Question 1

What were some unintended consequences of Milgram's research on obedience?

Accepted Answer

Milgram's research on obedience brought attention to the need for ethical guidelines in research, particularly with regards to the use of deception and potential harm to participants. This led to the development of stricter ethical guidelines in research, which has been beneficial for protecting the rights and well-being of study participants.

Question 2

Which of the following factors was related to the amount of obedience exhibited in the Milgram obedience study?

Accepted Answer

The proximity of the learner to the teacher was found to be related to the amount of obedience exhibited in the Milgram obedience study. When the learner was in the same room as the teacher, obedience rates dropped compared to when the learner was in a different room.

Question 3

When Cheryl is with her supervisors,she obeys their decisions without question.But when she is with employees under her supervision,she is aggressive and demanding.What would social psychologists most likely say about Cheryl?

Accepted Answer

Cheryl's behavior suggests that she has an authoritarian personality, which is characterized by a desire for power and control over others. When she is in a position of subordination, she obeys the decisions of those in authority, but when she is in a position of authority herself, she becomes aggressive and demanding towards those under her supervision. This behavior is consistent with the traits associated with an authoritarian personality.

Question 4

Which of the following people is most likely to obey in Milgram's study?

Accepted Answer

Milgram's study found that participants were more likely to obey authority figures in a prestigious setting, such as Yale University. The gender of the participant or the quality of the office building did not have a significant impact on obedience rates. Therefore, the best choice is D, a participant of either gender in a study being conducted at Yale University.

Question 5

When trying to convince customers to purchase articles of clothing from their store,the salespeople at Fashion Flourishes often attempt to sweeten the deal by adding free hosiery and gift certificates.What does this sales strategy illustrate?

Accepted Answer

The strategy of adding free hosiery and gift certificates is an example of the "that's-not-all" technique. This technique involves offering additional incentives or bonuses to sweeten the deal for customers and make a purchase more appealing.

Question 6

If someone scores high on the F-scale,which of the following is he or she most likely to do?

Accepted Answer

The F-scale measures authoritarianism and a high score indicates a tendency towards obedience and conformity. Therefore, the most likely choice would be D, to obey in the Milgram study. This is because the Milgram study was designed to test obedience to authority figures, and those who scored high on the F-scale were more likely to obey the instructions given by the experimenter, even when it meant administering what they believed to be dangerous electric shocks to another person.

Question 7

Natasha convinces Joel to take her to the airport by first asking him to loan her his car for a week.Her attempt to get Joel to do her a favour is most likely based on the principles of which of the following?

Accepted Answer

The attempt to get Joel to do her a favour (loan her his car) is based on the principle of reciprocity (the expectation that if someone does something for us, we should do something for them in return). Natasha hopes that by asking for a smaller favour (loaning the car), Joel will feel reciprocally obliged to do a bigger favour (take her to the airport). Additionally, she may be using perceptual contrast (asking for a big favour first, then following up with a smaller favour to make it seem more reasonable) to increase the likelihood of Joel agreeing to her request.

Question 8

Which of the following would be predicted by social impact theory?

Accepted Answer

Social impact theory suggests that the likelihood of a person being influenced by another is affected by the strength, immediacy, and number of people present. A nearby authority figure has more immediacy, making obedience more likely.

Question 9

Stan is a new student in his Grade 6 class.The other students exert normative pressure on him to conform to their opinion on some issue.According to social impact theory,in which of the following cases will Stan be more likely to resist this influence?

Accepted Answer

Social impact theory suggests that the influence of any group increases with its size, but at a decreasing rate, meaning that the difference in pressure felt between a group of 11 and a group of 20 is not as significant as the difference between a smaller group and a group of 11. Additionally, the theory posits that resistance to social pressure can increase when an individual does not feel alone in their resistance. Therefore, having allies or others in a similar situation, as in option C where there are three other new students experiencing the same pressure, can provide social support, making it easier for Stan to resist conforming. Options A, B, and D would likely increase the pressure to conform according to social impact theory and cultural norms.

