Obedience | Situational explanations

What is the 'agentic state'?

A mental state where an individual feels no personal responsibility for their actions because they believe they are acting on behalf of an authority figure.

What is the opposite of the agentic state?

The autonomous state, where an individual feels free to act according to their own principles and feels responsible for their own actions.

What is the 'agentic shift'?

The moment a person moves from an autonomous state to an agentic state by perceiving someone else as a legitimate authority figure

What are 'binding factors'?

Aspects of a situation that allow a person to minimize the damaging effect of their behavior (e.g., blaming the victim) to reduce the moral strain of obeying.

What research evidence from Milgram supports the agentic state explanation?

When participants asked who was responsible and the Experimenter said "I am," they often continued quickly. This shows they shifted responsibility to the authority figure.

How does the case of German Reserve Police Battalion 101 challenge the agentic state explanation?

They murdered civilians autonomously, without direct orders, showing destructive behavior can occur without being in an agentic state

How does the Rank and Jacobson (1977) nurse study challenge the agentic state explanation?

Most nurses disobeyed a doctor's (authority figure) order to give a harmful drug dose, showing people can remain autonomous and not shift into an agentic state

What is meant by the 'legitimacy of authority'?

An explanation for obedience which suggests we are more likely to obey people who we perceive to have legitimate authority over us, granted by their position in a social hierarchy

What is 'destructive authority'?

When figures with legitimate authority use their power for destructive purposes, ordering people to behave in cruel and dangerous ways.

How does the legitimacy explanation account for cultural differences in obedience?

Cultures differ in how they are structured and socialize children to view authority. This explains why obedience rates are higher in some countries (e.g., 85% in Germany) than others (e.g., 16% in Australia)

What is a key limitation of the legitimacy of authority explanation?

It cannot explain why disobedience occurs in clear hierarchies (e.g., nurses disobeying a doctor) or why some people in Milgram's study disobeyed, suggesting individual differences are also important.