Social Psychology Flashcards
Define obedience
obeying direct orders from someone in authority
why did Milgram begin his research
to focus on the issues of why Nazi soldiers obeyed orders to perpetrate the genocide of Jewish people
and to see if all people would obey in similar circumstances
what were the aims of Milgrams basic study
to test the idea that Germans were somehow different from other people
to see if volunteer participants would obey orders to give electric shocks to someone they thought was just another participant
describe the procedure of Milgrams basic study - sampling
advertised for participants to take part in a human learning experiment at Yale University
they would be paid $4.50
from New Haven
ages 20-50
professions included engineers, teachers, postal workere
describe the procedure of Milgrams basic study
- drew fixed lots to decide who would by the teacher and learner (ppt would always be teacher and confederate always learner)
- Milgram reassured participants that the shock would be painful but there would be no permanent tissue damage
- ppts given a 45V shock to see how equipment worked, then watched confederate get wired up
- ppts then taken to different room where switches were in a row from 15-450V with comments like ‘slight shock’ and ‘danger’
- ppts told to move up one switch every time conf got question wrong
- task required ppts told read out word pairs eg blue box, nice say
- up to 75V there was no indication the shocks caused distress, but then learner gave grunts and at 120V shouted the shocks were becoming painful
- Milgram and confederate working to script at 270V - agonised screams, at 300V learners refused to give answer
- 5 verbal prods were given before ppt could stop
what were the results of Milgrams basic study
26/40 men and 26/40 women continued til end of
65% obeyed to 450V
100% obeyed to 300V
14/40 showed nervous laughter and smiling
3 had seizures - on one occasion had to stop experience due to severity
what were the conclusions of Milgrams basic study
social influence is strong and people obey orders even when it causes them distress
What were the 3 variations of Milgrams original study
rundown office block
telephonic instructions
ordinary man gives orders
how was the run down office block different to the original
19/40 obeyed (47.5%)
Different location meant that they were not told it was run by Yale - lack of prestige and authority
conclusions - obedience didn’t drop that much so having a legitimate setting doesn’t have an effect
how was the telephonic instructions experiment different to the original
experimentor left lab and communicated by telephone tape recordings
results - 22.5% obeyed
ppts didn’t realise they were being watched so cheated
conclusions - proximity does have an effect as when experientor is not face to face it is easier not to obey
how was the ordinary man gives orders experiment different to the original
before experimenter can get started, he gets called away and leaves the room
when experimenter leaves room the accomplice suggests a new way of doing the study (the usual procedure)
only 20% obeyed
Define moral strain
When people come uncomfortable with their behaviour because they feel it is wrong and it goes against their values
