Obedience: Agentic state and Legitimacy of authority Flashcards
What are the two explanations of why people obey
the two Social-Psychological factors that effect obedience is Agentic state and legitimacy of authority
Autonomous state
a person in an autonomous state is free to behave according to their own principles and therefore feels a sense of responsibility for their own actions.
Agentic state
A mental state where we feel no personal responsibility for our behaviour because we believe ourselves to be acting for an authority figure, i.e. as their agent.
Agentic shift
The move from the autonomous state to the agentic state.
What did Milgram find about the agentic state in his obedience study.
At the end when Milgram interviewed his obedient ppt as to why they continued giving electric shocks they all said that “i was just doing what i was told.” They felt more responsible to the authority directing them but felt no responsibility for their own actions.
Explain one reason as to why people adopt an agentic state.
To maintain a positive self image. Once the ppt move into the agentic state the action is no longer their responsibility so it doesn’t reflect their own self image.
What keeps people in the agentic state
Binding factors. Binding factors allow the person to ignore or minimise the damaging effect of their behaviour and thus reduce the moral strain they are feeling.
Milgram proposed a number of ways that the individual uses such as shifting the responsibility to the victim or denying the damage they were doing to the victim
Legitimacy of authority
Explanation of obedience which suggests that we are more likely to obey people who we perceive to have authority over us. This authority is justified by the individual’s position of power within a social hierarchy.
Why is legitimacy of authority good sometimes.
Most of the time we accept the fact that authority figures haver to be allowed to exercise social power over others because this allows society to function smoothly
What is the consequence of legitimacy of authority
it allows some people the power to punish others
Why do problems arise when legitimate authority becomes Destructive authority
Destructive authority is dangerous as history shows charismatic + powerful leaders can use their legitimate powers to order people to behave in callous, cruel, dangerous and stupid ways (Hitler).
This displayed in Milgram’s study by using prods, ordering participants to behave in ways against their consciences
How is legitimacy increased
through symbols of authority such as uniform.
e.g. Milgram’s variation in uniform
