other studies have demonstrated the influence of situational variables on obedience
A fieldexperiment in NewYork City, Bickman1974 had threeconfederatesdress in differentoutfits - jacket and tie, a milkman'soutfit and a securityguardsuniform
Confederatesindividuallystood in the street asking passers by to performtasks such as picking up litter
People were twice as likely to obey the assistant dressed as a security guardthan the one dressed in jacket and tie.
This supports the view that a situational variable ie uniform does have a powerfuleffect on obedience
STRENGTH:
Findings have been replicated in othercultures
IE Meeus and Raaijmakers1986 used a more realisticprocedure than Milgram's to study obedience in Dutch pp
Pp were ordered to say stressfulthings in an interview to someone (a confederate) desperate for a job
90% of the ppobeyed
Researchers also replicatedMilgram'sfindings concerning proximity
When the person giving the orders was notpresentobediencedecreased dramatically
Suggests that Milgramsfindings about obedience aren't just limited to Americans or men but are valid acrosscultures and apply to women too
COUNTERPOINT:
replications of Milgram's research are notverycross-cultural
Smith and Bond (1998) identified just two replications between 1968 and 1985 that took place in India and Jordan - both countriesculturally quite different from the US
Whereas the other countries involved (e.g. Spain, Australia, Scotland) are culturally quite similar to the US (e.g. they have similarnotions about the role of authority).
Therefore, it may not be appropriate to conclude that Milgram'sfindings (including those about proximity, location and uniform) apply to people in all or mostcultures.