Social Influence Research

Is it ethical? Is it valid?

Campbell Russell

The four big boys

•Asch•Milgram•Zimbardo•Moscovici

• Series of experiments most done with 1 participant and 5-8 confederates

• Real participant would give their judgment after several confederates had already given theirs

Asch

• What did he do for us?

• He told us the amazing fact that people will conform to a majority influence.

• He “set up” individual students to conform to a majority in an unambiguous setting.

Milgram

• What did Milgram do for us

• He gave us some shocking results! • He demonstrated just how obedient we are• He showed that obedience can be explained in a

number of ways

Zimbardo• What did

Zimbardo do for us?

• He showed us that we might all adopt roles in certain settings.

• His prison simulation showed how easy it is to get “prisoners” to acquiesce and “guards” to become brutal bullies.

Were they ethical?

• Asch

• No. He caused embarrassment to his subjects (harm) and he certainly deceived them.

Were they ethical?

• Milgram

• Get out! Ethical? He had grown men weeping. There was deception, of course, as well.

Were they ethical?

• Zimbardo

• Now you’re having a laugh. Let’s just think about it. There was no deception, but I think the methods might just be described as harmful!

Were they justified?

• Costs against benefits

Were they justified?

• Asch showed that conformity was not just about being led because we are not sure – an ambiguous situation.

• Asch demonstrated that we conform because we want to be part of the group – that we’ll conform even if the group is wrong and we know it. This is a real insight into human behaviour.

Were they justified?

• Milgram showed the power of obedience

• He showed us that those who obeyed in such extremes as the Nazi death camps were a bit like you and me … scary or what?

Were they justified?

• Zimbardo showed us the power that roles can influence on us. You might think you wouldn’t do such a thing, but Zimbardo makes you re-think this.

Were they justified?

• If you were asked whether you would

conform to a majority that you knew was

wrong, what would you do?

Were they justified?

• If you were asked whether you would continue to electrocute someone who was clearly in distress because you were told to continue, what would you say?

• Or if you were asked how you might behave if you were a prison guard?

Were they justified?

• This is what Aronson did. On the Milgram question he asked his students how many would have continued to the end – not even the local psychopath was present it seems!

Were they justified?

• Three arguments basically

• Some were, some weren’t• All were• None were

Were they justified?• Think about what the research added to

our understanding against the cost.• It is legitimate to argue that the benefits

of Milgram – increasing our understanding of obedience (if not of the Holocaust) – outweighs the pain endured by the individuals. Anyhow we are told (by Milgram admittedly) that most said they were “glad to have taken part”.

Were they justified?

• And what did big Phil say about locking kids up ….

• It was unethical, but there were benefits

Is the research valid?

• What is validity?

• Does it really measure what it claims? In particular here, were the participants fooled

• People sure seemed fooled!

• Look at the faces of the p’s in Asch’s experiment.

• In Milgram p’s sweated, had a convulsion in one case, swore at Milgram .. Was this just over-acting?

Is the research valid?

• Does it seem real?

• Is there a problem with the setting or the “real world” context that could make the results not suitable for generalisation?

• Asch’s experiment was a ‘child of our times’. (Perrin and Spencer 1980)

• Does this make it invalid, or is it a warning against the culture of witch-hunts?

Is the research valid?

• Asch

• Was he measuring conformity or how important being accepted into a group of strangers is to us?

• How often are we in this situation? Simplicity and stranger argument.

• We don’t have to give an opinion is real life.

Is the research valid?

• Milgram• Is the obedience a demand

characteristic?• Were they fooled?• Is it real life?• Hofling is often quoted as showing “real

life” obedience but beware.• There is cross-cultural support for

Milgram.

Is the research valid?

• Zimbardo• What was he measuring?• Everyone knew it wasn’t “real”• Yet his simulation seems to have

reflected the reality in many prisons

Questions

• Consider whether the findings from social influence research (e.g.Asch, Milgram, Zimbardo) can justify the methods used to obtain such findings. (18 marks)

• Do you have to use Asch et al?

• Do you need to argue it is justified or not?

Questions

• Outline some criticisms of majority influence research and consider whether these are fair. (18 marks)

• What does “some” mean?

• Which research can you use?

• What does outline mean?