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Classic Studies in Social Psychology and the Importance of Theory -…
Classic Studies in Social Psychology
and the Importance of Theory
Assumptions of
Social Psychology
scientific disciplines have particular viewpoints that will affect the problems that are chosen to be studied, the methods used in research, and conclusions drawn from research.
scientists must strive to be as objective as possible and not let their values influence their science.
scientists must question commonsensical explanations of phenomena.
in creative thought, common sense is a bad master. it may hinder and mislead the evaluation of new knowledge.
differences between science and common sense
use of conceptual schemes and theoretical structures
systematic and empirical tests of theories and hypotheses
control > rules out alternative explanations
ascertain whether relations between phenomena are causal
avoids explanations that cannot be tested.
2 Broad Views of
Science: Conant (1961)
static
activity that contributes systematised information to the world
scientists discover new facts and add them to existing bodies of knowledge
science is a body of facts and a way of explaining observed phenomena.
there is an emphasis on the present state of knowledge and adding to it.
dynamic view (advocated by conant)
science is an activity; knowledge is important, but mainly because it is a base for further scientific theory and research.
discovery emphasis
emphasis on theory and inter-connected conceptual schemata to advance research
imaginative problem-solving
Functions of Science
thought to be practical: improving things, making progress, making discoveries, learning facts to advance knowledge to improve things > seen in medical and military research.
according to many philosophers, the function of science is to establish general laws > done via theory.
the basic aim of science is theory: explaining natural phenomena
seeking general explanations that encompass and link together many different behaviours.
other aims (sub-aims): explanation, understanding, prediction, and control.
what is theory?
a set of interrelated constructs (concepts), definitions, and propositions that present a systematic view of phenomena by specifying relations among variables, to explain and predict the phenomena.
set of propositions consisting of defined and interrelated constructs.
posits interrelations among a set of variables and in doing so presents a systematic view of the phenomena described by the variables.
explains phenomena- what relates to what, and how they are related.
scientific research
used to test theory
systematic, controlled, empirical, and critical investigation of hypothetical propositions about the presumed relations among natural phenomena.
first, you have a problem and an idea about how to solve the problem. this may lead to a hypothesis. then you use reasoning or deductive logic to deduce the consequences of that hypothesis.
finally, make an observation. test the relationship expressed by the hypothesis. you may need to test the deduced implications of the hypothesis in some situations, so you may form a very specific or narrow hypothesis by considering a specific behaviour.
Milgram
obedience studies
the aftermath of WW2: ordinary people can commit extraordinary acts through sheer inattention.
how so many people in germany could go along with the acts of harm to others
the situation in nazi germany was much more complicated than conformity.
made reference to soloman asch's earlier rigged studies.
having confederates lie about the length of two lines (saying they're the same length when they aren't) and then seeing what regular people say (if they conform when its clearly incorrect).
milgram thought the consequences weren't bad enough, so it didn't effectively represent nazi germany.
pilot studies
calibrated confederates: in search of the stern and intellectual 'experimenter' and the mild and submissive 'learner'.
set it up to be like a learning study: naive subject encouraged by the experimenter to learn a list of words and read them to a submissive learner.
targeted tension: crafting the right amount of contact between the participants and the learner.
if the submissive learner was failing to learn word pairs, the subject would administer electric shocks.
believable shock generator: made to be imposing and professional, with logical gaps between levels of shocks.
every time the learner got something wrong, the subject had to increase the shock level
experiments
original
plain, inelegant lab at yale uni
40 participants > 65% went all the way to the max level and never defied the experimenter
14 refused to go on > 6 stopped at 150 volts
mods
from dry, hard, technical-looking experimenter, and soft, innocuous-looking victim to the opposite.
50% obeyed to the end
the experimenter gave initial instructions, left the lab, and gave orders by phone
20.5% fully obedient. several naive subjects continued with the experiment but gave lower shocks that were required and never informed the experimenter of their deviance
women as naive subjects
male experimenter and learner
65% fully obedient
voice feedback: vocal protests are introduced > victim in adjacent room, but complains were heard through the walls of the lab
62% obeyed
proximity: victim in the same room (only a few feet from) as the subject
40% obeyed
touch-proximity: shock only when the learner's hand is on a shock plate. at the 150 level, the learner refused to have the hand on the plate, and the experimenter ordered the subject to force the hand on the plate
30% obeyed
how do we explain the diminishing obedience as the victim is brought closer?
empathetic cues
more difficult to remove the victim from thought when he is closer
easier to see the connection between actions and consquences
closeness may cause an alliance between the victim and the subject.
fear of retaliation
distinction between conformity and obedience
conformity
: the action of a person when she goes along with her peers, persons of her own status, who have no special right to her behaviour (asch)
obedience:
action of a person who complies with authority (milgram)
replications:
yes, with similar results
burger (2009)
beauvis et al (2012)
dolinkski et al (2017)
conclusions
obedience varied from 0-90%.
demonstrates both obedience and disobedience
not just whether people obey, but when people obey.
participants don't just obey anyone > need legit authority with clear guidance
participants responsive to other voices > most likely to stop when learner demands it, or there is a group consensus among experimenters to stop.
agentic shift:
shift from acting in terms of one' own purposes to acting as an agent for someone elses.