Obedience

Apuntes

Obedience 1.1.1 Theories of obedience Obedience Obedience is a form of social influence where the behaviour of an individual is influenced by a real or imagined pressure from another. In terms of obedience, this can be defined as compliance to the real or imagined demands of an authority figure. Rejecting the demands is known as dissent. Agency theory of obedience Evolution of obedience > Milgram observed that society was hierarchical in nature and so it must have evolved for some survival function (society that adopted it survived) > Stabilising function - create social order > Obedience within this social organisation is necessary in order to maintain it > Innately prepared to be obedient. Exposure to authority figures in the family and educational systems nurture this preparedness through socialisation. Milgram proposed that humans exist in two different states: autonomy and agency. Autonomous state - a human acts according to their own free will When given instructions by an authority figure the human switches to an agentic shift. > relieves moral strain as individual displaces the responsibility of the situation onto the authority figure. Agentic state - people ...