Purpose
To test subjects who, when confronted by the authority to give orders against their conscience, human nature can play in the end how many. One year (1963)
development
experiment began in Nazi Adolf Eichmann trial were recaptured Jerusalem (1961), sentenced to death (1962) after. Milgram devised the experiment is to test the "Eichmann and the other millions who had participated in the Holocaust of Nazi followers, there is no possibility of simply obeyed orders from their superiors? We can call them ? mass murderers do "(Milgram, 1974)
Milgram in his article" obey danger "(Milgram, 1974) wrote:
" in the law and philosophical views about the subject is very significant, but they rarely talk about the actual situation of the people in the face of what action will be taken. I designed this experiment at Yale University, is a test for the general public, an assistant scientist experiments because the order issued, and how many would be willing to impose pain on another person. when the experiments leading authority commanded participants hurt another person, the participants heard more pain scream, even if the participant has received strong moral uneasiness, in most cases command authority are still able to continue his experiments show adults how great for those in power to obey the will, to make almost any behavior scale, and we need to study this phenomenon and to explain as soon as possible. "
subjects
1963 years, the experimental group to advertise in newspapers, direct mail, and send many letters, participation in recruitment experiments at Yale University who came to help. Experiments take place at the old campus of the University in a basement, basement with two walls separated room. Description experiments will be about an hour on advertising, pay is $ 4.50 (approximately US $ 20 in 2006). Participants ranged in age from 20 years old to 50 years range includes a variety of educational backgrounds, have graduated from primary school to doctorate.
experimentally
Participants were told it was an experiment on "corporal punishment for behavior learning effectiveness" of its own and was told to play the role of "teacher" to teach another participant in the next room - "students", but in fact is a student laboratory personnel are fake.
Participants will be told, he was randomly selected to serve as "teacher", and received an "answer sheets." He explained the experimental group and the next to be selected as "students" of the participants also got a "title roll." But in fact two pieces of paper are "answer sheets", and all participants are real "teacher." "Teacher" and "student" sub-offices in different rooms, they can not see each other, but can communicate with each other across the wall to the sound. One participant even been informed in advance next participant with heart disease.
"teacher" is said to be given a 45 volt electric shock jump from a controller coupled to a generator, and inform the controller which enables the wall with "student" electric shock . Answer sheets "teacher" made a list of some good with words, rather "teacher" task is to teach next door "student." The teacher will read aloud one by one pairing of these words to the students listen, teachers will begin after completion of reading exam, each word pair will read out the four word options for students to answer, students press a button to indicate the correct answer. If the student answered correctly, the teacher will continue to test other words. If the student answered incorrectly, the student teacher will be subjected to electric shocks, every wrong answer, the number of volts of electric shock will also increase.
participants believe that every student answer wrong will really subjected to electric shocks, but in fact did not produce an electric shock. In the next room, by the laboratory personnel are fake students turned on the recorder, recording opportunity with the operation of the generator and play pre-recorded screams, along with a few volts of electric shock upgrade there will be even more shocking screams. When the Volt number raised to a certain extent, fake students began banging the walls, and beat the walls in several times will begin after complaining he was suffering from heart disease. Then after a few volts continue to improve to a certain extent, students will suddenly silent, stopped to answer and stop screaming and other reactions.
experimental results
| < i> 75 V | muttering |
| 120 V | Tongjiao < / p> |
| 150 V | said he wanted to withdraw from the trial |
| 200 V | shouting: "blood vessels are frozen in." |
| 300 V | refused to answer questions |
| than 330 V | silent |
to at this time many of the participants have shown experimental conditions want to pause to check the students. Many participants in reaching 135 volts pause, and questioned the purpose of the experiment. After the quiz some people continue to get a guarantee that they do not bear any responsibility. Some people when they hear the screams of students nervously laughing.
If participants say when you want to stop the experiment, the experimenter would like this his reply in the following order:
-
Please continue.
