Milgram A5

Milgram 

Aim: Study obedience in laboratory conditions 

• 40 males
• 20yo - 50yo
• range of occupations
• recruited through direct mail and advertising 
• told study was about punishment and leaning
• paid $4.50

• Laboratory observation
• Rigged = participant always teacher
• learner strapped to chair with electrodes
• learner told, inpresence of teacher, that shocks were painful but no permanent tissue damage 
• teacher sat in front of a shock generator (15-450volts)
• teacher tested learner on word pairs
• incorrect answer = 3:1 ratio
• shocks given for incorrect answer, starting at 15V and increasing to 450V
• at 300V learner pounded on wall
• Standard prods given by experimentor
• Full debrief and friendly reconcilation with learner in the end

• All subjects obey till 300v
• 5 refused after 300V
• 4 refused after 315V
• 2 refused at 330V
• 1 refused at 345, 360, 375
• 26 continued to 450 level
• extreme tension (e.g: nervous laughter)
• Milgram defined obedience as continuing to final shock
• 65% = obedient 
• 35% = defying experimentors instructions

• Obedience eliciated in any individual group given the righ situational conditons
• Extreme tension due to desire not to hurt others conflicting with instructions from an authorative figure 

Strength 

• High control over the situation 
• Clear, standardized procedure
• Quantitative + Qualitative 

Weaknesses 

• Low ecological validity 
• Demand characteristics
• Ethics: decieved and stress
• Sample Bias: ethnocentric and anderocentric 

Uses

• Not many applications due to the flaws in the study 
• Went against the 'germans are different' hypothesis