Authoritarian Personality - AQA PSychology A/AS level - Advantages and disadvantages table in A Level and IB Psychology


	Authoritarian Personality - AQA PSychology A/AS level
	Advantages right-wing is considered authoritarian and more obedient there is also evidence for left-wings to be less obedient: replicated Milgram's study on a game show where participants delivered fake electric shocks then were interviewed to determine their political stance and those who were more left tended to giver lower shocks	Disadvantages personality is known to be difficult to empirically test and is thought to vary in certain contexts F scale is a questionnaire and is hence based on self-report so susceptible to social desirability bias and retrospective judgement Milgram felt that while Authoritarian personality may have a role in obedience, he believed that situational factors held more weight shown in his study when he changed location, proximity and presence of disobedient peers and felt this affects obedience more than personality traits There were difference in the obedient participants and authoritarian participants, some who were obedient did not report bad relationships or over strict parents - a characteristic of the Authoritarian personality - yet were still obedient suggesting a limitation with the explanation alternative - education; research found that the less educated were generally more authoritarian and Milgram found that higher educated participants were less obedient - distinct possibility
	Evaluation

right-wing is considered authoritarian and more obedient there is also evidence for left-wings to be less obedient: replicated Milgram's study on a game show where participants delivered fake electric shocks then were interviewed to determine their political stance and those who were more left tended to giver lower shocks

personality is known to be difficult to empirically test and is thought to vary in certain contexts
F scale is a questionnaire and is hence based on self-report so susceptible to social desirability bias and retrospective judgement
Milgram felt that while Authoritarian personality may have a role in obedience, he believed that situational factors held more weight shown in his study when he changed location, proximity and presence of disobedient peers and felt this affects obedience more than personality traits
There were difference in the obedient participants and authoritarian participants, some who were obedient did not report bad relationships or over strict parents - a characteristic of the Authoritarian personality - yet were still obedient suggesting a limitation with the explanation
alternative - education; research found that the less educated were generally more authoritarian and Milgram found that higher educated participants were less obedient - distinct possibility

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