Milgram (1963) Behavioural Study of Obedience - Procedure

Question 1

Where did the controlled observation take place?
Why was this important?

Answer 1

• the controlled observation took place at Yale University
• this was important as it lent the study respectability due to the reputation of the University

Question 2

What happened when the participants first arrived at Yale University?

Answer 2

they were greeted by a man in a white lab coat and told they were taking part in a study about learning and punishment

Question 3

What were the participants told about being assigned?

Answer 3

they were told they would be assigned the role of the teacher or the learner

Question 4

How were the participants actually being assigned?

Answer 4

• in each and every case, the experimenter (Milgram) manipulated the results so the participants always ended up as the teacher
• it was rigged

Question 5

Who were participants introduced to?

Answer 5

• participants were introduced to a 47 years old man who they thought was another participant (however he was a confederate)
• he was called Mr Wallace, a stooge working for Milgram

Question 6

What did Mr Wallace make a comment about?

Answer 6

he made a comment at the time about his current heart condition

Question 7

What was Mr Wallace’s task?

Answer 7

he has the task of getting ‘word pairs’ correct the in the experiment

Question 8

What was the ‘teachers’ task?

Answer 8

had the job of reading the word pairs to the learner and if he got it wrong, administering the shock

Question 9

What was Mr Wallace strapped to?

Answer 9

he was strapped to a chair and wired up to a shock generator

Question 10

How was the shock demonstrated?

Answer 10

by giving the participant a real 45v shock

Question 11

What was a partition screen for?

Answer 11

so that the participants and Mr Wallace couldn’t see each other, but could hear each other

Question 12

What happened during the experiment?

Answer 12

• the participant (teacher) asked Mr Wallace (learner) questions on word pairs
• each time Mr Wallace made a mistake, the participant was ordered by the experimenter to give an electric shock

Question 13

What would happen after each mistake made by Mr Wallace?

Answer 13

following each mistake, the ‘shock level’ increased by 15 volts

Question 14

What were the shock levels on the machine labelled?

Answer 14

labelled from 0-450 volts and also had a sign saying ‘danger - severe shock’ and at 450 volts, it said ‘XXX’

Question 15

What instructions were given to Mr Wallace?

Answer 15

• he was told to give approximately 3 wrong answers to every correct 1
• he was also told to make set responses:
  75v -> grunts
  120v -> shouts in pain
  150v -> says he refuses to continue with the experiment
  200v -> blood curdling screams
  300v -> refuses to answer, mumbles something about a heart condition
  +330v -> silence

Question 16

What instructions did Milgram give to the experimenter?

Answer 16

he was told to respond to any hesitation from the teacher with 5 standard prods:
- please continue
- the experiment requires that you continued
- it’s absolutely essential that you continue
- you have no other choice, you must go on
- I’m responsible, continue

Question 17

What happened after the experiment had ended?

Answer 17

• participants were debriefed
• they were asked to rate how painful the last few shocks they gave, on a scale of 1-14
• the teacher was thoroughly debriefed and Mr Wallace was introduced as the stooge and Milgram tried to ensure that participants were not distressed when they left
• they were interviewed about their experience in this study