Social Influence- obedience to authority Flashcards
What is obedience?
When we follow the instructions of an authority figure.
Differences between conformity and obedience?
Conformity is where the social norms of the majority exert influence. The social influence comes from the majority. Also, individuals may not be consciously aware that they are conforming. Conformity can be long term and involve a permanent change in attitude.
Obedience is when an authority figure is involved. The social influence comes from an authority figure. Individuals are usually aware that they are obeying. Obedience is usually temporary and doesn’t involve a change in attitude.
Aim of Milgram’s obedience to authority study?
To investigate what level of obedience would be shown when participants were told by an authority figure to administer electric shocks to another person.
Method of Milgram’s obedience to authority study?
40 male participants were recruited via an advert. Took place at Yale university. They were told it was a study on ‘the effects of punishment on learning and memory’. However, it was actually looking at obedience to authority. The real participant was the ‘teacher’, and the ‘learner’ was a confederate. The learner was in a separate room, and could be heard but not seen. The teacher was told to administer an electric shock (which went up by 15 volts, to a maximum of 450 volts) each time the learner got a question wrong. No shocks were actually given, but the participants believed they were real. As the shocks increased the participants heard the learner shout out in pain, protest and eventually ask to leave. After 300V the learner made no further sounds. The experimenter would give the participants ‘verbal prods’ if they asked to stop.
Results of Milgram’s obedience to authority study?
-All participants continued up to 300 volts.
-65% of participants (26) continued up to the maximum voltage (450 volts- a lethal voltage).
-Despite high levels of obedience, participants who took part in the study generally displayed signs of nervousness and tension. Many were visibly uncomfortable and probably would not have continued without the ‘verbal prods’ from the experimenter. At the end of the study, many of the obedient participants were relieved or shook their heads in regret.
Conclusion of Milgram’s obedience to authority study?
Ordinary people will obey orders from an authority figure, to the extent that they will hurt an innocent person. They will do so even if it acts against their conscience. Milgram concluded that this obedience was situational and not dispositional.
Evaluation of Milgram’s obedience to authority study?
+ A strength is that he conducted a laboratory experiment. There was high control of variables (high internal validity). The high level of control allows the study to be replicated to test for reliability. Also possible to establish cause and effect.
+ Research evidence to support the influence of situational variables. Bickman (1974) looked at the effect of uniform on obedience. They had a confederate dressed either in a jacket/tie or as a milkman or as a security guard to ask a passer-by to provide a coin for the parking meter. They found that people were twice as likely to obey the ‘security guard’ than the ‘jacket/tie’ confederate. This supports Milgram’s conclusion that a uniform conveys authority and is a situational factor that can influence obedience.
-Ethical issues. There was deception as they were told it was a study on the effects on punishment on learning rather than obedience. Participants also had no protection from psychological harm as they were prodded to continue shocking the learner. Makes the experiment difficult to replicate for reliability.
-Lacks ecological validity (mundane realism) as this is an artificial situation.
-Lacks internal validity as some participants may have realised the procedure was fake due to experimental manipulation. Even Milgram recognised that one variation was so contrived that some participants might have figured it out. (demand characteristics)
Situational variables affecting obedience
-Proximity (teacher to learner, researcher to teacher)
-Location
-uniform
-Two teacher condition
How location affects obedience
-The location was moved to a run down office block. The researcher wears jeans and a t-shirt.
-% of people obeying= 48%
-Suggests that obedience drops when the authority figure has less legitimate power through location and clothing.
How uniform affects obedience
-The experimenter was called away because of an ‘inconvenient’ phone call right at the start of the procedure and his role was taken over by an ‘ordinary member of the public’ (confederate) who wore normal clothes, not a labcoat.
-% of people obeying= 20%
-Obedience drops considerably when the authority figure is not seen to have legitimate authority.
How multiple teachers affects conformity
-Participants could instruct an assistant (confederate) to press the switches. When less personal responsibility is placed on individual, obedience increases. Relates to Milgram’s Agency theory.
-% of people obeying= 92.5%
-Obedience rises considerably when there is less personal responsibility.
How proximity of researcher to teacher affects conformity
-The experimenter gave orders over the phone rather than being in the same room as the participant.
-% of people obeying= 20%
-Obedience drops when the authority figure is not face to face with the person they are giving orders too.
How proximity of teacher to learner affects conformity
Both teacher and learner are in the same room
-% of people obeying= 40%
-If the teacher can see the learner it is harder to obey the authority figure because the learner is no longer depersonalised.
