Milgram’s Study + Obedience

Question 1

Definition of obedience:

Answer 1

A type of social influence which causes a person to react in response to an order given by another person

Question 2

When was Milgram’s study conducted?

Answer 2

1963

Question 3

Aim of Milgram’s study:

Answer 3

Interested in researching how far people would go in obeying an instruction if it involved harming another person

Question 4

What age range did Milgram use?

Answer 4

20-50

Question 5

(MS) How many people + what gender were they?

Answer 5

40 males

Question 6

(MS) how did they determine their roles?

Answer 6

Drew straws to determine roles- learner or teacher- confederate was always the learner

Question 7

(MS) what was the teacher told to do?

Answer 7

• administer a shock every time the learner got a question wrong
• shocks went from 0-450V over 30 switches
• 450V was labelled “extreme danger”

Question 8

(MS) what were the learners told to do?

Answer 8

Get the questions wrong on purpose

Question 9

(MS) What were the four prods which the experimenter gave the teacher?

Answer 9

1. Please continue
2. The experiment requires you to continue
3. It is absolutely essential that you continue
4. You have no other choice but to continue

Question 10

(MS) how many teachers continued to 450V?

Answer 10

65% (2/3rds) of the population

Question 11

(MS) How many volts did all teachers continue to?

Answer 11

300 V

Question 12

(MS) how many variations did Milgram do?

Answer 12

18 variations - altered the IV to see how this would affect the DV

Question 13

(MS) sampling method:

Answer 13

• newspaper advertisements
• voluntary sampling- believed they were participating in a study on memory and learning at Yale University

Question 14

(MS) Pros:

Answer 14

1. Objective experimenter (more valid)
2. Age range of 20-50- generalisability

Question 15

(MS) Cons:

Answer 15

• only used males- gender bias- generalisability
• no informed consent, there’s deceit, should protect the participants from harm- bad ethics

Question 16

Variations of Milgram’s study:

Answer 16

• proximity
• location
• uniform
• someone else to do the deed

Question 17

(MS) how did continuation levels vary when proximity levels varied?

Answer 17

• teacher and learner in the same room
• less- 40%

Question 18

(MS) how did continuation levels vary when the location changed?

Answer 18

• the study was moved from the university research lab to a run down office building
• lower- 47.5%

Question 19

(MS) how did continuation levels vary when uniform was different?

Answer 19

• the experimenter was replaced with a member of the public (a confederate)
• lower- 20%

Question 20

(MS) how did continuation levels vary when someone else was to do the deed?

Answer 20

• the teacher gets paired with someone they make deliver the shocks by pressing the switches
• higher- 92.5%

Question 21

What is the legitimacy of authority?

Answer 21

Society tends to be structured according to a hierachy

Question 22

Signs which indicate authority:

Answer 22

1. Manners/ tone of voice
2. Uniform
3. Qualification
4. Our own social hierarchy

Question 23

How does LOA explain obedience in Milgram’s study?

Answer 23

• allows ‘agentic shift’
• Milgram was in Yale- very prestigious
• prods
• official

Question 24

What is the agentic state?

Answer 24

• the condition a person is in when he sees himself as an agent for another persons wishes
• moving from being in an autonomous state (having free will) to becoming an agent
• once a person sees themself in this state they may still feel a ‘moral strain’, however, still remain in an agentic state due to binding factors (prods to carry on)