Milgram: Ethical Evaluation

To see the extent to which people obey a person of authority.

Milgram: Methodology

A Laboratory Experiment

Milgram: Samples

-males
-ages 20-40
-from New Haven area
-n=40

Milgram: Procedure

1. Participants='teacher'
Confederate (seems like another participant)= 'learner' Experimenter instruct 'teacher' to ask 'learner' Qs. If the 'learner' made a mistake, the participant was told to shock them.
2.Voltage of shocks increased with # of mistakes. Max V is 450 volts. Actor instructed to react to volts - twitch > screaming
3. Experimenter 31years old > stern and commanding. If participant hesitates, experimenter says "please continue" or "you have no other choice, you must go on"
4. Debriefed

 Milgram: Findings

Psychologist's Hypothesized results: 1-3% p administer max v.
Actual results: 65% Max Voltage, 100% did not stop before 300 Volts
Additional Observations:
-Samples agitated, signs of tension (sweating, trembling, fidgeting, stuttering and moaning)
-some laughed nervously (not sadistic but anxious)
-3 subjects had seizures (1 was so dangerous they had to end the experiment for them)

-Males > less sympathetic

-artificial
-not psychoanalyzed beforehand + small sample size so samples could be less compassionate than others

Milgram: Ethical Evaluation

-Participants mental & physical harm
-Covert (told was a 'study of learning')
-debriefed (although require) could have made them question their compassion and doubt self-image