Milgrams Situational Variables Affecting Obedience

• What situational factors contributed to high obedience levels?

  • High-status Yale University setting
  • Experimenter in a lab coat
  • Participants volunteered and were paid
  • Feeling of 'just obeying orders'
• What does proximity refer to in Milgram's study?

  How close someone is to the victim
• How does proximity affect destructive obedience?

  Obedience decreases as proximity increases
• What happened when the Teacher and Learner were in the same room?

  Obedience dropped to 40%
• What was the obedience percentage when the Teacher forced the Learner's hand?

  30%
• What happened when the experimenter issued instructions by phone?

  Obedience dropped to 20.5%
• What conclusion did Milgram draw about proximity?

  It is a key variable in obedience
• How does uniform affect obedience?

  Authority figures are more likely to be obeyed
• What did Bickman's (1974) research show about uniforms?

  People obeyed a security guard more
• What effect did the experimenter's uniform have on participants?

  It made him appear officially in charge
• What was the purpose of Milgram's variations in the study?

  • To investigate factors affecting obedience
  • To explore the impact of proximity and uniform
• What does a uniform confer according to the study material?

  Authority
• How are authority figures often identifiable?

  By their uniforms
• What is a key marker of legitimate authority?

  A uniform
• What did Milgram want to explore regarding obedience and authority?

  Obedience decreases with less authority
• What did the experimenter wear in Milgram's original study?

  A grey lab coat
• How did the experimenter's appearance affect participants?

  He looked officially in charge
• What served as the experimenter's uniform in Milgram's study?

  The grey lab coat
• What variation did Milgram conduct regarding the experimenter's uniform?

  The experimenter left and was replaced
• What was the percentage of participants who went to 450 volts when the experimenter was in plain clothes?

  20%
• What conclusion did Milgram reach about uniforms?

  Uniforms confer authority and increase obedience
• What is one binding factor that explains obedience in Milgram's study?

  The location of the study
• Where did Milgram's original study take place?

  Yale University
• What reputation does Yale University have?

  A reputation for excellence
• How did the location affect participants' perception of the study?

  It conferred status and prestige
• What did Milgram want to explore regarding location and obedience?

  Obedience decreases with lower status locations
• Where did Milgram conduct a variation of his study?

  A run-down building in Bridgeport
• What was the name of the organization participants were told was running the experiment in Bridgeport?

  Research Association of Bridgeport
• What was the percentage of participants who went to 450 volts in the Bridgeport variation?

  47.5%
• What conclusion did Milgram reach about location and obedience?

  Location affects obedience levels
• What are the strengths of Milgram's situational variables evaluation?

  • Bickman's study supports situational variables
  • High ecological validity with naive participants
  • Standardized procedures enhance reliability
• What are the limitations of Milgram's situational variables evaluation?

  • Some variations hard to fake
  • Participant suspicion affects validity
  • Conclusions could be misused