Social Influence Flashcards
Explanation for obedience: Milgrams study
Why did Milgram conduct the study
After WW2, everyone was confused how the Nazis killed so many innocent people
What was Milgrams hypothesis
Germans are a more obedient race than others
Method for Milgrams study
- Learner had to recall word pairs
- If learner got a word pair wrong, the Teacher(participant) had to electrocute them
- Every word pair the learner failed to recall, the shock went up 15 volts
Results for Milgrams study (quantitative)
Results (qualitative)
Quantitative= - 65% Completed all shocks (to maximum voltage)
Qualitative= - Observe behaviour
- Ask the participants
Conclusion from Milgrams study at Yale university in USA
Participants will obey instructions even if they’re immoral, and may harm another individual
Conclusion from milgrams study in other countries
Humans in general are an obedient race
Was Milgrams study too unethical? What qualitative insights did Milgram obtain after?
Milgram asked the participants;
- 83.7% were glad they took part
- 74% stated they learned something from experiment
Evaluation of Milgrams study
- Participants put under stress. LIMITATION, participants were not protected from harm, unethical
- Participants were deceived. LIMITATION, unable to give informed consent, unethical
- Artificial setting. LIMITATION, lacks ecological validity
- Only Male participants. LIMITATION, research cannot be generalised
- Participants were prompted to continue. LIMITATION, denied the right to withdraw, unethical
5 Milgrams variations
1) Location
2) Proximity
3) Uniform
4) Another individual administering shock
5) Social support
How did location vary in Milgram study
Affect on obedience
Why
- From prestigious university to old warehouse
- Obedience went down from 65%
- Due to legitimacy of authority decreased
How did proximity vary in Milgram study
Affect on obedience
Why
- Teacher(participant) went from different rooms to physically forcing learners hand on to shock plate
- Obedience decreased
- Due to more personal responsibility
How did uniform vary in Milgrams study
Affect on obedience
Why
- Experimenter wore jeans instead of a lab coat
- Obedience decreased
- Due to legitimacy of authority decreasing
How did another individual administering the shock vary in Milgrams study
Affect on obedience
Why
- Teacher(participant) told another individual to shock the learner over the phone.
- Obedience Increased
- Due to less personal responsibility
How did social support vary in Milgrams study
Affect on obedience
Why
- There were two “teachers”, one was a stooge. Stooge was told to refuse to obey
- Obedience decreased
- Due to conformity- presence of others influences participants behaviour
What’s an agentic state
Individuals see themselves as acting as an agent for an authority figure, therefore not responsible for personal behaviour
Hofling study (1966) on agentic state
Method, results and conclusion
Method= Nurses instructed over phone by a “Dr Smith” to give a drug to a patient, exceeding max dose, going against hospital protocol
Results= Nurses replies: - “I was doing what the Dr told me”
- “Not my responsibility if something bad happens”
- Conclusion= They’ll obey if they’re in an agentic state
Describe the dispositional explanation for obedience to authority (authoritarian personality), what are the main 3 characteristics?
- Hostile to those of lower status
- Blind respect for authority
- Pre occupation with power
Elms study (1966) on authoritarian personality
Method, results and conclusion
- Method= Follow-up on Milgrams study. 20 ‘obedient’ and 20 ‘defiant’ participants took the F-scale
- Results= ‘Obedient’ participants were more authoritarian, than ‘defiant’ participants
- Conclusion= Obedient people have an authoritarian personality
Explain one limitation of authoritarian personality as an explanation of obedience
- Authoritarian personality is measured by the F-scale, which is low in validity
Three factors to resisting social influence
1) Social support
2) Role models
3) Personal experience
Also type of locus of control is an explanation for resisting social influence
What effect did social support have on the obedience in Milgrams experiment
- Made level of obedience decrease
What’s locus of control
The sense an individual has about what directs events in life
What’s Internal locus of control
An individual is responsible for what happens
What’s External locus of control
Outside forces such as luck are responsible for what happens
