Situational variables affecting obedience (proximity / location ) — Milgram Flashcards
Define obedience
To carry out an order / command of someone in a position of authority
What was milgrams aim for his experiment?
He wanted to study whether it would be possible for the holocaust to happen in America in the 1960s and why so many people obeyed Hitler’s commands to murder over 6 million Jews during the holocaust.
What was the method to Milgrams obedience study? (5 steps)
-advertised in local paper and 40 ppts (20-50years) volunteered to come to an experimental lab at Yale university.
-they were told the study was investigating learning + punishment, but was actually investigating ppts obedience to the experimenter.
-they were introduced to a confederate, told to be another ppt, and that they would be teaching them word pairs.
-the confederate was strapped to a chair as well as a shock box being attached to their arm
-from room next door, ppt pressed a button on a ‘shock box’ to punish the confederate whenever they got a wrong answer
Summarise the 3 things regarding the electric shock
-increased by 15 volts each time the learner got a wrong answer ( 15 all the way up to 450)
-above 450 volts were letters ‘xxx’ indicating a danger to life
-when ppt reached 330, the confederate would scream ‘let me out of here, you have no right to hold me here’
Whenever the ppt asked to stop what were the four standard prompts the experimenter would use?
1- ‘please continue’ / ‘please go on’
2 - ‘ the experiment requires that you continue’
3 - ‘it is absolutely essential that you continue’
4 - ‘you have no other choice; you must go on’
What was the truth about the confederate in the obedience study?
They were only an actor, who wasn’t harmed. At the end the ppts were introduced to them and to their relief confederate was unhurt.
What were the two results from milgrams study?
- all ppts went as far as 300 volts and five ppts (12.5%) stopped at this point
-26/40 (65%) went all the way up to 450 volts, even though psychiatrists had predicted only 1% of them would go this far
What does the results from milgrams study suggest about obedience?
Most people are obedient and would hurt someone if an authority figure told them to do so
What was the three forms of observation data collected from milgrams study ?
Ppts showed extreme tension
Several ppts had laughin fits resembling anxiety induced hysterical laughing
3 ppts had seizures,, one of which had severe convulsions, meaning the study had to be stopped
What were the 5 types of extreme tension ppts showed in milgrams study ?
- sweating
- trembling
- biting their lips
- groaning
-digging fingernails into hands
What is the main strength to milgrams obedience study?
Used a range of men outside the university who had normal jobs and ranged from 20 - 50 years.
This makes the study more generalisable compared to Asch’s / Zimbardo’s who only used students.
Why did milgram only use male ppts?
He wanted to avoid gender being a confounding variable
What were the two ethical issues and how were these both issues?
Deception - hid the true purpose of the study and used the confederate learner
Psychological harm to ppts- some felt guilt over hurting someone else, however they were debriefed and told that their behaviour was normal and that they didn’t act in a worrying / negative way
In the follow up questionnaire on milgrams study what percentage of ppts said they were glad they took part in the study?
84%
What did Baumrind claim regarding milgram’s study and what did Milgram do in response?
Claims he had placed his ppts under grant emotional strain + anxiety. The level of strain cased psychological damage that is unjustified.
However milgram did counter argue that he found no evidence of this ‘ psychological damage.’
