situational explanations: obedience

• the two situational explanations say the cause of obedience lies in social hierarchies, these are agentic state and legitimacy of authority.
• the agentic state is a mental state where we feel no personal responsibilty for our behaviour as we believe we are acting on behalf of an authority figure, freeing us from the demands of our conscience and allowing us to obey.
• • Milgram proposed destructive authority, the harming of others because they do not take responsibility.
  • rather, they believe they are an agent, acting for someone else.
  • the agent realises they are doing wrong, but feels they are powerless to disobey.
• the opposite of being in the agentic state, is being in the autonomous state - behaving according to their own principles and feel responsibilty for their actions.
• • the shift from the autonomous state to the agentic state is called the agentic shift
  • Milgram states this happens when a person percieves someone else as a figure of authority, with greater power in the social hierarchy.
  • in social groups, when one person is incharge others defer from autonomy to agency.
• why does the individual remain in the agentic state?

  Milgram says it is due to binding factors - aspects that allow the person to ignore or minimise the damage of their behaviour and reduce their moral strain

  • like shifitng responsibility to the victim.
• • legitimacy of authority is an explanation of obedience.
  • we are more likely to obey people we perceive to have authority.
  • the authority is justified (made legitimate) by their position in the social hierarchy.
• • people in certain positions have authority over us.
  • teachers, police & parents.
  • this is legitimate authority as it is agreed by society and allows it to run smoothly.
• • a consequence of legitimacy of authority is some people are granted the authority to punish others.
  • this can become destructive authority.
  • when powerful leaders, such as Hitler, use their legitimate authority to cause harm.
  • also apparent in Milgram's study.
• STRENGTH - RESEARCH SUPPORT:

  • Milgram's study supports agentic state - most resisted giving shocks at some point and often asked who would be held responsible if someone was hurt.
  • participants continued after being told the experimenter was responsible, this shows them as an agent.
• LIMITATION - THE 'OBEDIENCE ALIBI'

  • Mandel referred to an incident in WW2 involving German Rescue Police.
  • these men shot many civillians in a small town in Poland, despite not having direct orders to do so.
  • they were informed they could have other duties if they wanted to.
• STRENGTH - CULTURAL DIFFERENCES:

  • legitimacy of authority.
  • many countries differ in the degree of obedient authority.
  • Killham found only 16% of australian women went up to 450V.
  • very different in Germany - 85%.
  • authority is more likely to be accepted of legitimate authority in some cultures than others.