Obedience (AQA GCSE Psychology): Flashcards
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Define obedience.
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Cards in this collection (48)
Define obedience.
Obedience is a type of social influence that causes a person to act in response to a direct order from a figure with perceived authority — implying they are doing something they would not have done without the order.
Define the agentic state.
In an agentic state, an individual feels removed from their own actions, believing they are acting on behalf of a higher authority (i.e. ‘just obeying orders’).
How does being in an agentic state affect a person’s feelings of responsibility?
It lessens any feelings of responsibility or guilt about their actions, because they believe the consequences are not theirs (‘not my fault, not my problem’).
Define the autonomous state.
In an autonomous state, an individual takes responsibility for their own actions rather than relinquishing agency to a higher authority figure.
Give an example of being in an autonomous state.
Refusing to follow a commander’s orders because doing so would mean committing an atrocity.
True or False?
Blass and Schmitt (2000) agreed that the participant (the ‘teacher’) was responsible for harming the ‘learner’ in Milgram’s study.
False.
Blass and Schmitt (2000) agreed that the experimenter was responsible for the harm, not the participant, showing that being in an agentic state removes responsibility from the individual.
Define an authority figure.
An authority figure is anyone who has a legitimate status to issue orders, whether official (e.g. a police officer) or unofficial (e.g. a school bully).
What did Bickman (1974) find about the effect of a uniform on obedience?
People were more likely to obey a confederate dressed as a security guard than one dressed as a milkman or in plain clothes (which produced the lowest obedience), showing that a uniform confers authority.
Obedience towards authority figures is something that is transmitted, taught both directly and indirectly via cultural and societal norms.
Obedience towards authority figures is something that is culturally transmitted, taught both directly and indirectly via cultural and societal norms.
What might happen to someone who fails to obey an authority figure?
They may face punishment or the withdrawal of social approval and acceptance, e.g. imprisonment or expulsion from school.
Define proximity in the context of obedience.
Proximity refers to how near or far someone or something is to you, i.e. the distance between you.
What did Milgram call the feeling of discomfort experienced when following destructive orders?
Moral strain — the feeling of guilt, distress and anxiety that comes from knowing you should not be following destructive orders, yet doing so anyway.
True or False?
According to Milgram, obedience increases as proximity to the victim increases.
False.
Obedience decreases as proximity increases (and vice versa) — destructive obedience is easier to achieve when the victim is out of sight.
Milgram’s agency theory is supported by (1966), who found that nurses were prepared to administer an overdose of a drug if instructed to do so by a doctor.
Milgram’s agency theory is supported by Hofling (1966), who found that nurses were prepared to administer an overdose of a drug if instructed to do so by a doctor.
Give one strength of Milgram’s agency theory relating to external validity.
Examples of agency theory and destructive obedience to an authority figure can be seen in real acts of atrocity, such as the Holocaust.
Give one weakness of Milgram’s agency theory.
It does not explain why some people resist the orders of authority figures and do not obey, even when this could put them in danger.
Give a second weakness of Milgram’s agency theory.
It is deterministic, as it implies that those who commit acts of destructive obedience have no control over their actions — reducing their free will, and ultimately their responsibility, for these acts.
What was Milgram’s initial hypothesis regarding obedience?
He hypothesised that Germans must be different to all other nations due to their involvement in the Holocaust — a dispositional explanation assuming obedience results from personality factors.
Describe the sample used in Milgram’s (1963) study.
40 males aged 20–50 from a variety of backgrounds, obtained via volunteer sampling (leaflets and newspaper adverts) and paid $4.50 for their time.
What role was each participant given in Milgram’s study?
Each participant was allocated the role of ‘Teacher’, seemingly at random — though the experiment was rigged so the participant was always Teacher.
Who was ‘Mr Wallace’ in Milgram’s study?
A confederate of Milgram’s who the participant believed was a fellow participant; he was given the role of ‘Learner’.
True or False?
In Milgram’s study, the Teacher gave the Learner an electric shock every time the Learner answered incorrectly.
True.
If the Learner got an answer wrong, the Teacher had to issue an electric shock via a shock generator ranging from 15 to 450 volts.
What did the experimenter say if the Teacher seemed reluctant to continue?
