Obedience: Situational Explanations

Question 1

Explanation 1: Agentic State

Answer 1

Acting as the ‘agent’ of someone in authority –> easy to deny personal responsibility for our actions - ‘‘just doing our job / just following orders’’.

Question 2

Agentic Shift

Answer 2

2 ways of behaving:
Autonomous state: individuals direct own behaviour, take responsibility for consequences.
Agentic state: allow others to direct behaviour, pass on responsibility.

Agentic Shift: Ppl move from auto to agentic –> when confronted by authority figure.

Question 3

Binding Factors

Answer 3

1) Binding Factors - aspects of a situation that allow person to ignore/minimise the damaging effect of their behaviour & reduce the ‘moral strain’ they feel –> makes it difficult to stop.

2) Moral Strain: obeying order that goes against our conscience can cause moral strain (results when we do smthin we believe is immoral in order to function as an agent of authority).

Question 4

Social Hierarchy

Answer 4

1) Most societies are structured hierarchically - ppl in certain positions hold authority over us, e.g. parents, teachers, police.
–> These authorities have legitimacy through society’s agreement so we accept that they can exercise social power over others.

2) Legitimate authority have power to punish others - we give up some independence to ppl we trust to exercise authority properly.

3) Leaders use legitimate powers for destructive purposes (e.g. Hitler, Stalin) - Ordering ppl to behave in cruel & dangerous ways.

Question 5

Explanation 2: Legitimacy of Authority

Answer 5

More likely to obey ppl who have more authority –> this authority is justified (legitimate) by individual’s position of power within social hierarchy.

Question 6

Kelman & Hamilton

Answer 6

3 Factors to Explain Obedience:
1) Legitimacy of System
- the extent to which the ‘body’ is a legitimate source of authority (gov, army, school, family)

2) Legitimacy of Authority within System
- the power individuals hold to give orders because of their position in the system –> linked to status & hierarchy within establishment.

3) Legitimacy of Demands
- extent to which the order is perceived to be a legitimate area for the authority figure (not reasonable for teacher to ask you to wash their car)

Question 7

Strength of Agentic State

Answer 7

RESEARCH SUPPORT

1) Milgram’s pps asked who is responsible if learner is harmed - experiment replied ‘I’m responsible’ –> pps went through procedure quickly without objecting –> shows pps acted more easily as an agent when they believed they weren’t responsible for their behaviour.

Question 8

Limitation of Agentic State

Answer 8

AGENTIC SHIFT DOESN’T EXPLAIN MANY RESEARCH FINDINGS

1) Research found most nurses disobeyed a doctor’s order to give an excessive drug dose.
2) Doctor was authority figure but nurses remained autonomous & didn’t shift - same is true for some of Milgram’s pps.
—> Shows agentic shift can only explain obedience in some situations.

Question 9

Strength of Legitimacy

Answer 9

LEGITIMACY CAN EXPLAIN CULTURAL DIFFERENCES

1) Research shows countries differ in obedience to authority.
E.g. 16% of Australian women obeyed, 85% of German pps obeyed.
—> Shows authority is more likely seen as legitimate in some cultures, reflecting upbringing.

Question 10

Limitation of Legitimacy

Answer 10

LEGITIMACY CANNOT EXPLAIN ALL OBEDIENCE

1) Ppl may disobey even when they accept the legitimacy of the hierarchal authority structure.
E.g. most of Rank & Jacobson’s nurses were disobedient, as were some of Milgram’s pps.
–> Suggests innate tendencies towards obedience may be more important than legitimacy of authority.