When was Milgrams study?
1963
What did Milgram want to test?
Whether ordinary people would obey and unjust order from an authority figure
Who were the participants in Milgrams study?
Volunteer sample of 40 males ages 20-50.
Advert in New Haven.
Paid $4 an hour
What did they do in Milgrams study?
Rigged random allocation of roles.
2 rooms.
List of words.
Give a shock everytime the answer was wrong.
Increase shock levels in 15 voltage increments.
Bang on wall and scream at 300V.
What were the experimenters prompts?
Please continue
You have no choice but to continue
What were Milgrams findings?
All reached 300V.
12.5% stopped
65% reached 450V.
Positives of Milgrams study?
Real world applications
Qualitative data
Easily replicated results
Debrief
Negatives of Milgrams study?
Low population validity
Small sample.
Volunteer sample.
Right to withdraw
May lack internal validity
Conformity rate of Milgrams variations?
Others refuse to give shock = 10% conformity
Experimented replaced by ordinary clothes wearing person = 20%
By phone = 23%
Same room = 40%
Run down office = 48%
Other participant administered the shock = 92.5%
What did Hofling et al 1965 find?
Nurses were obedient to doctors in a hospital setting
What did Orne and Holland 1968 suggest?
Participants went to a higher voltage because they knew the shocks weren’t real.
But Milgram claimed at least 70% knew they were real
What did Sheridan and King 1972 find?
Real shocks given to a puppy. 54% of males and 100% of females obeyed
What is obedience?
A form of social influence that is in direct response to an order form someone else