Prompts such as ‘The experiment requires that you continue.’
In Milgram’s study, % of participants went up to the maximum 450 volts.
In Milgram’s study, 65% of participants went up to the maximum 450 volts.
What percentage of participants in Milgram’s study went up to 300 volts?
100% of participants went up to 300 volts.
What was measured as the dependent variable in Milgram’s study?
The number of participants who went up to 450 volts, plus behavioural responses such as shaking, crying, and — in some cases — a seizure.
What conclusion did Milgram draw after abandoning his dispositional hypothesis?
That destructive obedience is not a result of nationality or personal factors, but is instead made possible by specific situational factors.
One situational factor that increased obedience was that the experiment took place at the high-status University.
One situational factor that increased obedience was that the experiment took place at the high-status Yale University.
Give one situational factor, other than the location, that contributed to high obedience in Milgram’s study.
The experimenter wore a lab coat, acting as a visible authority figure.
Give two further situational factors, other than Yale University and the lab coat, that contributed to high obedience in Milgram’s study.
Participants had volunteered and been paid a small sum for taking part, and felt the situation was out of their hands — they were ‘just obeying orders’ (agency theory).
Give one strength of Milgram’s study relating to what it revealed about ordinary people.
It shed valuable light on how very ordinary people can be led to perform acts of extreme harm to complete strangers.
True or False?
Sheridan and King (1972) failed to support Milgram’s original findings.
False.
Sheridan and King (1972) provided research support for Milgram’s findings.
Give one weakness of Milgram’s study relating to validity.
There is some question as to its validity, as it is possible that some participants realised the shocks were fake.
Give one ethical weakness of Milgram’s study.
There were real ethical concerns, as participants suffered psychological harm — even after being told the shocks were fake, they still had to live with the knowledge that they thought they had harmed another person.
Define a dispositional explanation of obedience.
An explanation of obedience based on the characteristics of an individual, e.g. some people are more likely to be obedient than others due to their personality traits.
According to Adorno, how does the authoritarian personality develop?
As a result of childhood experiences — i.e. through nurture rather than nature.
What was the F-scale?
A questionnaire devised by Adorno (1950), given to more than 2000 middle-class, white Americans, designed to reveal their attitudes towards other racial groups (‘F’ stands for a rating of fascism).
True or False?
People with an authoritarian personality tend to see the world in flexible, ‘shades of grey’ terms.
False.
They are ‘black and white’ in their opinions and see the world in a rigid, inflexible way.
How do people with an authoritarian personality typically view those who show ‘weakness’?
They are disdainful of them — for example conscientious objectors or people who are against the death penalty.
How do people with an authoritarian personality typically view those they consider ‘beneath’ them in the social hierarchy?
They look down on them, e.g. people who are mentally ill, homeless, or of a different race, ethnicity or culture.
People with an authoritarian personality may feel resentment or anger towards authority figures but take these feelings out on other, -status people.
People with an authoritarian personality may feel resentment or anger towards authority figures but take these feelings out on other, lower-status people.
What kind of parenting does Adorno associate with the development of an authoritarian personality?
Overbearing, dictatorial parents who exert strong discipline, have high expectations, and show conditional love — not allowing free will, expression or freedom of choice.
How does a child come to develop an authoritarian personality, according to Adorno?
They learn these behaviours and attitudes from their parents and eventually identify with them.
True or False?
People with an authoritarian personality tend to respect social hierarchies and authority figures.
True.
This is one of the traits Adorno identified in people with an authoritarian personality.
Give one strength of Adorno’s F-scale questionnaire.
It is replicable, as it uses standardised questions, meaning the theory can be tested for reliability.
Give a second strength of Adorno’s theory.
It is useful when applied to real-world situations, events and attitudes — such as war, prejudice and racism.
One weakness of Adorno’s theory is that using a questionnaire to obtain data is not % valid, as people may lie or be prone to social desirability bias.
One weakness of Adorno’s theory is that using a questionnaire to obtain data is not 100% valid, as people may lie or be prone to social desirability bias.
Give one weakness of Adorno’s theory in terms of how widely it applies.
The theory is limited, as not everyone who is obedient has an authoritarian personality.
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