Behavior in Social and Cultural Context P.P. #1
Feb 16, 2016
Behavior in Social and Cultural Context
P.P. #1
Behavior in Social and Cultural Context
chapter 10
OverviewRoles and rulesSocial influences on beliefsIndividuals in groupsUs vs. Them: Group identityGroup conflict and prejudice
chapter 10
Objectives
• Define who studies culture and society• Explain Norms and give 2 examples of them• Analyze and Summarize the Obedience Study• Analyze and Summarize the Zimbardo Prison
Study• Infer why we follow orders
Who studies this?
• Social psychologists study how social roles, relationships, and groups influence people to do things they wouldn’t normally do on their own.
Social cognitionAn area in social psychology concerned with social influences on thought, memory, perception, and other cognitive processes.
Researchers are interested in how people’s perceptions of themselves and others affect. . .RelationshipsThoughtsBeliefsValues
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Culture
• Cultural psychologists study the broader influence of culture and ethnicity on roles and relationships in society
• Together these fields explore range of study: kindness, sacrifice, heroism ON THE OTHER HAND cruelty, selfishness, and war
DefinitionsNormsRules that regulate human life, including social conventions, explicit laws, and implicit cultural standards
RoleA given social position that is governed by a set of norms for proper behavior
CultureA program of shared rules that govern the behavior of members of a community or society, and a set of values, beliefs, and attitudes shared by most members of that community
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Roles and Rules
• Norms are rules that regulate social life, including explicit laws and implicit cultural conventions
• How you are supposed to act: enforced by punishment if break rules, reward if follow
• Predictable and ordinary • Every society has norms form conducting courtship, for
raising children, for behaving in public, for making decisions
• Law- only beat up a guy in self defense• Society- beat up man questions masculinity
Know your role
• Roles are a given social position that is governed by a set of norms for proper behavior for a man and a woman
• Occupational roles: manager- employee; teacher- student
• Family roles: parent-child, husband wife• Aspects of every role must be carried out or
penalties: financial, emotional or professional• But you bring in own personalities and interests
Obedience Study
• Early 1960’s , Stanley Milgram- designed Study• Would you obey authority figure when directly
ordered to violate their own ethical standards?• Participants thought they were in a study about
effects of punishments on learning• Each was assigned, apparently at random, to role
of “teacher”.• another person, introduced as fellow volunteer,
was the learner
The obedience studyStanley Milgram and coworkers investigated whether people would follow orders, even when the order violated their ethical standards.
Most people were far more obedient than anyone expected.Every single participant complied with at least some orders to shock another person.Two-thirds shocked the learner to the full extent.
Results are controversial and have generated further research on violence and obedience.
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Design
Shock box
Obedience study cont…
• When “Learner” recited words wrong, “teacher” gave electric shock by pressing lever
• With each error voltage went up 15 volts (0-450 volts)
• Categories: slight shock, danger, severe shock, XXX
• “ Learners” were part of experiment, had script
Obedience study
• Before study, poll- survey, of how people would react
• Most psychiatrists said most refuse past 150 volts
• Hypothesis : If learner first demanded to be freed, 1/1000 would administer highest voltage (XXX)
• Only sadistic or disturbed
Well…..Results
• Every single person gave some shock!• 2/3rds, of all ages and walks of life= obeyed to
fullest extent• Many protested to experimenter, but backed down
when he calmly said• “ the experiment requires that you continue”• No matter how much the victim shouted to stop! • Sweat, tremble, stutter, bite lip, groan, dig
fingernails in self….but still administered shock
3,000 more studies similar after Milgram
• 90% in Spain, Netherland showed same findings so cross cultural
• Milgram and team subsequently set up similar studies
• Changed study, guy said heart condition, screamed, passed out. Still shocked
• HOWEVER People were most likely to disobey under following conditions
Factors of experiment
• When the experimenter left the room (lie about amount of volts)
• When the victim was right there in the room• When two experimenters issued conflicting
demands (one say do it another no)• When the person ordering them to continue was
an ordinary man (no lab coat)• When the subject worked with peers who
refused to go further (some one else says no)
Factors leading to disobedience
When the experimenter left the room
When the “learner” was in the same room
When the experimenter issued conflicting orders
When the person ordering them to continue was an ordinary man
When the subject worked with peers who refused to go on
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CONCLUSION
• Milgram said more the situation than the personalities of the participants
• Ordinary people, gripped by social forces
Stanford Prison Study
• Philip Zimbardo• Students Random assigned to guards or prisoners• Cells, uniforms, nightsticks• Prisoners =become dramatic, emotional, physical
ailments• Guards =become enjoy of new power, few
abusive, 1 John Wayne• Shows power of roles
The prison studySubjects were physically and mentally healthy young men who volunteered to participate for money.
They were randomly assigned to be prisoners or guards.
Those assigned the role of prisoner became distressed, helpless, and panicky.
Those assigned the role of guards became either nice, “tough but fair,” or tyrannical.
Study had to be ended after six days.
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Why People Obey
1. Allocating responsibility to the authority “ I’m just following orders”
2. Routinizing the task- “Busy work” f.e. keeping records of genocide, Nazi’s; Cambodia Khmer Rouge
3. Wanting to be polite “don’t want to rock boat”; study lady kept apologizing do I go right to the end sir? I hope he is O.K.
4. Becoming entrapped- escalate commitment. Once first 15 volt shock, then next “only “30 …or if you date someone you like moderately then before you know it been together so long can’t break up ( mafia- godfather)
Factors in obedienceAllocating responsibility to the authority
Routinizing the task
Wanting to be polite
Becoming entrappedEntrapment: a gradual process in which individuals escalate their commitment to a course of action to justify their investment of time, money, or effort
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Summary
• Roles, Rules • Milgram• Prison study• Why do we obey?