Obedience Flashcards
Name 4 things Milgram concluded from his experiment.
Ordinary people are likely to follow orders given by an authority figure even to the extent of killing a human being
Obedience to authority is ingrained in us all from the way we are brought up.
People tend to obey orders from other people if they recognise their authority as morally right or legally based.
There was nothing NATURALLY evil about the Germans.
Why was it a disadvantage that Milgram used a laboratory study for his experiment?
A highly controlled situation would have been set up so ppts would know they are being tested so may act differently so there may have been demand characteristics.
Why is Hoflings study often used to support Milgram’s findings?
Because the conclusions are the same even away from the laboratory setting and so it has even more ecological validity!
What were the three hospital rules the nurses would have broken in Hofling et Al’s study?
They weren’t allowed to accept instructions over the phone
They gave double the maximum dosage stated on the box
They didn’t have the doctors authorisation signature for the medication.
Why did Greenstein criticised the F-scale?
And what did Jackson do to prove this?
Because the questions are worded in the same direction so you can just tick agree for every question and then score highly as authoritarian. People who agree may not be authoritarian but just be saying yes, to every question without even reading it.
Jackson swapped all the questions directions around and ppts still ticked a lot of agree answers.
Why did Milgram’s work raise the issue of deception? (5 examples)
Because he lied about what the experiment was about.
He was in control of who was the teacher/learner
He said the shocks were real
The screams were a recording
The other person was a confederate
What were the three ethical issues that Milgram’s work raised?
Deception
Lack of informed consent
Protection from harm
What is the name of the study that tried to do Milgram’s hypothesis in more natural settings from a field study of 22 nurses in 22 different hospitals?
Hofling at al
Give two pieces of information about the shock generator in Milgram’s experiment.
There were 30 switches on it marked from 15 volts to 450 volts (danger/severe shock)
Who was involved in Hofling et al’s experiment?
22 real night nurses
Dr. Smith a confederate
What is a field study?
When we conduct our research in a natural environment when we can’t control what happens.
Why might some critics say that the ppts in Milgram’s study had probably guessed the aims and were just going “along with it”?
Because they had been paid and didn’t want to upset the experimenter.
What did Milgram believe he would find by altering the IV to see its affect on the DV?
He believed he could show it was the situation people found themselves in (not their natural evil) which made them obedient. So by changing he environment it would change the likelihood that they would obey.
Name 8 facts about Milgram’s procedure.
Volunteer sampling was used It was a lab experience by Investigating “learning” 40 makes Aged between 20-50 Jobs ranged from unskilled to professional From New Haven area Paid $4.50 just for turning up
What is an autonomous state?
We are free to behave according to our own values and principles and feel accountable for our behaviour.
Besides the participant and confederate, who else was at Milgram’s experiment and name one fact about this person.
There was an “experimenter” who was dressed in a gray lab coat (an actor).
Social influence is…?
The process by which individuals and groups change each other’s attitudes and behaviours.
What was the drug actually in Hofling et Al’s study?
It was a harmless sugar pill
What evidence was there to suggest that ppts did actually believe that the shocks they administered were real?
People had seizures/panic attacks.
When must parental consent be gained?
When ppts are under the age of 16
What is an agentic shift?
When we shift responsibility for our actions from ourselves to the person who has given us the order.
Why was Milgram able to do his research when it is now considered unethical?
Because there wasn’t a code of ethics like there is today.
What percentage of people said after Milgram experiment that they didn’t believe it was real?
75%
Why is Milgram’s study criticised for lacking population validity and being ANDROCENTRIC? But having said this…
Because he tested Americans and drew conclusions from them onto Germans.
Because Milgram’s original sample was males.
Having said this…Hofling’s experiment in nurses only involved women and cane to the same conclusions suggesting his theory may be equally as valid for women and men.
Why is it a problem if ppts didn’t believe they were administering real electric shocks?
Because it wouldn’t be a valid test of how obedient someone would be when asked to inflict harm on someone else. (Lacks credibility)
What is fully informed consent?
When consent is gained from ppts before the research begins, ppts are given a consent form which tells them the purpose of the study and details of what they will be asked to do so they can decide whether to take part or not.
What was a common explanation from the German’s when they were asked to explain their killings?
That they were just following orders from their superiors.
