Y12 Social Influence: Explanations of Obedience - Agentic state and legitimacy of authority- JA Flashcards
What are the two explanations of obedience?
Legitimacy of authority and Agentic State
legitimacy of authority and agentic state are examples of what
explanations of obedience
What is meant by legitimacy?
Whether we accept something to be true
What is meant by Legitmacy of authority?
whether we accept the power and status of authority figures to be true
What is an authority figure?
someone we believe/perceive to have power
Give an example of an authority figure
parent, teacher, police officers
Who determines the power and status of authority figures?
Society
What does society determine in relation to authority figures?
their power and status
When we see someone as being a legitimate authority figure what do we accept?
Their credentials and believe they know what they are doing
What is ingrained in us from an early age when in the presence of an authority figure?
To Obey
How do we know we need to obey authority figure?
it is ingrained in us from an early age.
What is ingrained in us from an early age?
To obey authority figures.
How do we know we are in the presence of an authority figure?
If the authority figure is wearing a uniform or is located in a prestigious location
What can affect the legitimacy of an authority figure?
whether they are wearing a uniform and the location they are in
When we change the location or the uniform of the authority figure, why does our perception of authority change?
location and uniform act as a visual cue for authority, we may no longer see them as having power and status if they are not wearing uniform or they are not in a prestigious location.
What is meant by agentic state?
a state of mind where we remove responsibility from our selves to an authority figure
What is meant by being ‘an agent of others’?
you act on behalf of an authority figure
What do we call the state in which we believe we are responsible for our own actions?
Autonomous state
What is meant by an autonomous state?
where we believe we are responsible for our own actions
What do we call the process of moving from an autonomous state to an agentic state?
agentic shift
What is an agentic shift?
Where we move from our autonomous state to an agentic state
What is a famous example of agentic state?
Nazi Soldiers in World War 2
When does agentic shift occur?
when someone perceives somebody as an authority figure
agentic state: What determines whether we see someone as being an authority figure?
seeing if they have a higher position in a social hierarchy
When responsibility is passed to the authority figure, what does this remove from the individual?
they no longer feel guilty
Why do people no longer feel guilty when they act on the behalf of an authority figure?
They see themselves as carrying out the wishes of someone more knowledgeable
Out of autonomous state and agentic state, which one is more likely to obey?
agentic state
If the legitimacy of authority is affected, what happens to the levels of obedience?
it reduces the level of obedience
If we perceive the authority figure as being legitimate, are we less likely or more likely to obey?
More likely to obey
We are more likely to obey if the authority figure is perceived as…?
legitimate
The more legitimate a person perceives the authority figure to be, the more likely the are to shift from an _________________ state to an __________________ state?
autonomous state to an agentic state
We are more likely to shift from an autonomous state to an agentic state if the authority figure is perceived to be?
Legitimate
AO3: Research to support an agentic state as an explanation of obedience was seen in Milgram’s obedience study. Why? What did Milgram’s participants ask the researcher?
‘who is responsible if the learner is harmed?’
AO3: In Milgram’s original research participants asked the experimenter ‘who is responsible if the learner is harmed’? Which explanation of obedience does this support?
Agentic state
AO3: In Milgram’s original research participants asked the experimenter ‘who is responsible if the learner is harmed’? Why does this support agentic state?
Participants obeyed the experimenter when they no longer believed they were responsible for their own actions (they were in an agentic state).
AO3: Hofling’s research on hospital nurses can be used as research to support or contradict legitimacy of authority as an explanation of obedience?
Research to support
Whose research conducted on nurses supports legitimacy of authority as an explanation of obedience?
Hofling’s
Hofling’s research conducted on nurses supports which explanation of obedience?
Legitimacy of authority
AO3: Why did 21 out of 22 nurses agree to give a dangerous dose of medication to patients when given orders from a doctor over the phone?
They perceived the doctor as having more legitimate authority than them and therefore obeyed the order.
AO3: How many of the 22 nurses agreed to give a dangerous dose of medication to patients when instructed to by a doctor over the phone?
21
AO3: What did 21 out of 22 nurses agree to do in Hofling’s research when given direct orders from a doctor over the phone?
Administer a dangerous dose of medication
AO3: Can Hofling’s research also support agentic state as an explanation of obedience?
Yes
AO3: Why does Hofling’s research also support agentic state as an explanation of obedience?
The nurses may been in an agentic state and may have felt that the doctor was responsible as the authority figure and so obeyed the order to administer the deadly dose of medication.
AO3: The nurses may have felt that the doctor was responsible as the authority figure for their actions of administering a dangerous dose of medication. Which explanation of obedience would this support?
Agentic state
