social-psychological explanations for obedience: legitimacy of authority

Question 1

outline why authorities have legitimacy through society’s agreement (2)

Answer 1

● the power that authorises have is legitimate because it is agreed by society

● most of us accept that authority figures should exercise social power over others to allow society to function smoothly

Question 1

outline why we obey people further up a social hierarchy (3)

Answer 1

● most societies are structured hierarchically

● people in certain positions hold authority over the rest of us

● e.g. parents, teachers, police officers, nightclub bouncers

Question 2

outline why we hand control over to authority figures (3)

Answer 2

● people with legitimate authority have the power to punish others

● we give up some independence to people we trust to exercise authority properly

● we learn to accept authority during childhood

Question 3

outline how leaders can use legitimate authority for destructive purposes (2)

Answer 3

● history has shown some leaders (e.g., hitler, stalin) use legitimate authority destructively

● ordering people to behave in cruel and dangerous ways