Obedience: Dispositional explanation

• Adorno et al (1950)

  High obedience is a psychological disorder
• Dispositional explanation

  Causes of such obedience is due to the individuals personality
• Authoritarian personality

  Show extreme submissiveness to authority

  Viewing society as weaker than it was so leaders are needed
• Origins of authoritarian personality

  Begins in childhood as a result of harsh parenting

  Parents giving conditional love
• Adorno et al research (1950)

  Study of 2000 middle class white Amercian’s unconscious attitudes to other ethnic groups
• The F-scale

  Used to measure authoritarian personality

  Scoring high means authoritarian
• Aspects of authoritarian

  Identified with strong people

  Conscious of everyone’s status

  Showed extreme obedience to high status people

  Black and white thinking

  Stereotypes and prejudice