conformity and obedience: obedience

Question 1

obedience

Answer 1

a form of social pressure normally involving a direct command or instruction and is the result of an authority figure, a case of “follow my instructions”

Question 2

factors affecting obedience

Answer 2

perceived legitimate authority, socialisation, authoritarian parenting, autonomous and agentic levels of behaviour, situational factors: proximity, location, uniform

Question 3

perceived legitimate authority

Answer 3

max weber (1922) argued this comes from three sources: legal authority, traditional authority, charismatic authority

Question 4

legal authority

Answer 4

based on a system of rules that is clearly understood where the authority figure is elected by law e.g. prime minister

Question 5

traditional authority

Answer 5

based on a system in which each society have groups that are considered to have the right to give instructions e.g. parents and teachers

Question 6

charismatic authority

Answer 6

based on an individual’s charisma deriving from them showing they possess the right to lead by virtue of heroism and personal qualities e.g. george washington

Question 7

if someone who is perceived to have very little authority gives you an order

Answer 7

you are unlikely to follow it and will defy this order

Question 8

if someone with a great deal of authority gives you an instruction

Answer 8

it is likely that you will comply with it

Question 9

example of perception of how legitimate the authority is

Answer 9

a teacher in a school will have legitimate authority over pupils and they will usually obey her instruction to ‘be quiet’, if the same pupils were told by a stranger in the street the be quiet they are much more likely to defy that instruction as the stranger is not seen to have legitimate authority over them

Question 10

for someone to inspire obedience

Answer 10

they need to posses authority from at least one of these sources

Question 11

legitimate authority is usually derived from

Answer 11

power

Question 12

power

Answer 12

french and raven (1959) indentified 4 types of power: expert power, coercive power, referent power, reward power

Question 13

expert power

Answer 13

derived from possessing knowledge or expertise in a certain area, they are seen as powerful because they have knowledge that most people don’t or that is needed by an organisation e.g. a teacher has expert power as they know information that students need to pass exams

Question 14

coercive power

Answer 14

derived from the ability to administer punishment, they are seen as powerful because if you don’t follow their instructions they can administer negative consequences e.g. a school depute has this power because if you don’t follow their instructions they can have you excluded

Question 15

referent power

Answer 15

derived from the amount of respect and positive relationships that person has, they are seen as powerful because people want to follow their instructions because they like them and don’t want to let them down e.g. a close friend may have this power as you want to do what they’ve asked to make them happy

Question 16

reward power

Answer 16

derived from someone’s ability to provide rewards, they are seen as powerful because if you follow their instructions, they are able to reward you e.g. your parents have this power because if you follow their instructions they are more likely to reward you with treats or presents

Question 17

bickman (1974)

Answer 17

a study where actors gave strangers instructions e.g. pick up that litter, there were three conditions: casual clothes 19%, milkman 14%, security guard 38%. bickman found that the security guard outfit led to the highest obedience even thought they do not have the power to make someone pick up litter, the uniform conveyed a sense of legitimate authority

Question 18

socialisation

Answer 18

society has prepared us for our role as agents, we are encouraged to obey instructions of those with more power than us, beginning in school where we are taught to listen to and obey teachers. this continues throughout our lives e.g. police officers, doctors, lawyers all while absolving ourselves of responsibility for our actions

Question 19

authoritarian parenting

Answer 19

baumrind (1967) said authoritarian parenting is characterised by: very strict rules and expectations, very demanding but not responsive, very little warmth or nurturing, using punishments with little to no explanation, refusing to give child choices or options.

Question 20

effects of authoritarian parenting

Answer 20

the children tend to display more obedience but less independence, they may also struggle to exhibit self-discipline

Question 21

proximity

Answer 21

proximity between the teacher and learner affects obedience, the closer people are to observing the consequences of their actions, the lower the obedience rates, when people are able to feel detached from the consequences, the higher obedience is

Question 22

location

Answer 22

this affects the amount of PLA the person giving order has e.g. a rundown office block suggests the experimenter giving orders has less PLA than a researcher at a well respected university

Question 23

uniform

Answer 23

affects the PLA as those wearing them will have more people obey their orders

Question 24

bushman (1988)

Answer 24

supports the power of uniform as a female dressed in police uniform asked people to loan a stranger money with an obedience rate of 72%, this lowered to 48% when dressed as a business woman or 52% when dressed as a beggar

Question 25

anderson and zimbardo (1984)

Answer 25

socialisation: they argue that the ‘good child’ is one who learns their place in all social settings and never makes a scene, as children we are rewarded for obedience and conformity and this behaviour continues into adulthood. however socialisation cannot completely explain people’s willingness to obey or no one would defy orders so there must be other factors