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Milgrams study of obedience 1963 summary
Describe and evaluate one study on obedience
Milgrams study of obedience 1963 summary
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The first thing I found to be extremely fascinating was the Milgram Study. This study in particular explains in dept how an average person will obey to an authority figure even though the orders could be terrible. I think it’s a fascinating study because typically individuals will not complete an order if it makes them feel uncomfortable. However, once you place someone with higher power they forget about the discomfort and instantly obey to the orders given to them. This topic is important in psychology because it shows the relationship of obedience. It goes to show the factors that have to be put in place for a person to obey to someone else’s orders. This helps psychologist understand how a person with higher power can ultimately control the decisions of a person with lower power.
2. The second thing I found fairly interesting in chapter 12 was the Bystander Intervention Effect. This is when people fail to offer help to someone in need when they see that other people are present. I find it interesting that people don’t help because of the feeling of embarrassment in front of a group of people, social influence, diffusion of responsibility, and wanting to remain anonymous. Typically there isn’t much harm by helping other out. When another person was beating Kitty
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The third thing I found to be extremely in chapter 14-15 was dissociative disorders. This is known as disruption of identity, memory, or conscious awareness. The different kinds of dissociative disorders is dissociative amnesia is when a person forgets and event or loses blocks of time, dissociative fugue is when a person experiences loss of identity, travel to another location without knowing how they got there, and dissociative identity is when there is two or more distinct identities within the same person or memory gaps. I find this to be highly interesting because when it comes to these types of people committing crimes it is very unlikely for them to prove that these were a result of
“Something happens to individuals when they collect in a group. They think and act differently than they would on their own. (17)” States Carol Tavris in her article, “In Groups We Shrink From Loner’s Heroics”. Tavris believes people who are in groups tend to act in a more sluggish manor than those alone. She states many examples of this theory in her article, including the story of Kitty Genovese which is stated in the first paragraph. Kitty was stabbed repeatedly and killed in front of her New York apartment. No one did anything to stop this heinous action from taking place. Within her essay she obtains rhetorical appeals to prove that her statements are plausible to the audience.
Obedience may be a simple word, yet it has a powerful impact on the daily lives of millions. Obedience is simply when one follows the orders or directions of another figure, presumably in an authoritative position. This is something nearly everyone bows to everyday without even realizing it - and it can drastically change our lives as we know it. Obedience is, for example, how the holocaust happened. The Germans were ordinary people turned into murderers because they followed the orders of one man - their dictator, Adolf Hitler. Of course, obedience does not always result in horrid results such as the holocaust or result in such a large catastrophe. Obedience can have drastic effects on the lives of only a few men as well; this is showcased in the movie A Few Good Men.
Upon analyzing his experiment, Stanley Milgram, a Yale psychologist, concludes that people will drive to great lengths to obey orders given by a higher authority. The experiment, which included ordinary people delivering “shocks” to an unknown subject, has raised many questions in the psychological world. Diana Baumrind, a psychologist at the University of California and one of Milgram’s colleagues, attacks Milgram’s ethics after he completes his experiment in her review. She deems Milgram as being unethical towards the subjects he uses for testing and claims that his experiment is irrelevant to obedience. In contrast, Ian Parker, a writer for New Yorker and Human Sciences, asserts Milgram’s experiments hold validity in the psychological world. While Baumrind focuses on Milgram’s ethics, Parker concentrates more on the reactions, both immediate and long-term, to his experiments.
Do we ever really know how we will act when put into a hectic situation? Some may be calm and collected in times of need and step up as a leader; others may fall under the pressures put upon them. Though the boys from William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, all react very differently in their particular situation, they all have one thing in common; they all fall victim of becoming a bystander. When looking at John Darley and Bibb Latane experiments on witness behavior, one can easily see that the boys on the island fell into what we know as the bystander effect, while stranded on the island. The work of William Golding shows many occasions where the bystander effect comes into play for the boys and changes their actions.
Holmes and Holmes developed this typology based on various characteristics of the crime scenes and the victims themselves of 110 interviews of selected offenders and serial murders (Canter & Wentink, 2004). David Canter and Natalia Wentink conducted an empirical test of this typology and developed several criticisms to their work. Their empirical test concluded that the features described for each category tend to co-occur within each other. For example, the characteristics of a lust killer include a controlled crime scene, evidence of torture, the body being moved, a specific type of victim, no weapon left at the crime scene, and rape; all of these features are also included for the thrill killer. This makes it difficult to categorize these
...though the researchers weren’t looking for it, he results represent ideas that can help the bystander effect in a situation. Smaller numbers increase the percentage of realization when it comes down to an emergency. The victim, if cohesive, actually plays a big role in causing the bystander effect as well. When a victim is unable to verbally communicate with bystanders, it lessens the chance of help. If a victim is capable of communicating, the help given could be more efficient. This is because it can help break the diffusion of responsibility. A victim looking a bystander directly in the eyes can even spark a quicker reaction in them. These are all ideas that psychologists still study today, and many even consider learning about this phenomenon a requirement.
