Social Influence L8 - Situational Explanations Of Obedience

Question 1

What are the two main explanations of obedience

Answer 1

Agentic state theory
Legitimacy of authority

Question 2

Who proposed the Agentic state theory

Answer 2

Milgram

Question 3

Why did he propose the agentic state theory

Answer 3

• Milgram’s initial interest in obedience was due to the trial of Adolf Eichmann in 1961 for war crimes.
• Eichmann had been in charge of the Nazi camps and his defence was that he was only obeying orders.
• This lead Milgram to propose that obedience to destructive authority occurs because a person does not take responsibility – instead they are acting for someone else, in other words, they are acting as an ‘agent

Question 4

What’s an ‘agent’

Answer 4

can be defined as someone who acts for or in place for another

Question 5

Agentic state theory

Answer 5

Milgram argued that people act in two ways:
- as independent individuals
- in an agentic state

Question 6

When acting as individuals

Answer 6

• When acting as independent individuals, people are aware of the consequences of their actions and make decisions knowing they will be held account for the consequences.
• This is also known as the autonomic state

Question 7

When in an agentic state

Answer 7

• When in an agentic state (state in which a person carries out orders with little personal responsibility) an individual sees themselves as under the authority of another, not responsible for the actions they take
• In this state they will often carry out an order without question

Question 8

What’s an agentic shift

Answer 8

The change from an autonomous (independent) state to the agentic state

Question 9

Why does the agentic state theory occur?

Answer 9

• Milgram (1974) suggested that this occurs when a person perceives someone else as a figure of authority.
• This other person has greater power because of their position in a social hierarchy

Question 10

Why does an individual remain in the agentic state?

Answer 10

• Milgram argued that the reason was due to binding factors
• These bindings factors include aspects of the situation that allow the person to ignore the damaging effects of their behaviour and thus reduce the ‘moral strain’ they are feeling and shifting the responsibility to the victim (e.g. why did he agree to take part and he was foolish to volunteer)
• This helps the person feel calm and in control because they feel that what they are doing is not their fault and that they are merely agents following orders – the fault lies in the victim and authority figure

Question 11

Milgram applying the theory to his own study

Answer 11

• Milgram argued that participants viewed themselves as subordinates of the experimenter not responsible for their own actions.
• In support when Milgram’s participants were debriefed after the original electric shock experiment, many reported that they knew it was wrong to deliver dangerous electric shocks, but that they felt they were expected to obey the experimenter

Question 12

Evaluation of the agentic state theory

Answer 12

strengths
Research support
weaknesses
Doesn’t obey all research findings
Research refuted idea in nazi germany

Question 13

Research support (agentic state theory)

Answer 13

• The theory actually makes sense in explaining why we obey authority and is supported by research
• For example, Blass and Schmitt (2001) showed a film of Milgram’s study to some students and asked them who was responsible for harming the learner Mr Wallace
• The students blamed the experimenter rather than the participant
• The students also indicated that the fact that the experimenter was a scientist – at the top of the hierarchy thus had authority – the participants were merely agents and following orders from the scientist

Question 14

Doesn’t obey all research findings

Answer 14

• However, this theory does not explain many other research findings such as why some of the pps did not obey the authority figure in Milgrams study
• It also does not explain why one of nurses in Holfling’s study did not give the drug prescribed by the doctor who is higher up in the hierarchy than a nurse whereby a nurse is merely the agent!
• In fact, it does not explain the findings of Rank and Jacobson’s study where only 2/18 nurses were willing to give the drug prescribed by the doctor. Clearly the agentic state theory is not explaining why people who are ‘agents’ still do not obey

Question 15

Research refuted by nazi germany

Answer 15

• Another limitation of the ‘agentic state’ explanation is that research evidence has refuted the idea that the behaviour of the Nazi’s can be explained in terms of the agentic state
• For example, Mandel (1998) explained one incident involving German Reserve Police Battalion 101 where men obeyed orders to shoot civilians in Poland
• Infact, these men were not given any direct orders to do so and were told that they could do other duties if they preferred.
• The Police still preferred to carry out the shootings – this example shows that the agentic state theory does not explain obedience since the police were not acting as agents as they did not have to shoot – however they still chose to – why?
• So, this theory at best explains some situations in which we obey authority but not all.

