Agency theory Flashcards
What is Milgram’s agency theory? (3 points)
Proposes that obedience is caused by following the instructions of an authority figure - believed to be responsible for a person’s actions
Humans have two mental states: autonomous and agentic - shift triggered by an authority figure’s order
In the agentic state, the ‘agent’ who obeys the orders believes they are not accountable for their actions - can lead to them carrying out crimes or harming another person
Define ‘obedience’ and ‘dissent’.
Obedience - following the instructions of an authority figure
Dissent - not following the instructions of an authority figure
Define ‘agent’.
Someone who is the agent of someone else’s will and has an authority figure whose commands are responsible for their actions
Define ‘autonomous state’.
Perceiving yourself as responsible and having free will for your own behaviour
Define ‘authority figure’.
Someone who carries symbols of authority (eg. uniform) or possesses status (eg. rank)
Define ‘agentic state’.
Believing you aren’t accountable or responsible for your behaviour
Define ‘agentic shift’.
An order from an authority figure triggering the shift from autonomous to agentic
What is ‘moral strain’? (3 points)
A conflict between the authority figure’s command and a person’s moral conscience - trying to keep our self-image as “a good person”
Might appear as physical distress like shaking or weeping
Can manifest through the appearance of defence mechanisms e.g. denial or minimising the degree of involvement
What are the supporting and refuting arguments for agency theory as an explanation of obedience?
Supporting:
S - Hofling (1966)
C - Milgram and Burger
A - WWII
Refuting:
O - Elms and Milgram
D - Ethical implications
What are the strengths of Milgram’s Agency Theory? (3 points)
The concept of an authority figure carrying symbols of power and instigating a subordinate to undergo the agentic shift is supported by Hofling (1966)
Found that 21/ 22 nurses obeyed the instruction of a male doctor over the telephone, to administer a lethal dose of medication to patients, even though they knew it could cause serious harm (agentic state)
This shows, that research studies conducted in real-life settings support Milgram’s agency theory
How credible is Milgram’s Agency Theory? (5 points)
The concept of people experiencing moral strain has been observed using empirical research studies
Milgram’s original study of obedience showed that 65% of ‘teachers’ went on to administer electric shocks at 450V volts, despite knowing that this could cause serious harm to the ‘learner’
Its standardised procedure allowed for replication by others like Burger (2009), who found similar levels of obedience were still exhibited 50 years later
Both researchers reported that participants were shown to exhibit signs of moral strain e.g. ‘trembling, weeping and stuttering’
This suggests that agency theory can be considered falsified using quantitative data collection methods
Are there any other explanations for Milgram’s Agency Theory? (4 points)
Agency theory is also criticised for not considering the role of dispositional factors
Individual differences like gender, personality and culture may also impact the extent to which a person enters an agentic state and blindly follows the orders of an authority figure
Demonstrated by Elms and Milgram’s (1966) follow-up study using Adorno’s (1950) Fascism scale:
+ Sampled 20 obedient participants, who administered the full 450 volts and 20 disobedient participants, who refused to continue
+ The fully obedient participants scored higher on the F-Scale, demonstrating greater authoritarian personality traits
Is there room for debate involving Milgram’s Agency Theory? (4 points)
Wider ethical implications - could be used by an individual as an excuse when committing a crime since people believe they are not accountable for their behaviour
During the trials following the Holocaust, Adolf Eichmann, a key strategist who coordinated large-scale operations to deport mass groups of Jewish people, portrayed himself as an obedient bureaucrat who was ‘just following orders’
He claimed, ‘I had nothing to do with that business of extermination, I was responsible for the transport of people only’
Potentially negative consequences for society - people could use it to try and justify inhumane acts which may lead to lighter sentencing in the court of law
How easily can Milgram’s Agency Theory be applied to real-world contexts? (3 points)
Has strong application to real life through the hierarchies present in society which provide a backdrop for human obedience
World War II:
Soldiers believed to be in the agentic state obeyed orders from Hitler to harm millions of innocent Jewish people
War crimes in Al Ghraib prison in Iraq:
Soldiers overstepped their authority and humiliated civilian prisoners of war
