Exploring Obedience and Authority in Humans

Aug 14, 2024

Milgram Study on Obedience to Authority

Objective

  • To examine the willingness of everyday Americans to obey authority figures, even when it conflicts with personal beliefs and morals.
  • Deception was used to conceal the true nature of the study.

Methodology

  • Recruitment: Advertisements were placed for a study on learning and memory to attract average people.
  • Role Assignment: Participants picked roles of teacher and learner from a hat, but it was rigged for the participant to always be the teacher.
  • Setup:
    • Teachers believed they were to administer shocks for incorrect answers.
    • Learners (actually confederates) were hooked to electrodes and appeared to receive shocks.
    • Shock levels ranged from 15 volts to 450 volts with labels indicating severity.
  • Procedure:
    • Teachers read word pairs and administered shocks for incorrect answers, increasing the voltage with each error.
    • Learners showed distress, eventually becoming silent after a series of protests.
  • Experimenter Instructions: Teachers were urged to continue, being told they had no choice.
  • End of Experiment: Concluded after four verbal protests or administering 450 volts shock three times.

Results

  • Contrary to expert predictions, 65% of participants administered the maximum shock.
  • Emotional distress was evident among participants, yet authority prevailed over moral objections.
  • Compliance was slightly lower (63%) when learners mentioned heart conditions.

Implications

  • Milgram's Conclusion:
    • Authority figures can compel ordinary people to commit actions against moral judgment.
    • Authority frequently overrides moral imperatives.
    • People often lack resources to resist authority when performing harmful acts.

Key Quote from Milgram

  • Essential Finding: The study highlighted how ordinary individuals can become agents of harm when instructed by authority, demonstrating the power of authority over moral constraints.

Quote: "The extreme willingness of adults to go to almost any length on the command of an authority constitutes the chief finding of the study and the fact most urgently demanding explanation."