Paper 1 - Social Influence - Topic 1 - Obedience: Situational Explanations

Question 1

What is the agentic state?

Answer 1

The agentic state is a condition where a person does not take responsibility for their actions, believing they are acting on behalf of an authority figure

Question 2

Who sparked Stanley Milgram’s interest obedience?

Answer 2

Stanley Milgram’s interest in obedience was sparked by the trial of Adolf Eichmann in 1961 for war crimes

Question 3

What is an agent?

Answer 3

An agent is someone who acts for or in place of another

Question 4

What is moral strain?

Answer 4

Moral strain is the anxiety experienced by individuals when they realise their actions are wrong but feel powerless to disobey

Question 5

What is the opposite the agentic state?

Answer 5

The opposite of the agentic state is the autonomous state, where a person behaves according to their own principles and feels responsible for their actions

Question 6

What is the agentic shift?

Answer 6

The agentic shift is the transition from autonomy to agency, occurring when a person perceives someone else as an authority figure

Question 7

What are binding factors?

Answer 7

Binding factors are aspects of a situation that allow a person to ignore or minimise the damaging effects of their behaviour, reducing moral strain

Question 8

What is the legitimacy of authority?

Answer 8

Legitimacy of authority refers to the accepted social structure where certain individuals hold authority over others, allowing society to function smoothly

Question 9

What happens when legitimate authority becomes destructive?

Answer 9

Problems arise when legitimate authority is used for destructive purposes, as seen with leaders like Hitler and Stalin

Question 10

What did Milgram’s studies show about the agentic state?

Answer 10

Milgram’s studies support the agentic state, showing that participants acted more easily as the Experimenter’s agent when they perceived they were not responsible for their actions

Question 11

What is a limitation of the agentic shift?

Answer 11

The agentic shift does not explain all instances of obedience, as shown in studies where individuals disobeyed authority figures

Question 12

What did David Mandel describe about German Reserve Police Battalion 101?

Answer 12

Mandel described how members of Battalion 101 shot civilians despite not having direct orders, challenging the agentic state explanation

Question 13

How does legitimacy explain cultural differences in obedience?

Answer 13

Legitimacy of authority accounts for cultural differences, as shown by varying obedience rates in studies conducted in different countries

Question 14

What is a limitation of the legitimacy explanation?

Answer 14

The legitimacy explanation cannot account for disobedience in hierarchical structures where authority is clear and accepted

Question 15

What did Rank and Jacobson find about nurses and authority?

Answer 15

Rank and Jacobson found that nurses disobeyed a legitimate authority figure, challenging the idea that legitimacy always leads to obedience

Question 16

What do Kelman and Hamilton argue about real-world crimes of obedience?

Answer 16

Kelman and Hamilton argue that real-world crimes of obedience, like the My Lai massacre, can be understood through the power of hierarchy of the military