

procedure ordinary man gives orders

Answer 30

• experimenter did not indicate the shock level that had to be given
• rigged phone call that took the experimenter away from the lab
• experimenter acted flustered and eager to have the experiment finished
• a confederate says he has an idea of increasing the shock level each time the learner makes a mistake
• the ordinary man was not an authority figure.
• for the ppts who refused to carry on with the experiment the confederate would act disgusted at the refusal and say if they were unwilling to carry on he would take over and give the shocks.

Question 31

results ordinary man gives orders

Answer 31

• 20% carried on to 450V
• 5 ppts from the 16 that disobeyed physically restrained the confederate

Question 32

conclusions ordinary man gives orders

Answer 32

the status of the authority figure is important for obedience to occur but other factors such as the instructions and shock generator still cause obedience.

Question 33

strengths ordinary man gives orders

Answer 33

High in relia. Milgram used a standardised procedure, where as the experimenter in the study does not indicate the shock levels that need to be given, each time 3 confederates are used instead of 2 and there was a rigged phone call to take the experimenter out of the room who acted flustered and eager to finish the experiment. Therefore, the study can be replicated to test for a consistency of findings on how people will obey an ordinary man who is not an authority figure in increasing shock levels.

High in validity. For example, deception occurred as the ppts were told that it was a study of memory and there was also a rigged draw to allocate the spaces of the teacher and learner, but the ppt was always the teacher. Ppts did not know they weren’t actually hurting the learner. Therefore, decreasing demand characteristics as you know that the ppt was not trying to impress the experimenter by disobeying them or doing what they thought the experimenter wanted by looking at their facial expressions, so their natural obedient behaviours could be displayed.

Question 34

weaknesses ordinary man gives orders

Answer 34

low val. 20 ppts
high ethical issues
low mundane realism

Question 35

application ordinary man gives orders

Answer 35

High application to society. The lowered level of obedience for the ordinary man shows us that appearance affects obedience. Obedience levels in students can be increased in schools and in workplaces in prisons as staff can wear more symbols of authority like uniforms. For example, lab coats and suits which show who is in charge. Therefore, creating more positive behaviours and bettering society.

Question 36

application rundown office block

Answer 36

High application to society. The findings show the location affects obedience so leaders can enhance their power. For example, by giving political speeches from important political buildings. Therefore, people are more likely to behave accordingly, creating more positive behaviours in society.