AO3

• uniform

  While a variation in which the experimenter was replaced by a person wearing normal clothes appears to suggest uniform is an important factor that affects obedience to authority, it is unclear from this variation alone whether the uniform is the contributing factor or whether the experimenter also appears as more legitimate due to his social status and role.
• Bickman conducted a field experiment in NYC where confeds stood on the street and asked members of the public who were passing by to perform a small task such as picking up a piece of litter or providing a coin for the parking meter. He found members of the public were twice as likely to obey the order given by the confed in a security guard uniform which supports Milgram's idea that a uniform adds to the legitimacy of the authority figure and is a situational variable which increases obedience levels.
• Kilman and Mann replicated Milgrams original study procedures in Australia and found that only 16% of the ppts shocked the learner at maximum voltage (450v) whereas Mantell showed it was 85% in Germany. This cross cultural comparison shows different societies follow alternative heirarchal structures and children may be socialised differently from a young age to be more, or less, obedient suggesting situational factors like uniform and proximity are important, other factors may be more significant in obedient behaviour.