Responses to People in Authority

Responses to People in Authority

Milgram’s Obedience Study

  • Milgram’s research examines obedience to authority, specifically in extreme circumstances such as those witnessed in the second World War.
  • The study aimed to determine how much pain an ordinary person could inflict on another individual under orders from an authority figure.
  • Key findings showed that a majority of participants (65%) proceeded to the highest level of 450 volts, despite clear signs of distress from the ‘learner’.
  • This study highlighted the strong compulsion to obey authority even when actions may cause harm to others.

Zimbardo’s Prison Experiment

  • The Standford Prison Experiment conducted by Zimbardo is a prime example of how social roles and location can influence behaviour.
  • The study demonstrated that when assigned authoritative roles, individuals are capable of displaying behaviour they would not usually.
  • It revealed that obedience to authority can also be fueled by deindividualisation and dehumanisation.

Social Identity Theory (Tajfel and Turner)

  • The theory suggests that individuals strive to enhance their self-esteem by identifying with specific social groups and perceiving these groups as being superior to others.
  • It implies a possible justification for the obedience to authority figures, as recognition of authority can be linked to the positive social identity they provide.

Conformity

  • Conformity is another important concept linked to the responses to people in authority.
  • It refers to the change in a person’s behaviour or opinions as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group of people.
  • Normative conformity and informational conformity are relevant concepts. The former relates to the desire to fit in or be liked, while the latter the wish to be correct and to behave in a socially acceptable way.

Situational Factors

  • Situational factors play a significant role in obedience and can drastically alter a person’s behaviour.
  • The behaviours can be extreme, as evidenced in Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Experiment; ordinary students became authoritarian guards in a simulated prison.
  • Social impact theory highlights that obedience to authority is more likely when authority is perceived as legitimate and individuals can identify with the group represented by the authority.

Critiques and considerations

  • Studies on obedience have faced criticism for their ethical implications, such as Milgram’s study causing distress to participants.
  • Real-life application of these theories can sometimes be challenging due to the multitude of interplaying factors.

Remember that understanding the underlying theories and principles will equip you to better answer application based questions on obedience to authority.