Compliance entails modifying one’s behavior under social pressure, while conformity is about adhering to group norms. Young humans often emulate adult behavior, adhering to established social norms to feel secure and accepted. Overall, obedience encapsulates the social response to explicit orders, maintaining order and structure in various aspects of life. Although other fields have studied obedience, social psychology has been primarily responsible for the advancement of research on obedience.
Embodiment of prestige or power
In these situations where it isn’t as clear what to do, you might consider the pros and cons of each or go with your gut feeling. Another 2017 replication conducted by researcher in Poland found that 90% of people were willing to go to the highest voltage level.
Important experiment on obedience
This involves providing potential participants with clear details about the study’s purpose, procedures, duration, potential benefits, and any risks or discomfort that might be involved. Destructive obedience can lead to grave psychological and societal repercussions. This sense of duty can arise from societal norms, personal morals, or religious convictions.
Rules may be established for the greater good of a family, organization, or society. Still, the psychology of obedience can be nuanced and has been extensively studied, particularly the concept of destructive obedience, which can refer to following orders that may harm your own or others’ well-being. If you’ve noticed that you may be prone to destructive obedience, speaking with a licensed therapist may enable you to get to the root of this tendency and address it accordingly. Obedience includes considering social context, the authority and power of others, and personal morals and values. While situational factors are crucial in understanding obedience, dispositional (personality) factors also play a role.
People refer to obeying the law or obeying the word of God, but obedience psychology definition in neither situation is a direct order required. For example, we don’t typically need an authority figure such as a police officer to order us to drive on the correct side of road or to refrain from leaving a store without paying for our goods. Indeed, for a society to function smoothly, it is necessary that people are able to go about their daily lives without authority having to be exercised directly in the form of explicit… We can say that – legitimacy of the authority is one of the factors that influence obedience of an individual.
Life Style
Scene 1 – the teacher asks the students to keep quiet and sits in the classroom itselfScene 2 – the teacher asks the students to maintain silence and leaves the classroom. Therapy may enable you to explore your relationship with authority and obedience, among other topics. It’s important to use critical thinking to avoid potential consequences when making a decision to obey demands or not.
- Obedience psychology is a vital area of study, exploring the complex relationships between individuals, authority figures, and the many factors that influence our behavior.
- Obedience to authority is influenced by intricate psychological mechanisms, shaped by social contexts, personality traits, and moral values.
- It is important to find the right balance between obedience and blindly following the orders of someone.
- Prominent psychologist Stanley Milgram conducted influential experiments on obedience, revealing the tension between authoritative commands and personal conscience.
- The BTA effect states that most people believe they are better than the average person regarding certain abilities or traits.
Social pressure that involves an individual acting according to the orders given by an authority figure. These actions are something that the person would not have taken by himself unless someone with authority or influence tells him to do it. Some of the daily life examples of obedience are –You stopping at the red signal or turning in your assignment on time.
According to an Austrian study from 2015, obedience can be defined as a willingness to accommodate the demands of social norms or formal laws given by legitimate authorities. Building this understanding may also help people better recognize abuses of power and find ways to better promote responsible, ethical behavior. While 65% of the participants followed orders, it is essential to note that the statistics only apply to one study variation. In other trials, fewer people were willing to go through with the shocks, and in some cases, every participant refused to follow orders. Where obedience relies on direct orders, the perceived status and power of the person giving those orders, conformity is more about fitting in with the group. People obey because they are commanded to, but conform because they want to gain approval from their peers.
Explore the definition of obedience in psychology, its characteristics, and how obedience plays out in everyday life. Milgram’s studies involved placing participants in a room and directing them to deliver electrical shocks to a “learner” located in another room. Unbeknownst to the participant, the person supposedly receiving the shocks was actually in on the experiment and was merely acting out responses to imaginary shocks. During the 1950s, psychologist Stanley Milgram became intrigued with the conformity experiments performed by Solomon Asch.
Obedience: The Psychology Behind Conformity and Compliance
For example, if a researcher covertly videotapes behavior in a public park as part of an experiment, they would need to destroy any footage of anyone who later does not consent when debriefed. All materials on this website are for the exclusive use of teachers and pupils of psychology . Any unauthorised copying or posting of material from this site is a copyright infringement and could result in legal action being taken against you. Research suggests that prayer can positively impact mental health, including alleviating symptoms of anxiety and depression. Prayer is a foundational practice in many spiritual traditions, often interwoven with themes of obedience. Therapists may incorporate aspects of discipleship models into treatment strategies, especially when collaborating with clients who hold strong spiritual beliefs.
Personality Traits and Compliance
Evidence indicates that when therapy is administered online, it can be just as effective as in-person therapy. As research into obedience continues, more light may be shed on the unique differences between individuals’ tendencies to obey. When a person of authority, in this case, the professor, persuaded people to administer the shock, most were obedient, even when it conflicted with their moral values and ethics.
- Many religious traditions highlight obedience as a virtue and an essential duty.
- Older research indicates that constructive obedience involves behaviors that promote social harmony and the greater good of society.
- In some Christian weddings, obedience was formally included along with honor and love as part of the bride’s (but not the bridegroom’s) marriage vow.
- Subsequent research citations have built upon the original premises established by Milgram and Zimbardo, offering contemporary insights and fostering a nuanced understanding of obedience within an ever-evolving social landscape.
- Unbeknownst to the participant, the person supposedly receiving the shocks was actually in on the experiment and was merely acting out responses to imaginary shocks.
- The findings of his research raised important ethical concerns and sparked significant discussions about the nature of obedience and the potential for individuals to blindly follow orders.
Understanding the differences and connections between these terms helps us better understand the complexities of human behavior in social contexts. The initial research was conducted using male participants but Milgram found that women participants followed the experimenter’s instructions at exactly the same rate that the men had. Cross cultural studies of obedience found rates of obedience similar to those of Milgram. The United States had an obedience rate of 61% and the mean across other cultures was about 66%. Some countries had much lower rates of obedience (India reported 42% and Spain reported about 50%) while some countries had much higher rates of obedience (Germany and Austria reported about 80%) (Blass, 2011). Culture and social norms shape perspectives of authority, obedience and interact with individual decision making.
Building upon the foundation set by historical research into obedience, let’s explore some real-life examples that can help us better understand how authority figures can significantly impact individual actions. The legitimacy of the authority plays an important role in how much an individual will obey the orders. If the authority is legitimate that is someone who is well known in that fieldsthen people demonstrate higher obedience.
