Resistance to Authority: Defiance Flashcards
define resistance/dissent
disobedience - willingness to defy authority or refuse to follow order
define ‘salience of suffering’
the more noticeable/obvious the suffering of the victim is (e.g. screaming) the more likely resistance becomes
define authoritarian personality
a personality trait or type, measured by the F-Scale, characterised by respect for status and being more likely to follow orders from authority figures. People who do not have this trait are more likely to defy orders
define locus of control
someone with an internal locus of control believes they are autonomous and in control of their own actions. This makes them more likely to follow orders that they disagree with or think are wrong or immoral
define empathy
the ability to put yourself in someone else’s position: to understand and share in other’s feelings. This may be partly innate, but is also learned through socialisation during our upbringing. Being able to empathise with the victim may be a personal trait that makes resistance more likely
What factors make a person more likely to resist an authority figure?
situational and dispositional figures
What are some of the situational factors that make an authority figure more likely to resist an authority figure?
Low proximity of authority figure (affects level of autonomy/responsibility)
Low perceived legitimacy of authority figure (e.g. no outward appearance or title to indicate status or power)
Factors affecting empathy e.g. Suffering of the victim.
Factors affecting responsibility/autonomy e.g. proximity of victim/authority.
Social support- rebellious peers
Confusion about orders
What are some of the dispositional factors that might make an individual more likely to resist an authority figure?
Not having an authoritarian personality
Having an internal Locus of Control
Empathy
What are some times when knowing about obedience is useful for society?
Members of the armed forces apparently obey orders and then have to stand trial to check personal responsibility for their actions (defence being that they were in an agentic state and gave responsibility to the one giving the instructions)
People in authority e.g. prison guards, are sometimes seen to ‘overstep the mark’ in terms of brutality towards their prisoners (defence being that they were fulfilling their ‘strong’ role)
Carrying out instructions that are against their moral code (defence being that they were in an agentic state and that others would be likely to have done the same).
What research methods are used in ‘ factors affecting resistance/dissent’?
Field experiments and Interviews
What pieces of evidence are important for ‘factors affecting resistance/dissent’?
Gamson et al. (1982) and Oliner and Oliner (1988)
Why is Gamson et al. (1982) important for factors affecting resistance/dissent?
Gamson et al (1982), conducted a field study to investigate resistance to an unjust authority. Volunteers were put in groups of 9 and asked by a ‘consultant’ from a fictional HR company to discuss (whilst being filmed) a case where a petrol station manager had been sacked. It became apparent that the HR company were trying to get film of the group arguing in favour of the company’s decision to sack the manager, to be used in a court case. They found that 32/33 groups of participants rebelled in some way and in 25/33 groups the majority of group members refused to sign the consent form allowing the film to be used in court.
Why is Oliner and Oliner (1988) important for ‘factors affecting resistance/dissent’?
Oliner and Oliner (1988) used interviews to conduct a study of the ‘rescuers’ who had sheltered escaped Jews in Nazi Europe in defiance of the regime. Compared to a sample of 126 non-rescuers who had also lived through the war, the 406 rescuers tended to report an upbringing that emphasised social norms of helping others, often linked to the ethics of a family, community of religious group. Most rescuers emphasised their empathic responses to the suffering of the Jews they helped shelter.
Oliner and Oliner also found that the ‘rescuers’, who had resisted orders, were more likely to have a high internal locus of control, than the people who had not resisted. These results appear to support the idea that a high internal locus of control makes individuals less likely to follow orders, although there are many other factors that may have caused individuals to follow orders in WWII and it is difficult to conclude that locus of control is the only factor
