Milgram Flashcards
(7 cards)
Baseline procedure
-Assess obedience
-40 American men volunteered.
- at lab, each volunteer was introduced to another participant (confederate) drew lots to decide who would become teacher and learner (fixed-participant became teacher).
- experimenter also involved dressed in lab coat.
- study aimed to assess obedience in a situation where an authority figure (experimenter) ordered participant( teacher) to give increasingly strong shocks to a learner (every time he made an error) located in a different room- fake shocks. Increasing by 15v each time.
What were the findings of the research
All participants went up to 300V, 12.5% stopped at 300 but 65% went up to 450 V.
-Before study, Milgram asked 14 psychology students to predict the participants behaviour- students estimated no more than 3% would go to 450V- shows results are unexpected.
Milgram also collected qualitative data including observations such as: the participants showed signs of extreme tension; many of them were seen to sweat, tremble, stutter, bite their lips, groan and dig their fingernails into their hands; three even had ‘full-blown uncontrollable seizures.
all ppts debriefed- assured behaviour entirely normal, also sent follow up questionnaire-84% said glad participated.
Conclusion of milgrams research
Concluded German people are not different. American participants were willing to obey orders even if it harms others.
Strength- Research support
Milgrams findings were replicated in a French documentary made about reality TV.
-ppts in the game believed they were contestants in pilot episode for a new show.
-Fake game show ‘Le jeu de la Mort’. Participants paid to give fake electric shocks to other participants in front of audience, ordered by presenter. 80% of participants delivered maximum shock of 460 V to an apparently unconscious man. Similar behaviour to milgrams- nervous laughter, nail biting.
Limitation- low internal validity
Milgram reported 75% of his participants believed shock was real. Orne and Holland argued that participants behaved as they did because they didn’t really believe in the set up- ‘play acting’. Gina Perry (2013) research confirms this- she listened to tapes and reported half of them believed shocks were real. Two thirds of these participants were disobedient. Shows participants may have just been trying to fill aims of study. Follow demand characteristics
-Counterpoint- Sheridan and king (1972) did a similar study with puppies. Real shocks to puppies. 54% men and 100% women gave fatal shock.
Limitation- alternative interpretation
Social identity theory(SID) proposed by Tajfel, states that people gain a sense of pride and self-esteem by belonging to a group.
-The participants in Milgrams group were willing to obey when the experimenter used prods such as ‘the experimenter requires that you continue’. SID explains that, whilst participants see themselves as participants of important psychological research, this group identity encourages them to obey. Every ppt who was given the fourth prod of ‘you have no other choice you must go on’ immediately disobeyed, because they are being ordered to blindly obey an authority figure.
Ethical issues
Deception
Protection from harm-participants showed signs of real distress
