Obedience: Situational factors Flashcards
What is gradual commitment?
When an individual is asked to perform a seemingly harmless task so they will find it harder to refuse further tasks that escalate to something more serious
What is an example of gradual commitment using a study?
In Milgram’s experiments, shocks started at 15V and went up in 15V increments up to 450V
- increase from 15V to 450V would seem less drastic
How does proximity affect the level of obedience?
The closer the authority figure, the more obedient an individual is likely to be
What is the difference between ‘physical proximity’ and ‘psychological proximity’?
Physical - distance between the individual and the authority figure
Psychological - how aware the individual is of the authority figures position
What is meant by a ‘buffer’?
An aspect of a situation that protects people from seeing the consequences of their actions
- distance can act as a buffer to obedience
What is an example of a buffer in Milgram’s study?
The wall separating the learner and the teacher
- stopped the teacher from seeing the affect of his shocks to the learner
How does location affect the level of obedience?
- A prestigious and maybe unfamiliar location adds credibility to orders given by authority
- A familiar location may make individual relaxed and more likely to disobey
How does uniform affect the level of obedience?
In Milgram’s study, the experimenter wore a lab coat which indicated that he possessed scientific expertise so would have increased obedience due to being seen as a legitimate authority
Which variation of Milgram’s experiment supports the idea of uniform affecting obedience?
‘Ordinary man gives orders’ variation
- significant decrease in obedience
How does personal responsibility affect levels of obedience?
An individual is more likely to obey when personal responsibility is removed
- diffusuion of responsibility
Strength of situational factors
Weakness of situational factors