-
This experiment requires that you continue, please continue.
-
You proceed is necessary.
-
You have no choice, you must continue.
If the reply after four instigation, participants still want to stop that experiment will stop. Otherwise, the test will continue, until the current punish participants applied up to a maximum of 450 volts and lasts three times, the experiment will stop.
results
Milgram experiment for the entire process and its results recorded documentaries, documentaries name is "subject to" genuine copies of the documentary is now difficult to find. He and Harry From then produced a series of social psychology experiments of this film by the impact of the five. These videos can be found at Penn State media center.
Before the experiment, Milgram told his psychologist colleagues did predict experimental results of tests, they all think only a few people --10% or even only 1%, will TOUGH continue to punish until the maximum number of volts.
The results in the first experiment of Milgram, 65% (26 out of 40 people) of participants reached a maximum of 450 volts punishment, even though they have shown less comfortable; everyone pause and questioned the experiment when a few volts reach a certain degree, some people even said they would like to return reward experiments. None of the participants insisted stopped before reaching 300 volts. Later, many psychologists Milgram himself and the world have done a similar or vary the experiment, but the results have been similar. In support of this experiment, there are many changes to the experiment produced architecture.
Dr Thomas Blass University of Maryland, Baltimore County (University of Maryland Baltimore County) is (also Milgram biography - "electric awake the whole world," the author) was repeated after a number of experiments the results of the meta-analysis (Meta-analysis), he found that no matter the time and place of experiment, participants have a certain percentage of each experiment willing deadly volts applied, approximately between 61-66%.
In the case at the end of the experiment not know much, according to Mill Gera recall, was that the participants did not reach the maximum number of volts but also did not insist on this experiment should end in itself, nor to the next room visits "student", did not ask the consent of laboratory personnel when they leave.
Experimental evaluation
experiment itself has been questioned on ethics in science experiments, because the experiment participants applied extremely strong emotional stress (although this pressure may say by their own free operation caused), although this experiment brings a valuable discovery for the study of human psychology, many scientists now such experiments will be seen as a violation of the ethics of the experiment.
Milgram is defended, after a survey found that at that time 84 percent of participants said they feel "happy" or "very happy" participated in the experiment, 15% of the participants to choose a neutral stance (92% of the participants made a subsequent investigations), among the many personnel also expressed gratitude to Milgram. And Milgram also continued to receive these former participants wanted to help him carry out the experiment again, or even to join his research team.
After six years (which is the maximum size of the Vietnam War period), one of the former participants in touch with Milgram, express why they feel "happy" was involved in the experiment:
< p> "1964 Nian when I was conducting the experiment, although I believe I was hurt someone, but I do not know why I do this. when people obey those in power act according to what they believe in themselves and obedience few would realize it ... let me think, I was drafted into the army authority, which will allow me to make some even I would be afraid of a bad thing. ... If I refuse military service conscience application (conscientious Objector) is not approved by the authorities, therefore I am ready and go to jail, this is the only option in terms of my conscience. my only hope is that my fellow same can also be called up so play to their conscience ... "However, the experiment has not experienced a lifetime of change for each participant. Many participants were not told the details of the experimental basis of modern standards, while leaving the interview also shows that many participants still do not seem to understand the real situation of this experiment.
experimental significanceThe most important test is not ethical controversy caused by comments experimental methods, but rather the significance of the experiment represents. One in the Jewish Currents magazine wrote in the Yale participants in 1961, when he wants to stop at as a "teacher" in the middle, is suspected to "the whole experiment might just be designed, in order to test ordinary American people will It does not comply with an order contrary to the moral conscience - the same as the Germans during the Nazi era, "and this is one experiment in mind. Milgram in his "obedience of danger," a book he said: "The problem we face is, people we manufactured in the laboratory environment to obey authority, and between the Nazi era we are lambasted the how to have a relevance. "