Obedience: Milgram's Research Flashcards
Who was the psychologist behind the obedience study?
Stanley Milgram
Why did Milgram do a study into obedience?
Milgram did his study into obedience to seek an answer of why a high proportion of German people supported Hitler’s plan to slaughter the Jews
What were the findings of the Milgram’s obedience research?
Milgram found none of the participants stopped below 300 volts, 12.5% participants stopped at 300 volts and 65% continued to the highest level of 450 volts
What was the procedure that Milgram used in his obedience research?
Milgram had 40 american men volunteer to take part in a study. Upon arrival, the volunteers were introduced to another participants (a confederate) and allocated roles from a rigged draw. The volunteers were always teachers and the confederates always became the “learners”. The “learners” were asked questions and if incorrect the “teacher” would deliver increasingly severe electric shocks. The shock level started at 15 volts and went through 30 levels, to 450 volts.
What is a limitation of Milgram’s obedience research? (fake set up + internal validity)
Psychologists have argued that participants behaved the way they did because the set up was fake. In this case, Milgram would not have been testing what he intended to test, making the study lack internal validity. Perry’s recent research confirmed this, as when the tapes of Milgram’s participants were listened back to, there were reports that many expressed doubts about the shocks
What is obedience?
Obedience is a behaviour that is compliance with a direct command, often issued by a person in power or authority
What is a strength of Milgram’s obedience research? (external validity + study on nurses)
Milgram’s study may lack external validity due to its lab settings. However the focus of this research was the relationship between the authority figure (experimenter) and the participant. Additionally, Milgram argued that the lab settings were accurate reflections of wider authority relationships in real life, with research supporting this argument. A study on nurses on a hospital ward found that levels of obedience to unjustified demands from doctors was very high. This suggests that the processes of obedience to authority that occurred in Milgram’s lab study can be generalised to other situations. So Milgram’s findings do have value and real life applications
What is a strength of Milgram’s obedience research? (cross cultural findings)
Milgram’s study had been replicated on a documentary about reality TV. The participants believed they were contestants in a game show. They had been paid to give (fake) electric shocks when ordered by the presenter. Remarkably, 80% of the participants delivered the maximum shock of 460 volts to an apparent unconscious man. Their behaviour was almost identical to that of Milgram’s participants - nervous laughter, nail biting and other signs of anxiety. This replication supports Milgram’s original conclusions about obedience to authority and demonstrates his findings were not just a one - off chance occurence
What is a limitation of Milgram’s obedience research? (ethical isues)
Milgram’s study raised ethical concerns about the treatment of research participants. It also provided an insight into the power of authority and situational factors in influencing behaviour. Milgram’s study highlighted the importance of understanding obedience, conformity and ethical conduct in both research and everyday life
