Variations of Milgram's study

• what were the three variations of Milgram's study?

  • Proximity
  • Location
  • Uniform
• what happened when the teacher and the learner were in the same room?

  • Participants who administered the full 450V dropped from 65% to 40%
  • obedience levels fell as teacher was able to experience learner's pain directly
• what happened when the teacher had to force the learner's hand directly onto the shock plate?

  • percentage of who administered full 450V dropped to 30%
• what happened when experimenter left room after initial instructions and gave subsequent instructions over the phone?

  • only 25% administered full 450 V and were more likely to defy the experimenter
• describe Milgram's location variation study?

  • conducted in a run down building in Bridgeport, Connecticut - experiment no longer associated with Yale University and was carried out by the Research Association of Bridgeport
  • full 450V dropped from 65% to 47.5%
  • less credible locations results in lower levels of obedience
• Describe Milgram's uniform variation study?

  • experimenter was called away by another 'participant' (confederate), in plain clothes, who was left to run the experiment
  • obedience levels dropped from 65% to 20%
• how does uniform affect obedience levels?

  • uniform conveys power and levels of authority can be easily recognised (e.g. police uniform)
• Describe Bickman (1974) New York study

  • used 3 male actors: one dressed as a milkman, one as a security guard and one in ordinary clothes
  • they asked members of the public to: pick up a bag, give money to a parking metre and to stand on a 'no standing' bus stop
  • obeyed guard 76% of occasions, obeyed milkman 47% and obeyed pedestrian 30%
• what was the percentage of obedience in the origional experiment?

  65%
• what was the percentage of obedience when experiment moved to an old office?

  47.5%
• what was the percentage of obedience when teacher and learner were in the same room?

  40%
• what was the percentage of obedience when teacher had to force the learners hand onto the shock plate?

  30%
• what was the percentage of obedience when experimenter gave orders over the phone?

  20.5%
• what was the percentage of obedience when experimenter left someone in plain clothes in charge?

  20%