Milgrim

• Background question to Milgram's study (4)

  -The atrocity of the holocaust-Authority figures-Agency theory-Germans are different and how this inspired Milgram's workDuring WW2, millions of innocent people were killed on command by the Nazis during Hilter’s regime.This extreme example of obedience to anauthority figurehighlights the atrocities’ that can occur when people simply follow orders, evidenced by such a large number of people obeying to carry out such inhumane acts.This example of obedience highlighted the ability of people to move into anagentic state,recognising the need to obey and giving up their own free will to become an agent to authority.Events such as the WW2 prompted the‘Germans are different’ hypothesis, stating that Germans have a deficit which means that they have a readiness to obey people in authority regardless of the act that they are asked to carry out,prompting Milgram to conduct research to test his hypothesisthrough the use of American men.
• What was milgram's aim for this investigation

  To investigate what level of obedience would be shown when participants were told by an authority figure to administer electric shocks to another person.
• what were the participants told was the aim of the study in Milgram's study?


  study on memory and learning
• What was the sample for the milgram study? (3)

  -40 male

  -age 20-50

  -from New Haven
• What was the sampling technique for Milgram's study? (2)

  -Volunteer sampling: in response to a newspaper advert/direct mail advertisement

  -paid $4.50
• What were the quantitative results in Milgram's study?(3)

  -all 40 participants went up to 300V

  -65%(26) of partcipants obeyed

  -35%(14) of participants disobeyed
• What was the research method in Milgram's study?

  controlled observation, No clear IV or DV
• What study is the milgram study?

  obedience study
• Apparatus used (3)

  -shock generator

  -burn/blister cream

  -white lab coat
• What were the two confederates in Milgram's study

  -experimenter

  -victim
• What was the role of the experimenter in Milgram's study? (3)

  -played by a 31 year old biology teacher

  -introduced himself as Jack Williams

  -wore a white coat and appeared stern and emotionless
• What was the role of the victim in Milgram's study? (2)

  -played by Mr Wallace, 47 year old accountant trained for role

  -participants reported he was mild-mannered and likeable
• Where was the Milgram's study carried out?

  lab at Yale university
• What gave Milgram's study its high internal reliability?

  standardised prods such as 'please continue' made by the stren experimenter.
• Which p's were classed as obedient in Milgram's study?

  p's that administered all electric shocks up to 450V
• What was done to ensure the authenticity of the generator in Milgram's study? (2)

  -p's (teacher) was given a sample shock of 45V-volt battery

  -electrode paste was applied to learner's wrist(p's watched)
• Why was electrode paste administered to the learners wrist in Milgram's study?

  'to avoid blisters and burns' p's were told
• How was data collected in Milgram's study? (3)

  -p's were observed by observers behind a one-way mirror

  -filmed

  -occasionally photographed
• What would happen when the learner got answers incorrect in Milgram's study?

  - teacher (participant) would give a shock increasing by 15 volts each time
• What was the qualitative data collected in Milgram's study?

  p's showed signs of nervousness and tension e.g sweating trembling , 14 participants had nervous laughing fits
• What was Milgram's study conclusions? (3)

  -no such thing as an obedient type

  -in the wrong situation, we all enter the agentic state, obeying orders of an authority figure

  - German's are not different, situational factors led to rates of obedience
• What are some explanations for the high levels of obedience in Milgram's study? (3)

  -the experiment took place in the prestigious Yale university= credibility and respect

  -p's assumed researcher knew what he was doing because he was wearing a white lab coat, appeared stern and authoritative

  -an increasing sense of obligation due to being paid
• Strength of collecting both Quantitative and Qualitative data in Milgram's study? (2)


  -allows for objective measures of behaviour to be collected

  -shock value of each participant but also gives insight to responses from p's e.g sweating, nervousness
• What are some ethical issues? (3)

  deception on a number of occasions

  R2W-belived thst p's felt obligated to stay as they were being paid

  PofP-distress and nervousness
• What are some examples when there was deception in Milgram's study? (4)

  -Two false aims

  -role allocation

  -thought Mr. Wallace was a real P, was a confederate

  -believed shocks were real
• Milgram's response to ethical issues

  -Milgram said all p's had been told the R2W, they could keep the money regardless if they completed the exp

  -for PofP p's said they were glad they had come and had learned something valuable about themselves
• justification of deception in Milgram's study (2)

  -necessary to allow the study of natural behaviour e.g obedience to authority

  -if p's had not been deceived then they would have changed their behaviour e.g be less or more obedient
• Ways that Milgram's study had high ethical control? (4)

  -all p's debriefed straight after the study

  -introduced to the learner at the end to show he was ok

  -told their behaviour is normal

  -Milgram had an independent psychiatrist interview p's a year later, showing no long term psychological effects
• What are strengths of the sampling method in Milgram's study? (3)

  -reached a wider range of people with the advert

  -got men with varying occupations and ages

  -allows Milgram to be more confident that obedience does not occur for only a certain type of people
• What are weaknesses of the sampling method in Milgram's study? (2)

  -most bias form of sampling

  -they were paid therefore higher risk of demand characteristics than observing genuine obedience authority figures
• Why was demand characteristics not a problem in Milgram's study?

  because p's reactions seemed too real and natural
• Why did Milgram's study have low ecological validity? (2)

  -task was too extreme to be realistic e.g shocking someone to a lethal dosage

  -also conducted in a lab at Yale University
• Why did Milgram's study have high ecological validity? (2)

  -due to p's reactions being realistic e.g trembling, sweating

  -showing they thought the exp was real and there was experimental realism
• Weaknesses of the sample in Milgram's study (3)

  -p's were only from one area (New Haven)

  -may not be representative of all males

  -obedience observed may not reflect only the social norms of that area, other nationalities may have different norms of obeying authority figures
• What is a strength of the sample in Milgram's study?

  -quite restrictive: make some valid comparisons , to enable him to compare the average male to Germans soldiers so he can conclude that they aren't different.
• What is a strength of a controlled observation in Milgram's study (2)

  -standardised procedure, easily replicable to check for reliability

  -certain aspects of his procedure remained the same such as fixed role allocation, same environment at Yale university, responses from Mr Wallace (3 wrong for 1 correct), 4 prods used to encourage p's
• How does Milgram's study illustrate the situational debate?

  He argues it was due to theenvironmentthe study was carried out in (Yale University) and the influence of thepeople surroundingthe participant (Mr Wallace, The Experimenter) that caused the behaviour. The fact that 65% of participants went to 450 volts demonstrates the power of the situation.
• How does Milgram's study illustrate the individual debate?

  35% stopped before 450 volts demonstrating that they resisted the pressure of the situation providing an individual explanation as their personalities may have influenced whether they obeyed or disobeyed.
• How does Milgram's study illustrate the determinism debate?

  The Agency theory suggests that some social situations cause us to switch to a state of agency (agentic state). That is we recognise the need to obey through the situation and automatically enter a state of obedience.This is supported by the fact that 100% of participants gave a shock of at least 300 volts.Wegive up our own free willand conscience and become an agent of authority following the orders of an authority figure.
• How does Milgram's study illustrate the free will debate?

  We can link thisAgency theoryand the autonomous state. The fact that these participants actively did not obey the experimenter and stopped giving electric shocks suggests that either their conscience drove their behaviour.This is supported by the fact that35% of participants disobeyed the authority figure and stopped administering electric shocks before 450V. That they decided on their own that they wanted to stop.