OBEDIENCE: DISPOSTIONAL EXPLANATION

Question 1

Define dispositional explanation

Answer 1

Focus on individuals internal personality

Question 2

Why should obedience be explained through a combination of explanations

Answer 2

people believe obedience is not always explained by external factors and social structure as not all of Milgram‘s participants obeyed some rebelled in identical conditions= could be because of personality

Question 3

How can we link dispositional explanation to what inspired Milgram’s study

Answer 3

Milgram wanted to see if ‘Germans are different’⇒ explore this dispute explanation to see if their personalities were diff

Question 4

What is authoritarian personality (2)

Answer 4

Main personality type found to influenced obedience

Susceptible to obey those in authority→ Submissive to those in higher status and dismissive to those inferior

Question 5

Who developed the idea of AP

Answer 5

Adorno

Question 6

What did Adorno create

Answer 6

Fascism scale

Fascism- extreme right wing ideology

Question 7

What was the aim of Adornos AP study

Answer 7

Understand how ppl followed orders during holocaust⇒ investigate AP

Question 8

Explain the procedure of adornos AP study (3)

Answer 8

1. tested 2000 middle class white Americans & their unconscious attitude towards other racial groups
   
   2. Asked 50 questions in self report questionnaire eg ‘are obedience & respect for authority important to teach children?’
   3. They were asked to rate from 1-6 (1=disagree) on likert scale)

Question 9

What did Adorno find in AP study & theory behind these people (6)

Answer 9

• those scoring high on F-scale⇒ had AP
  
  • hostile to those perceived as weak→ showed deference & servility to those of high status & in authority
  • Believed strong and powerful needed to be in in authority
  • viewed sex, gender and race traditionally
  • inflexible to their outlook
  • had cognitive style: categorise people in fixed to stereotype

Question 10

What is the psychodynamic theory of origin behind AP (3)

Answer 10

Authoritarian parenting→ parents have high expectations and discipline from childhood

Experience created resentment in child⇒ can’t express feeling to parent bc of fear so displaced onto weaker= scapegoating 

Explain central traits of obedience to authority⇒ hated inferior

Question 11

Evaluate casual causation, What did milgram suggest (-ve) (4)

Answer 11

Those that score high on obedience score high on F-scale⇒ link between the 2

They’re 2 measurable variables that only correlate→ don’t show cause and effect as there’s no IV→ and so doesn’t mean it’s a cause 

Suggested that they may not even directly link together⇒ could be 3rd factor/variable involved→ eg bad education

Adorno cannot claim that a harsh parenting style caused a development of an Authoritarian personality, we must consider other explanations like legitimacy of authority.

Question 12

Evaluate political bias + what was suggested by johoda et al (3) (-ve)

Answer 12

F-scale measured tendency to fascism→ fascism is essential to AP⇒ thus can’t account for L-wing politics

Just as much evidence for L-wing authoritarianism (Eg starlin) 

Horse shoe theory= proves extreme L-wing and F-wing have lots in common⇒ both ideologies need total obey to legitimate political authority

Question 13

evaluate how adorno’s sample was biased (2)

Answer 13

– Only used 2000 middle class white Americans who are more likely to have an Authoritarian personality due to demographics and the time of the study

– Research lacks population validity and historical validity, so conclusions cannot be generalised to people outside the sample.