Agency Theory

• What type of theory is Agency Theory considered to be in psychology?

  Compulsory theory
• Besides general questions, what other type of questions might an exam ask about Agency Theory?

  Specific questions
• According to the text, what should students be prepared to explain regarding Agency Theory?

  Strengths and weaknesses
• What are the key terms associated with Agency Theory?

  • Autonomous State
  • Agentic State
  • Authority Figure
  • Moral Strain
  • Situational Hypothesis
• Who developed Agency Theory?

  Stanley Milgram
• What is the name of Milgram's famous study that contributed to the development of Agency Theory?

  Obedience Studies
• What historical event prompted Milgram to develop his ideas about Agency Theory?

  Nazi war crimes
• Whose trial, in particular, influenced Milgram's thinking?

  Adolf Eichmann
• What type of explanations did Milgram reject regarding the Nazi war crimes?

  Dispositional explanations
• What other explanations did Milgram reject regarding the persecution of Jews?

  Realist explanations
• According to the text, what aspect of decision-making does Agency Theory highlight?

  Deterministic aspect
• How does Agency Theory relate to the Social Approach in psychology?

  Shows decisions are expressions of social situation
• What does Agency Theory help explain in relation to the Key Question in Social Psychology?

  Prejudice and how to reduce it
• In what city was Adolf Eichmann put on trial for war crimes?

  Jerusalem
• What did Eichmann claim during his trial?

  He was "only following orders"
• What two mental states does Agency Theory propose humans possess?

  Autonomous and agentic
• In the Autonomous State, how do individuals perceive responsibility for their actions?

  Responsible for own behaviour
• What emotion do individuals in the Autonomous State typically experience for their actions?

  Guilt
• In the Agentic State, how do individuals perceive responsibility for their actions?

  Authority figure is responsible
• What emotion do individuals in the Agentic State typically experience for their actions?

  No guilt
• According to Agency Theory, what triggers the agentic shift?

  Order from an authority figure
• What are the two contradictory urges that cause moral strain?

  Obey authority and obey conscience
• What is the term for the distress experienced when an order goes against one's conscience?

  Moral strain
• According to Milgram, what did participants use to lessen moral strain?

  Defence mechanisms
• What psychological concept did Milgram borrow from Freud to describe how participants lessened moral strain?

  Defence mechanisms
• What defense mechanism did some participants use by convincing themselves the shocks weren't dangerous?

  Denial
• What defense mechanism did some participants use by trying not to look at the Experimenter?

  Avoidance
• What defense mechanism did some participants use by only flicking switches lightly?

  Degree of involvement
• What defense mechanism did some participants use by stressing the correct answer?

  Helping the learner
• What type of explanation does Milgram offer for the Agentic Shift?

  Evolutionary explanation
• According to Agency Theory, what is the appeal of entering the Agentic State?

  Removes moral strain
• According to Milgram, why is obedience a survival trait?

  Enabled tribes to flourish
• Besides evolution, what other factor does Milgram believe plays a part in obedience?

  Conditioning
• What happens when we are respectful to authority figures, according to Agency Theory?

  We are rewarded
• What happens when we disobey authority figures, according to Agency Theory?

  We are punished
• What two concepts does the interplay of evolution and upbringing exemplify in psychology?

  Nature and nurture
• What did Milgram observe happening to the participants during his 1961 study?

  Agentic shift and moral strain
• In what year was Milgram’s famous study into obedience conducted?

  1961
• What book did Milgram publish in 1974 detailing variations on his original obedience study?

  Obedience to Authority
• How do Milgram's "variations" support Agency Theory?

  Show situational factors affect obedience