Milgram's variation studies (AO1) Flashcards
Define ‘situational factors’.
Influences that occur from the environment and others around you
What were the 3 variations of Milgram’s study?
Rundown Office Block
Telephonic Instructions
Ordinary man gives orders
What were the aims of the 3 variation studies?
Rundown Office Block: N/A
Telephonic Instructions:
To see whether the presence/proximity of the authority figure has an effect on obedience rates
Ordinary man gives orders:
To see if it is easier to resist the orders from an ordinary man dressed in normal clothes rather than an experimenter in a white coat
What were the procedures for the 3 variation studies?
Rundown Office Block:
Location was changed to a small commercial office in Bridgeport - three-room office suite in a sparsley furnished run-down commerical building
Telephonic Instructions:
Telephonic instructions were given to participants to issue the electric shocks
Ordinary man gives orders:
The ordinary man dressed in normal clothes instructed the participant to give the electric shocks
What were the results of the 3 variation studies?
Rundown Office Block: 47.5%
Telephonic Instructions: 22.5%
Ordinary man gives orders: 20%
What were the conclusions of the 3 variation studies?
Rundown Office Block:
Easier for participants to dissent - not convinced by credibility of experiment or its benefit to the scientific community
Telephonic Instructions:
A decrease in proximity to the authority figure decreases obedience levels
Ordinary man gives orders:
Authority figures are perceived to be more credible if they wear a uniform
Give the 2 strengths of the variation studies.
Same standardised procedure as the original - easily replicable
High internal validity - only 1 variable changed so cause and effect can be established
Give the unique strength to Milgram’s ‘Ordinary man gives orders’ study.
Increased internal validity - participants believed the ordinary man was real because they saw him drawing straws with the victim
Give the 2 weaknesses of the variation studies.
Low ecological validity - lab setting still used even in rundown office block
Low task validity - nature of task is not reflective of everyday life so mundane realism is low