Book Author: Stanley Milgram
summary:
In chapter 1, Milgram introduced us to why the issue of obedience was important to study. His conclusion was that a dilemma faces anyone who enters into an agreement to be part of a system. When the system requires them to do something with which they disagree, they must either be loyal to their moral standards or loyal to the system.
In chapter 2, Milgram explained the set up of his study.
In chapter 3, he asked psychological professionals what they thought a person would do when confronted with his experiment. Most thought that people would not agree to do what he would ask.
In chapter 4 he described the basic series of experiments in which the closeness of the "victim" would be manipulated.
In chapter 5 he gave us detailed information about how particular people behaved in a stressful situation, and the reasons they gave for their behavior. These first 5 chapters are the heart of the book.
Chapters 6, 8, and 9 are additional variations on the study.
Chapter 7 contains more interviews with subjects.
Chapters 10 through 12 contain Milgram's attempt to explain why obedience to authority has such a strong hold on our behavior. He analyzes the cognitive as well as emotional aspect.
These lead to his establishing of the agentic state, the psychological state the obedient subject is in when he or she is obeying authority.
In the final chapter Milgram relates his findings in comparison to the real world and discusses the Vietnam War. He attempts to correlate obedience in the war to the obedience he observed in the lab.
discussion:
In chapter 1, Milgram introduced us to why the issue of obedience was important to study. His conclusion was that a dilemma faces anyone who enters into an agreement to be part of a system. When the system requires them to do something with which they disagree, they must either be loyal to their moral standards or loyal to the system.
In chapter 2, Milgram explained the set up of his study.
In chapter 3, he asked psychological professionals what they thought a person would do when confronted with his experiment. Most thought that people would not agree to do what he would ask.
In chapter 4 he described the basic series of experiments in which the closeness of the "victim" would be manipulated.
In chapter 5 he gave us detailed information about how particular people behaved in a stressful situation, and the reasons they gave for their behavior. These first 5 chapters are the heart of the book.
Chapters 6, 8, and 9 are additional variations on the study.
Chapter 7 contains more interviews with subjects.
Chapters 10 through 12 contain Milgram's attempt to explain why obedience to authority has such a strong hold on our behavior. He analyzes the cognitive as well as emotional aspect.
These lead to his establishing of the agentic state, the psychological state the obedient subject is in when he or she is obeying authority.
In the final chapter Milgram relates his findings in comparison to the real world and discusses the Vietnam War. He attempts to correlate obedience in the war to the obedience he observed in the lab.
discussion:
Having read about Milgram's experiment in "Opening Skinner's box" by Lauren Slater, I thought I had a good overall understanding of his experiments. This book taught me that his experiments were quite involved, and that they included number of quantitative observations. Always surprising to read, though, is the reaction of participants to his experiments. I always felt I knew the outcome of his experiments, but would then be proven wrong. No participant ever questioned the procedure outlined by Milgram, even after he gave them a chance to ask questions.
After reaching the 75-volt level, they were confronted with their fellow participant's first sign of pain, and 10% of them responded to this experession of discomfort by speaking to the experimenter. By 150 volts, 19 (47.5%) participants had at least checked with the experimenter about the experimental procedure. By 270 volts, all (100%) of the participants had at least checked with the experimenter about the procedure. It was observed of the people that did not comply with the experimenter it was hard to be deviant of the instructions the longer they followed directions.
Regardless of what we think about Milgram's experiments, it's undeniable that he has made us reconsider what we think we know about human behaviour, free will, and obedience to authority.
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