1. Unit 14 Social Psychology

2. The scientific study of how we think about, influence and relate to one another. Sociology – the study of society Social behavior Social structure Social institutions

3. Conformity Adjusting one’s behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

4. Conformity Which line is identical to the standard line? After 4 people chose line 3, the fifth person agrees.

5. Obedience The act or practice of obeying or complying. Behaving as expected; good behavior. Dutiful or submissive.

6. Milgram Experiment Study on the effect of punishment on learning. “Teacher” & “Learner” Teacher is to teach the learner a list of words and deliver brief electric shocks for wrong answers (beginning with slight shock and increasing in higher voltage). Controversy Deception and stress – “learners” were acting.

7. Milgram Experiment Brief Original Video Video Clip #1: Obedience - Original Experiment Video Clip #2: Obedience - Original Experiment Video Clip #3: Obedience - Original Experiment Handout 14-3

8. Milgram Experiment Predictions 40 psychiatrists predicted less than 10% would comply all the way through to the highest voltage. Participants completed a survey prior to the experiment. Most declared they would stop soon after the “learner” first indicated pain and certainly before he shrieked in agony.

9. Milgram Experiment Results 63% complied fully – right up to the last switch. In a repeated experiment in which the “learner” mentioned a “slight heart condition”, still 65% complied fully.

10. Milgram Experiment Obedience was highest when… the person giving the order was close at hand and was perceived to be a legitimate authority figure. the authority figure was supported by a prestigious institution. the victim was depersonalized or at a distance. there were no role models for defiance.

11. Milgram Experiment What is the significance of this experiment? What does it teach us about ourselves? Moral sense warned them not to harm another, yet it also prompted them to obey the experimenter. Strong social influences can make people conform to falsehoods or capitulate to cruelty. Great evils sometimes grow out of people’s compliance with lesser evils.

12. 12 Angry Men Part 1/12 Part 2/12 Part 3/12 Part 4/12 Part 5/12 Part 6/12 Part 7/12 Part 8/12 Part 9/12 Part 10/12 Part 11/12 Part 12/12 Via YouTube: