Milgram Experiment Good

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    1/17

    The Milgram Experiment

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    2/17

    The Milgram ExperimentThe Milgram Experiment was a series of social psychologyexperiments conducted in the early 1960s by Yale Universitypsychologist Stanley Milgram.

    The experiments began just 3 months after the start of the trial

    of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann, and were designed toanswer the question:

    Could it be that Eichmann and his million

    accomplices in the Holocaust were just followingorders?

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    3/17

    The Method of the ExperimentSubjects were recruited for the Yale study through newspaperads and by direct mail. The experiments took place in tworooms in the basement of a university building. Theexperiment was advertised as lasting one hour, for which therespondents would be paid $4.50 whether they completed the

    task or not.

    The participants were men between the ages of 20 and 50,from all educational backgrounds, ranging from an elementaryschool dropout to participants with doctoral degrees.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    4/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    The role of the experimenter was played by a very sternbiology teacher dressed in a white technicians coat.

    Participants arrived to meet the experimenter, as well asanother volunteer for the experiment.This volunteer was in fact an actor trained to play the

    part.

    The true volunteer and the other volunteer were told by

    the experimenter that they would be participating in anexperiment to test the effects of punishment on learning.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    5/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    A slip of paper was then give to each of them. The true volunteer wasled to believe that one slip said Learner and the other said Teacher,and that both participants had been given the slip randomly.

    In fact, both slips said Teacher, but the actor claimed to have the slip

    that said Learner, thus guaranteeing that the participant was theTeacher.

    At this point, the newly-appointed Teacherand Learner were separated into different

    rooms where they could communicate verballybut not see each other. (In one version of theexperiment, the Learner was sure to mention

    casually to the Teacher that he had a heart condition.)

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    6/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    To begin, the Teacher wasgiven a sample 45-volt shockfrom an electro-shock generatorby the Experimenter. Thereason for this was todemonstrate to the Teacher thenature of the shock that theLearner would supposedlyreceive during the experimenteach time he gave a wrong

    answer.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    7/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    The shock generator that theTeacher was told to operate had 30switches in 15 volt increments,each switch was labeled with avoltage ranging from 15 up to 450volts.

    Each switch also had a rating,ranging from Slight shocktoDanger: Severe shock. The finaltwo switches being labeled XXX.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    8/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    The subjects of the experiment (ie. the Teachers) believed that for each

    wrong answer, the Learner would receive actual shocks. In reality, therewere no shocks.

    After the Learner was separated from the Teacher, the Learner set up atape recorder integrated with the electro-shock generator, which playedpre-recorded sounds for each shock level.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    9/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    The Teacher was then given a list ofword pairs, which he was to teach tothe Learner. The Teacher began byreading the list of words pairs to theLearner. The Teacher would then

    read the first word of each pair, andthen read four possible answers. TheLearner would press a button toindicate his response. If the Learnerwas correct, the Teacher would

    proceed to the next word pair. If theanswer was incorrect, the learnerwould receive a shock, with thevoltage increasingwith each wronganswer.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    10/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    At 75 volts the learner would beginto grunt with pain. At 120 he wouldstart to shout that the shocks werebecoming painful. At 150 he wouldcry out that he had enough of the

    experiment. His protestations wouldturn to agonised screams at 270 volts.

    At 300 he would shout in desperationthat he would no longer provideanswers (the experimenter wouldinform the teacher that no answerwas a wrong answer). Beyond 315

    volts the learner was silent.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    11/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    At this point, many people indicated their desire to stop the experimentand check on the Learner. Some test subjects paused at 135 volts andbegan to question the purpose of the experiment.

    Most continued after being assured that they would not be heldresponsible. A few subjects began to laugh nervously or exhibit other signsof extreme stress once they heard the screams of pain coming from theLearner.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    12/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    If at any time the subjectindicated his desire to halt theexperiment, he was given asuccession of verbal prods bythe experimenter, in this order:

    Please continue.

    The experiment requires thatyou continue.

    It is absolutely essential thatyou continue.

    You have no other choiceyou must go on.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    13/17

    The Method of the Experiment

    If the subject still wished to stopafter all four successive verbal

    prods, the experiment was halted.Otherwise, it was halted after thesubject had given the maximum450-volt shock three times insuccession.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    14/17

    Predictions

    Before the experiment was conducted, Milgram polled 14 Yale seniorpsychology majors as to what the results would be. All respondentsbelieved that only a sadistic few (average 1.2%) would be prepared to givethe maximum voltage.

    Milgram also informally polled his colleagues, and found that they believedvery few subjects would go beyond a very strong shock.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    15/17

    Results

    In Milgrams first set of experiments, 65% (26 out of 40) ofexperimental participants administered the experiments final 450-voltshock, though many were quite uncomfortable doing so.

    Everyone paused at some point and questioned the experiment, withsome even saying that they would return the cheque for the moneythey were paid.

    No participant steadfastly refused to give further shocksbefore the 300-volt level.

    Similar experiments all around the world produced similar results.

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    16/17

    Ethics

    Milgrams experiment raised many questions about the ethics of scientificexperimentation because of the extreme emotional stress suffered by theparticipants.

    In Milgrams defense, 84% of former participants surveyed later said theywere glad or very glad to have participated, and 15% chose neutral(92% of participants responded).

    However, many people still looked at the experiment with great concernabout its ethical integrity.

    What do you think?

  • 7/30/2019 Milgram Experiment Good

    17/17

    Milgrams Experiment