SI - dispositional explanation for obedience (AO3)

Question 1

What is a limitation of the authoritarian personality theory? - Based on flawed methodology

Answer 1

===> Greenstein (1969) described F-scale as a ‘comedy of methodological errors’. All questions are worded in the same direction - possible to get a high score for ticking same line of boxes down one side. High-scorers may have been people pleasers and scale could just be measuring peoples’ tendency to agree (acquiescence bias). Jackson (1957) created a reversed version of F-scale where all items were reversed and gave both versions to a group of ppts. Found a strong positive correlation between both - opposite of what you would expect if the scale was valid

Question 2

What is a strength of the authoritarian personality theory? - Evidence to support the relationship between the 2 constructs (high obedience and authoritarian personality)

Answer 2

===> Milgram and Elms (1966) interviewed 20 fully obedient ppts. and 20 disobedient from Milgram’s original experiment. Positive correlation found between high levels of obedience and those with an authoritarian personality. However, some fully obedient ppts. had a good relationship with their parents opposing the theory of origin - there may be other factors involved rather than just strict parents (e.g a lower level of education)

Question 3

What is a limitation of the authoritarian personality theory? - Can’t fully explain all situations of obedience

Answer 3

===> In pre-war Germany, millions of individuals all displayed obedient, racist behaviour even though their personalities varied. An alternative explanation using social identity theory is more realistic - majority of German people identified with anti-Semitic Nazi state and ‘scapegoated’ the ‘outgroup’ of Jews, so they were obedient in spite of their personalities. Challenges the validity of the theory of the authoritarian personality

Question 4

What is a limitation of the authoritarian personality theory? - Isn’t a comprehensive explanation that can measure obedience across whole political spectrum

Answer 4

===> F-scale measures tendency towards an extreme right wing ideology. Christie and Jahoda (1954) argue this is a politically biased interpretation of authoritarian personality as it ignores left-wing authoritarianism. Many left and right-wing ideologies share similar concepts, including obedience to legitimate authority but this isn’t explained by the authoritarian personality theory of obedience.