Chapter Remarks
- The book begins by discussing the nature of obedience. This chapter serves as a good preface for the topics that follow.
- This chapter outlines the initial experiment in detail. Pictures are provided to illustrate the various apparatus and to give the reader a glimpse at the learner, which really aids in visualizing the experiments.
- This is a short chapter that takes a look at different populations predictions of the experiment's outcome. All participants expected the experiment to end around 150V and estimated that less than 1% of people (sociopaths) would continue to 450V.
- This chapter discusses experiments exploring the effect that the closeness of the victim has on disobedience. Unsurprisingly, the closer the teacher is to the learner to more likely they are to disobey. When the teacher has to physically force the learner to be shocked, obedience drops to 30%.
- This chapter discusses the results and experiences of a selection of participants from the first 3 experiments (focusing of proximity). The tension experienced by some of the participants was extremely evident. I'm glad that Milgram addressed the specific experiences of a few dissenters to round out the discussion.
- After experimenting with proximity, another series of experiments were conducted focusing on the learner's reaction to the shocks, the teacher's relationship to the authority, and the location of the experiment. The results were interesting, most notable was that teachers, when given the opportunity to choose what level of shock to administer, consistently chose very low levels.
- This chapter discusses individual experiences in experiments 5-11. Much like in chapter 5, this chapter serves to help the reader visualize the experiments. The anecdotal evidence also makes the book more interesting and sets it apart from a research paper.
- This chapter discusses experiments that vary the position of the authority in relation to the teacher and other authorities. This chapter provided a lot of the insight Milgram uses in his later discussions.
- The final experiments place the participant in a group of teachers. These experiments revealed that disobedience is easier when the teacher can follow another's lead and that participants have no problem being silently complicit in another teachers abuse of the learner.
- This chapter begins Milgram's academic and theoretic discussions on obedience. This chapter addresses the nature of hierarchy and the agentic shift in thinking that the teachers experienced during the experiments.
- This chapter discusses how people learn obedience early on and how society reinforces this by integrating people into hierarchies via promotions, rewards, and punishment. He also further elaborates on his agentic state and it's properties.
- This chapter is titled strain and disobedience. It discusses how some participants were able to overcome their agentic state and assert their individuality, through great psychic struggle. It also discusses coping mechanisms such as avoidance, denial, and subterfuge.
- In this chapter Milgram introduces and argues against an alternative theory built on aggression. This theory stands on Freudian principles and is refuted by several experiments.
- This chapter addresses criticisms of Milgram's experiments and theories. His defense is clearly composed and built on evidence from his experiments and others. Personally, I agree with Milgram's analysis and thing that his reasoning is sound.
- This chapter draws the book to a close by refocusing on Nazi Germany and how people behave in the real world. The interview with the veteran that participated in the execution of innocent people during Vietnam was troubling and ended the book on a strong note.
Book Reflection
I enjoyed reading this book quite a bit. I was pleased to find that it was much more than a recap of the infamous Milgram experiments, which I've been familiar with for some time.
The first two thirds of the book discuss the initial experiment and the follow-up experiments that it inspired in great detail. The initial experiment revealed that people are willing to obey an authority to an alarming extent. Even past the point that they would be comfortable operating of their own free will. Predictions made by professors, students, and psychologists all suggest that the average person would only cooperate to a small extent, and that only a sociopath would be willing to subject another human to 450V for the purpose of scientific experimentation.
Obviously results this unexpected, not to mention concerning, warranted further investigation. Milgram's first round of follow-up experiments focused on the relationship between the proximity of the teacher to the "victim" and the teacher's obedience to the authority. These experiments revealed that moving the victim closer to the teacher, therefore making the teacher's actions more explicit and more subject to their personal scrutiny. The other experiments that followed revealed that women are as obedient as men, that the reputability of the locale contributes to the power of the authority, that conflicting authorities undermine obedience, that participants are more obedient when they don't feel responsible for their actions, and various other findings.
The real contribution Milgram made by writing this book was his discussion of the theories he formed from these results, in the last third of the book. Milgram's theories center around his idea of the agentic state. Milgram proposes that people can function independently or as a part of a hierarchy, the later referred to as the agentic state. He asserts that this functioning is an entirely separate state of mind based on the way participants behave in contrast to their individual ideals and preferences.
Overall, Milgram's experiments were well conducted and his theories well formed. I agree with his analysis and enjoyed reading his book.
The first two thirds of the book discuss the initial experiment and the follow-up experiments that it inspired in great detail. The initial experiment revealed that people are willing to obey an authority to an alarming extent. Even past the point that they would be comfortable operating of their own free will. Predictions made by professors, students, and psychologists all suggest that the average person would only cooperate to a small extent, and that only a sociopath would be willing to subject another human to 450V for the purpose of scientific experimentation.
Obviously results this unexpected, not to mention concerning, warranted further investigation. Milgram's first round of follow-up experiments focused on the relationship between the proximity of the teacher to the "victim" and the teacher's obedience to the authority. These experiments revealed that moving the victim closer to the teacher, therefore making the teacher's actions more explicit and more subject to their personal scrutiny. The other experiments that followed revealed that women are as obedient as men, that the reputability of the locale contributes to the power of the authority, that conflicting authorities undermine obedience, that participants are more obedient when they don't feel responsible for their actions, and various other findings.
The real contribution Milgram made by writing this book was his discussion of the theories he formed from these results, in the last third of the book. Milgram's theories center around his idea of the agentic state. Milgram proposes that people can function independently or as a part of a hierarchy, the later referred to as the agentic state. He asserts that this functioning is an entirely separate state of mind based on the way participants behave in contrast to their individual ideals and preferences.
Overall, Milgram's experiments were well conducted and his theories well formed. I agree with his analysis and enjoyed reading his book.
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