Question 16

Legitimate authority theory

Answer 16

• Most societies are structured in a hierarchical way
• This means that people in certain positions hold authority over the rest of us such as parents, teachers, police
• Also, from early childhood, we are socialised to obey certain legitimate authority figures
• This refers to the amount of social power held by the person who gives the instruction
• We are taught that we should obey such people with legitimate authority because we trust them, or because we fear punishment

Question 17

Consequences of legitimacy of authority

Answer 17

• some people are granted the power to punish others
• e.g. in society we accept that the police and the courts are allowed to punish criminals

Question 18

Legitimate authority figure in Milgram’s study

Answer 18

• the legitimate authority figure was a scientist
• We are taught to have respect for scientists, and his white lab coat, manner of speaking and fact he worked for Yale University added to his authority

Question 19

What is often a symbol of legitimate authority

Answer 19

• Uniforms are often a symbol of legitimate authority
• This explains Bickman’s study showing that individuals are more likely to obey an order from a stranger wearing a uniform

Question 20

When did legitimate authority become destructive

Answer 20

• e.g. history has shown how powerful leaders such as Adolf Hitler use their legitimate powers for destructive purposes (e.g . the HOLOCAUST)
• Destructive authority was shown in Milgram’s study when the experimenter used prods on the pps to administer lethal electric shocks to an innocent

Question 21

Evaluation of legitimate authority

Answer 21

strengths
Examples - can lead to war crimes
Explains cultural differences in obedience
weaknesses
Not all legitimate authority figures should be obeyed

Question 22

Examples - can lead to war crimes

Answer 22

• We need to have legitimate authority figures in a well-functioning, ordered society thus a strength of this explanation is it explains the functioning of a civilised nation
• e.g. legitimate authority figures such as the police help prevent crime – without the police, society would not function well
• Also, this explanation can help explain how obedience can lead to real-life war crimes
• e.g. Kelman and Hamilton (1989) argue that the My Lai massacre can be understood in terms of the power of the hierarchy of the US Army
• The My Lai massacre took place in 1968 during the Vietnam War. 504 civilians were killed, women were gang-raped. The soldiers blew up buildings, burnt the village and killed all the animals
• Only one soldier was found guilty and faced charges – his defence was the same as the Nazi officers who went to trial at Nuremburg – that he was only doing his duty to follow orders!
• This clearly shows how the legitimacy of authority theory works in real life – the hierarchical US Army follows orders from their seniors as is what happened in My Lai

Question 23

Explains cultural differences in obedience

Answer 23

• Another strength of this explanation is that it explains cultural differences in obedience e.g. Kilham and Mann (1974) replicated Milgram’s study in Australia and found 16% went to the full voltage
• However, Mantell (1971) who replicated Milgrams’s study in Germany found an 85% obedience rate
• Both these studies show the cultural differences in perceived legitimacy of authority and how different cultures have different upbringings thus strengthening the legitimacy of authority explanation.

Question 24

Not all legitimate authority figures should be obeyed

Answer 24

• Sometimes we will obey a legitimate authority figure because of their status even if we disagree with their order
• Milgram’s study showed that people will obey a legitimate authority figure even if obedience led to harm to another person.
• In real life there have been examples of legitimate authority figures who have abused their power
• Harold Shipman, as a doctor, was a well known example; because he was a trusted, justified authority figure he was able to kill over 200 patients without suspicion
• He targeted old wealthy women, convinced them to change their will and gave wrong drug to kill them - undetectable
• This suggests that a balance must be struck between teaching children to obey authority figures, but also encouraging them to sometimes question the orders they give just in case the order are destructive – therefore we should teach our children to question the legitimate authority if they are making unethical demands!