Obedience Basics
Define obedience
Is a form of social influence where behavior is influenced by a real or imagined pressure from another.
What year?
1963
In which variation did the experimenter give orders over the telephone instead of being physically present?
Telephonic Instructions variation.
Autonomous state?
A state in which a person acts independently and takes responsibility for their actions.
One ethical issue?
Deception (participants believed shocks were real)
What is the difference between obedience and conformity?
Obedience = responding to authority; conformity = changing behaviour to match a group.
What role did participants believe they had?
Teacher.
What percentage of participants obeyed to 450 V in the Telephonic Instructions variation?
20.5% (approximately 21%).
Agentic state?
A state in which a person sees themselves as an agent carrying out another person's wishes.
One methodological strength?
Highly standardised procedure, making the study replicable.
What is an authority figure?
A person perceived as having legitimate power or status.
What happened after a wrong answer?
The teacher delivered an electric shock.
In which variation was Yale University replaced with a less prestigious location?
Run-down Office Building (Ordinary Office Building) variation.
Agentic shift?
The transition from an autonomous state to an agentic state.
One criticism of the sample?
All participants were male volunteers from the USA, limiting generalisability.
What is legitimate authority?
Authority that is accepted as having the right to give orders.
Percentage reaching 450 V?
65%
What percentage of participants obeyed to 450 V in the Run-down Office Building variation?
47.5%.
Why do people obey harmful orders?
They transfer responsibility to the authority figure.
Evidence supporting Agency Theory?
Many participants said they were not responsible because the experimenter told them to continue
Why study obedience?
To understand why ordinary people may follow harmful orders.
Why use deception?
To ensure participants believed the situation was real and behaved naturally.
Why did obedience decrease in the Ordinary Man Gives Orders variation?
The person giving the orders lacked legitimate authority, so participants were less willing to obey.
One strength and one limitation?
Strength: explains participants' statements such as “I was only following orders.”
Limitation: does not explain why some participants refused to obey.
Alternative explanation?
Situational explanations (e.g., legitimacy of authority and social support) can explain obedience without relying solely on an agentic state.