Obedience

• Who conducted the obedience study in 1963?

  Stanley Milgram
• What hypothesis did Milgram aim to test with his obedience study?

  The dispositional versus the situational hypothesis
• What was the method used in Milgram's obedience study?

  • Volunteer sample of 40 Americans
  • Experiment on learning with deception
  • Rigged draw for roles (Teacher/Learner)
  • Learner strapped to electric shock machine
  • Mild shock was real
  • Experimenter used prompts like "You must continue"
• What percentage of participants delivered the full 450-volt shock in Milgram's study?


  65%
• What was the outcome for all subjects in Milgram's study regarding the 300-volt shock?

  All subjects went to 300 volts
• What theory does Milgram's study support?

  Agentic state theory
• What are the strengths of Milgram's study?

  • High population validity
  • Internal reliability (replicable)
  • Internal validity (control)
• What are the weaknesses of Milgram's study?

  • Right to withdraw issues
  • Ethical concerns (mental harm and deception)
  • Internal validity concerns at the beginning
  • Demand characteristics (artificial setting)
  • Low ecological validity
  • Low population validity (only American men)
• What situational variables did Milgram study that affect obedience?

  1. Proximity (same room: 40%, forced hand: 30%, orders over phone: 21%)
  2. Location (less prestigious setting: 48%)
  3. Uniform (member of the public: 20%)
• What did Hofling et al. (1966) study regarding obedience?


  • 22 nurses in a psychiatric hospital
  • Phoned by 'Dr. Smith' to give a patient a 20mg dose of Astroten
  • 21/22 obeyed, giving twice the legal dose
• What did Bickman (1974) find in his study on obedience?


  • Passers-by asked to pick up litter
  • 92% complied with security uniform
  • 42% complied with normal clothes
  • 47% complied with milkman uniform
• What is a strength of Milgram's findings in terms of replication?


  • Findings replicated in a documentary with participants believing they were on a game show
  • Supported original findings about obedience to authority
• What is a weakness regarding the internal validity of Milgram's study?


  • Low internal validity due to participants not believing in the setup
  • Demand characteristics may have influenced results
• What evidence supports the internal validity of Milgram's study?


  • Real shocks given to puppies in a separate study
  • 54% of men believed they were giving a fatal shock
• What ethical issues were present in Milgram's study?


  • Participants were deceived
  • Psychological harm was a concern
• What is the agentic state in the context of obedience?


  • A state where individuals see themselves as agents of others' orders
  • They do not feel responsible for their actions
• What is legitimate authority?


  • The social power held by an authority figure
  • Influences obedience through perceived power to punish
• What is gradual commitment in the context of obedience?


  • Becoming locked into obedience through small increments
  • Example: Milgram's experimenter taking responsibility for the teacher
• What did Rank and Jacobsen's study find regarding obedience?


  • 16/18 hospital nurses disobeyed a direct order from a doctor
  • Many remained autonomous, contrasting with Milgram's findings
• What is the 'obedience alibi' as described by Handel?


  • Refers to incidents where individuals acted autonomously despite authority
  • Example: German Reserve Police Battalion 101 during WWII
• How does legitimate authority explain cultural differences in obedience?


  • Some cultures are more likely to accept authority as legitimate
  • Example: Only 16% of Australian women went all the way in a Milgram-style study
• What is a limitation of legitimate authority in explaining obedience?


  • Cannot explain all instances of disobedience
  • Some individuals may have innate tendencies to obey or disobey
• What is the authoritarian personality according to Adorno?

  • Individuals with extreme respect for authority
  • Believe in strong leaders to enforce traditional values
• What are the three personality variables identified by Altemeyer in right-wing authoritarianism?


  1. Conventionalism
  2. Authoritarian aggression
  3. Authoritarian submission
• What did Elms and Milgram (1966) study regarding obedience?


  • Follow-up study on participants from Milgram's original study
  • Measured levels of authoritarianism using the California F-scale
• What did Elms and Milgram find regarding obedient participants?


  Higher levels of authoritarianism
• What are the strengths of Elms and Milgram's study?


  • High reliability due to standardized measures
  • Used the same California F-scale questionnaire
• What are the weaknesses of Elms and Milgram's study?


  • Chance of demand characteristics (participants could lie)
  • No clear cause-and-effect relationship
  • Low population validity (only 40 American men)
• What is a limitation of Adorno's theory on authoritarian personality?


  • Political bias in the F-scale
  • Does not account for obedience across the entire political spectrum