Question 10

How did the level of obedience in recent research by Meeus and Raaijmakers (1995),compare to obedience in Milgram's research?

Accepted Answer

Meeus and Raaijmakers (1995) found that over 50 percent of participants exhibited total obedience, which is similar to the results from Milgram's research, where about 65 percent of participants obeyed to the end.

Question 11

In follow up studies,how was Milgram able to manipulate the level of obedience?

Accepted Answer

The answer of In follow up studies,how was Milgram able...

Question 12

How generalizable are Milgram's obedience studies?

Accepted Answer

Milgram's obedience studies have been replicated in different countries and cultures with similar results, indicating that the findings are still generalizable to the current population. However, it is important to note that there may be some cultural differences in obedience levels, and the studies were primarily conducted with male participants.

Question 13

Why is the door in the face technique effective?

Accepted Answer

The door in the face technique is effective because it is related to the norm of reciprocity. This means that when someone makes a large request that is likely to be refused, it creates a sense of obligation to comply with a subsequent smaller request. The person who refused the larger request feels like they owe the requester something and may be more likely to comply with a smaller request as a result.

Question 14

What characterized those participants in Milgram's study who went to the very end of the shock meter?

Accepted Answer

Participants who went to the very end of the shock meter in Milgram's study were found to be typical of the general population, indicating that the willingness to obey authority figures to the extent of causing harm to others is a common characteristic, rather than being associated with any specific pathological or demographic traits.

Question 15

What percentage of the participants in Milgram's study of destructive obedience demonstrated complete obedience to the experimenter?

Accepted Answer

Approximately 65 percent of the participants in Milgram's study demonstrated complete obedience to the experimenter by continuing to administer shocks up to the highest voltage level.

Question 16

According to social impact theory,which of the following is determined by a source's proximity in time and space?

Accepted Answer

Immediacy refers to the source's proximity in time and space, meaning how close the source is physically or temporally to the person being influenced. This can affect the persuasiveness of the source's message. The other factors listed (strength, number, popularity) are not necessarily determined by proximity in time and space.

Question 17

Which of the following factors reduced the level of obedience in the Milgram experiment?

Accepted Answer

Having the learner in the same room as the participant reduced the level of obedience in the Milgram experiment because it increased the psychological proximity between the participant (teacher) and the learner, making the discomfort and harm to the learner more immediate and palpable to the participant.

Question 18

Which of the following can help us resist the requests of others?

Accepted Answer

Perceiving compliance attempts as manipulative can help us resist the requests of others because it allows us to see through the manipulative tactics and understand that we have a choice in whether or not to comply. This awareness can make us less likely to automatically say yes, even if we feel obligated to do so. Options A, B, and C may provide temporary relief, but they do not address the underlying issue of feeling like we have to say yes to others.

Question 19

Which of the following statements best describes the relative importance of factors to social impact theory?

Accepted Answer

According to social impact theory, the most important factor in influencing behavior is immediacy, which refers to how close a person or group is to the individual being influenced. Physical proximity, while important, is considered secondary to immediacy in terms of impact. Understanding conformity and obedience are both important concepts in social psychology, but they are not specifically prioritized over one another in social impact theory. Similarly, while source strength and the number of sources are both factors in social impact theory, it is not necessarily the case that one is more important than the other. Finally, while the prestige of a source is certainly a factor in determining credibility, it is not necessarily more important than intelligence or other qualities.

Question 20

Which of the following was part of the procedure in Milgram's research on destructive obedience?

Accepted Answer

In Milgram's research on destructive obedience, participants played the role of the teacher and believed they were administering electric shocks to the learner. The learner, who was seated in a separate room, was actually a confederate of the experimenter and did not receive real shocks. The shocks increased in intensity with each mistake the learner made on a memory task, and the teacher was instructed to continue administering shocks even when the learner pleaded for the experiment to stop. The purpose of the study was to investigate how far people would go in obeying an authority figure, even when it involved causing harm to another person.

Quiz 7: Conformity