Milgram (1963) Flashcards
What area of study is this from?
The social area
What was it a study of?
Behavioural study of obedience
What was the historical background of this study?
-The Nazis in the holocaust
-To see if Americans were as obedient as the Germans
-Milgram was familiar with the works of Asch (1955)
What was the aim of this study?
To see how much pain someone would willingly inflict on another when obeying to a position of authority
What was the design of this study?
-Social experiment
-Laboratory experiment
-Controlled
Who were the participants?
-45 men aged 20-50
-Varying jobs: postman, businessman etc
-Around New Haven, Connecticut
How were participants recruited?
-Advertisement published in a newspaper
-Advertised as a memory study
-Volunteered themselves
-$4 awarded for showing up + 50 cents for travel = $4.50
What % of participants went all the way to 450 volts?
65%
What % of participants went to 300 volts?
100%
How many participants had seizures as a result?
3
What % of participants didn’t finish the experiment?
35%
What prods did the experimenter say to stop the participants from ending their involvement in the experiment? In order of ascending extremity
- Please continue, please go on
- The experiment requires that you continue
- It is absolutely essential that you continue
- You have no other choice, you must go on
What were some strengths of the study?
-Very good control variables
-Valid dependant variable
-Replicable / repeatable (not anymore for ethical issues)
-Results were recorded in an efficient way
-Debriefing to ensure good mental health
-High levels of face validity: everything measured was measured
accurately
What were some weaknesses of the study?
-Lacks ecological validity: not an everyday occurrence
-Not actually that similar to Nazi Germany
-Many ethical issues
-People were deceived about what what the experiment actually was
-Ethnocentric
