Stanley Milgram was a top psychologist famous for carrying out experiments on people, and measuring how high their levels of obedience were. His most famous experiment was the staged electric shock treatment.  His unsuspecting members of the public were under the impression that they were actually carrying out shocks to another member of the public. This in fact was all staged and the person receiving the shocks was actually involved in the experiment. The levels administered ranged from 15 vaults, this being a slight tingle when the learner answered a question wrong, to 450 vaults being extremely painful. The results where somewhat startling, but did differ in different settings. There were several factors affecting their resistance and obedience levels.

Obedience levels where high when the stern authoritive figure was in the same room, and when the teacher showed signs of flagging slight encouragement was given by the authoritive figure, thus resulting in complying with the commands. The teacher showed high levels of distress and discomfort, but still continued when prompted. Over 60% of the participants continued to deliver the electric shocks up to 450 vaults even though they had not heard from the learner after 300 vaults. When the authoritive figure was out of the room and giving orders over the phone the levels dropped. This shows that people find it easier to resist obedience if the figure of authority is absent.

Another factor which influenced the obedience levels was the proximity of the learner. If the learner was in the same room as the teacher obedience levels dropped. It was suggested that the physical presence made the teachers empathise with the learners suffering therefore making it harder to ignore.  Also when the teacher was asked to hold the learners hand down obedience levels dropped dramatically. This would mean they too would experience the pain. The location was also tested. When the experiment was carried out in a run down building the obedience levels dropped. The setting in the laboratory seemed to have the highest levels of obedience.

Milgram also included another bogus teacher in on the experiment. The unsuspecting participant was unaware the addition to the room was also involved with the experiment. When the bogus teacher refused to continue with the shocks this gave the teacher encouragement to follow suit and also refuse to continue.  This suggests that it may be difficult to rebel alone, but with the presence of others who rebel a person is encouraged to follow.

Orne and Holland criticised Milgram’s work claiming that it lacked ecological validity and internal validity. They also claimed that the participants knew that it was a set up, but went along regardless for the sake of the experiment.

Another psychologist who carried out experiments on obedience was Hofling. He wanted to see if levels of obedience altered in real life settings. His experiments were carried out on a ward involving nurses. Instructions were given to the nurses over the phone by a bogus doctor. Astonishingly 95% of the nurses carried out the instructions and obeyed even though the drug and dosage would be against hospital policy. The nurses later argued that they obeyed the instructions for several reasons; one of them being doctors usually did this and if they hadn’t follow orders some of the doctors became very angry. Also the nurses always worked along side with the doctors, assisting where possible.

Findings suggest that ordinary people are very obedient to authority when asked to behave in an inhumane manner. Obedience is a healthy and necessary social behaviour.  It is not just evil people who commit crimes but ordinary people who are just obeying orders. Crimes against humanity may be the outcome of situational rather than dispositional factors.

Examples of this could be taken from the Second World War.  Hitler gave orders for the mass slaughter of Jews. This is known to us as the Holocaust. Many of the German’s who took part in the genocide of the Jews argued that they were coerced into the killings, and were blindly following orders after succumbing to peer pressure.