The claim of social acceptance is especially evident throughout chapter ten. For example, ?I had no association with them; the religious home in which I lived, my mush-lard gravy poverty had cut me off from the normal processes of the lives of black boys my own age?. (219) The strongest tool used in this passage is that of point of view. Delivering such depth in his own personal emotion, Wright is able to more effectively present evidence. This appeal demonstrates emotional ethos, a technique to capture and somewhat influence readers? opinions. In addition, ?My throat grew tight with anger. I wanted to rush into the room and demand an explanation, but I held still.?(219) His style of writing has an effect so captivating with emotion and with great detailed imagery; it adds dramatic effect to the storyline. Wright?s clever tactics of using personal experience as evidence gives him a unique credibility based on emotion instead of the typical factual driven emphasis.
Benjamin Jr. Ludy T. & Simpson, Jeffrey A. The Power of the Situation: The Impact of Milgram’s Obedience Studies on Personality and Social Psychology. From American Psychologist. Vol. 64 (1), pp.12-18, 2009.
If an individual is familiar with their surrounding “they are more likely to help” (Altruism and Helping Behavior. Print). In the essay, the authors state “the scene of the crime, the streets, in middle class society “represents all the vulgar and perilous in life” (Milgram, Stanley, and Paul Hollander. Paralyzed Witnesses: The Murder They Heard. Print.). In society, the streets, especially at night, represents the dangerous and negative sides of society due to the crimes and chaos that occur on the streets (gangs, drive-by shootings, robberies, murders, large crowds walking, etc.). The crimes and dangers of the streets cause many people to fear being on the streets alone which leads to external conflicts. When the murder was occurring, the witnesses’ attitudes of the streets prevented them from calling the police due to the fear of the streets and since the witnesses were middle-class, they believed that Genovese was poor, a criminal, or someone who has nothing else to do and was expecting for the=is to eventually
Greenfield, D. (2007). Introduction to forensic psychology. issues and controversies in crime and justice. Journal of Psychiatry & Law, 35(2), 201-201-204,105-106.
"This is what you've been waiting for -- search and destroy -- and you've got it," said by one of the superior officers (The My Lai Massacre). On March 16, 1968 the lives of three hundred innocent members of the village of My Lai Vietnam were taken. They were taken because of the immoral and inhumane commands given by commanding officers of the US. Military during the Vietnam War. The My Lai incident is known as a mission that took place with a lack of discipline, moral of the soldiers, and adequate leadership. This massacre by the Charlie Company, 11th Brigade, American Division was a massacre that could have been avoided had the members of the company thought for themselves, and not follow the inhumane orders they were given. A study conducted by Stanley Milgram, a Yale psychologist, can give one insight into why the soldiers performed with such unquestioned obedience. In the study the teacher was told to ask the student, an actor, questions, and if the student did not answer the question correctly the teacher was to administer a progressively more intense shock to the student. The teacher is told that the study is to test shock techniques and how they affect learning; they were unaware that the study was actually a study of obedience. The soldiers of the Charlie Company were performing the orders of another, and with no real sense of responsibility these people performed horrendous tasks that they would have not performed otherwise.
"Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom." As Aristotle indicates, it is important for one to introspect his or her own behavior and personality in order to truly be aware. A common failure at this personal introspection is the evaluation of obedience. Obedience has been well examined by psychologists such as Milgram, Zimbardo, and Ashe; yet, the topic continues to be perplexing as people continue to fail to understand how to properly identify and/or evaluate others as well as themselves on their level of obedience. Obedience is an integral quality in mankind that should be acknowledged as it is seen to affect our daily lives, contribute to terrible atrocities, and yet, it continues to be ignored.
As a student first entering the discipline of psychology in the early 21st century there is so much to learn. Amidst countless new vocabulary words and hundreds of lists of people and their theories it is easy to get lost. There are, however, several key people or stories which serve as landmarks and allow for organization of thoughts. These key aspects are usually the most memorable and are useful in comparing other aspect of psychology back to them to facilitate understanding and continuity. Some of these aspects include Freud and the Oedipus complex, Pavlov’s dog, Skinner’s pigeons, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Fowler’s stages of faith and of course Watson’s experiment with a boy now known as ‘Little
There are many different psychologists from over the years. Each one has their own theories. Some of which have become more helpful to society to make it more successful. One of the psychologists that have had an important impact on society and education was Abraham Maslow. His theory has been known worldwide and so have some of his experiments.
In today’s world, our intellect and morals have advanced to new heights, but we are still humans. While we believe we can make better choices, Stanley Milgram’s experiment on obedience to authority demonstrates that we don’t always make the choices we think we would make in a harsh situation. His experiment explains how Nazi Germany came to exist and how something like it could eventually exist in the future.