ANTH 100 - Lecture 5

Milgram Experiment

Introduction to the Milgram Experiment

The Milgram Experiment is a landmark study in social psychology, conducted by Stanley Milgram in the early 1960s. It investigated obedience to authority and the willingness of individuals to follow orders, even when those orders conflict with personal conscience.

• Purpose: To examine how far people would go in obeying an authority figure, even if it involved harming another person.

• Setup: Participants were told they were part of a study on memory and learning. They were instructed to administer electric shocks to a 'learner' (an actor) whenever the learner made mistakes on a task.

• Authority Figure: An experimenter in a lab coat instructed the 'teacher' (participant) to increase the shock level with each mistake.

• Shock Levels: The machine was labeled with voltages from 15V to 450V, with higher levels marked as 'Danger: Severe Shock.'

• Findings: A significant proportion of participants continued to administer shocks up to the highest levels, despite apparent distress from the learner.

Key Terms and Concepts

• Obedience: Compliance with commands given by an authority figure.

• Authority: The power or right to give orders and enforce obedience.

• Ethical Considerations: The experiment raised questions about psychological harm, informed consent, and the limits of research ethics.

Example and Application

• Real-World Application: The Milgram Experiment helps explain how ordinary people can commit harmful acts under authoritative pressure, relevant to understanding events such as wartime atrocities.

The Anthropological Approach: Making the Strange Familiar and the Familiar Strange

Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

Cultural anthropology seeks to understand human societies by examining cultural norms, values, and practices. A key methodological approach is to 'make the strange familiar and the familiar strange,' encouraging critical reflection on one's own culture and openness to others.

• Making the Strange Familiar: Anthropologists strive to understand unfamiliar cultures by immersing themselves and interpreting practices from the insider's perspective.

• Making the Familiar Strange: Anthropologists critically examine their own cultural assumptions, questioning what is taken for granted.

• Importance: This approach fosters empathy, cultural relativism, and critical thinking, essential for both psychology and anthropology students.

Key Terms

• Cultural Relativism: The principle of understanding other cultures on their own terms, without ethnocentric judgment.

• Ethnography: The systematic study and detailed description of people and cultures.

Example

• Application: When studying obedience (as in the Milgram Experiment), anthropologists might explore how cultural norms shape responses to authority in different societies.

Table: Comparison of Milgram Experiment and Anthropological Approach

Aspect	Milgram Experiment	Anthropological Approach
Focus	Obedience to authority	Cultural understanding
Method	Laboratory experiment	Ethnography, participant observation
Key Concept	Authority, compliance	Cultural relativism, critical reflection
Application	Explains harmful obedience	Explains cultural diversity and norms

Summary

Understanding the Milgram Experiment provides insight into the psychological mechanisms of obedience, while the anthropological approach encourages critical reflection on cultural norms. Both are essential for psychology students seeking to understand human behavior in social and cultural contexts.