Obedience is
complying with the
demands of an
authority figure.
It is generally
one-on-one
but can also
be a group of
people.
Milgram did a study in
which 40 American
male volunteers took
part what they thought
was an experiment
about the effects of
punishment on learning.
The real participant was a 'teacher' and a confederate was the 'learner'.
The participant believed they were giving the learner electric shocks when they got an
answer wrong. These shocks went up by 15V every time up to 450V which could be lethal.
The learner was in an adjacent room to the teacher, so the participant couldn't see what was happening.
Before the experiment began, the participant received a genuine 45V shock, to convince them it was real.
The obedience rate showed 62.5% going to the full 450V.
Many participants
showed signs of
distress such as
twitching, sweating
or giggling nervously,
digging their nails
into the flesh of their
arms and verbally
attacking the
experimenter.
Three participants
had seizures.
Some participants
showed little or no
signs of discomfort.
Evaluation.
Milgram's paradigm has been used across many countries. These can be quite
hard to compare but varying obedience rates were found e.g. 40% in Australia,
50% in Spain. This may be due to cultural differences towards authority.
Milgram's experiment was intended
as a pilot study, but because of the
high obedience rate he continued
and made his variations.
It was hoped that since his study blind obedience
rates would decrease but they have not.
Variations:
Victim is silent
throughout - 100%
Study is performed in a
run-down office block - 48%
Teacher only
reads out the
words, a
confederate gives
the shock - 92.5%
Teacher is paired with two
disobedient confederates - 10%
Ethical issues:
Psychological
harm.
Milgram exposed his
participants to severe
stress, however, only 2%
had any regrets and 74%
said they had learned
something useful about
themselves.
Deception
and informed
consent.
Only after
participants
agreed to
take part
were electric
shocks
mentioned.
Participants didn't
know the true nature
of the study.
Right to
withdraw.
Milgram argued that
participants did have a
right to withdraw, and
35% did, however the
right to withdraw was not
specified beforehand and
were given many 'verbal
prods' to continue.
Naughty
nurses
study.
21/22 nurses. 20mg rather
than 10mg. Unfamiliar drug.
Unfamiliar doctor.
Authorisation not signed.