Give an example of the confirmation bias.
Confirmation bias is the tendency to notice and search for information that confirms one's beliefs and to ignore information that disconfirms one's beliefs. One example is the story of someone who met a psychic poet who told the person that he would somed
conformity
due to social norms or implicit pressure (textbook - choice between being independent or going along with a group--acting at odds with one's beliefs or perceptions because other people are acting in that way)
compliance
change in response due to direct request (textbook - matter of going along with a group behaviorally, without being persuaded that the group is correct)
obedience
Change in response to a direct request issued by a legitimate authority
What are some of the main differences between Asch's study and Sherif's study?
In Sherif's autokinetic effect study, a dot of light that doesn't move is present. Our eyes think it is so. Alone, people claim almost no movement or much more movement, but in groups, their answers converge after a few trials (group norm emerges quickly)
How did Asch test whether the conformity obtained in his study was purely public (what the book calls "compliance") or if it was, at least in part, private (i.e., the subjects actually came to believe that the others were right)?
The main point of this study is that the answers are easy to get right in the absence of others. They are about conformity in which conformity in groups > in one. There is informational influence (maybe I am wrong) and people who are afraid of sounding st
What is the difference between pluralistic ignorance and diffusion of responsibility? Which has temporal priority over the other? Which is more similar to Asch's "informational influence"?
Kitty Geouvese was murdered in 1964, but at least 38 law-abiding citizens in the apartment did not call the police. This is because of pluralistic ignorance, the tendency to look at others to help us decide if an ambiguous and potentially attention-demand
Describe a study and give an example illustrating each (pluralistic ignorance and diffusion of responsibility) in isolation from the other.
The epileptic seizure study is one study in which diffusion of responsibility is evident. When people are alone, people help more than 80% of the time, but as more people make the group larger, people are less likely to help. The time it takes to help som
What is the "proximity series" and what do the experiments comprising the proximity series tell us about the nature of human obedience?
The proximity series brought invisibility of the learner's pain into visibility. It was not seen and not heard (remote); not seen, but heard--grew in intensity and insistence (brought suffering to the teacher--no longer just playing something--recordings
Which two of Milgram's studies hold especially clear implications for the construction of dictatorship-proof political systems? Describe the experiments and state the implications.
Milgram had special prods, like, "Please continue," and "The experiment must go on." Other special ones included how silence could be counted as wrong answers; shocks are painful, but not dangerous; whether he likes it or not, he must continue; "I take fu
What are the three features of Milgram's obedience studies that make them into "the single most significant research program in the history of social psychology"?
People said that it hurt, but it was air. The shock was due to a person thinking that there was an equal chance of being teacher or learner--both agreed to take this risk. For experiments in which the obedience rate is 0%, we realize that the autonomy of
What was Orne's main challenge to Milgram's research? What was the basis for his argument that the subjects were really pretending to be taken in by Milgram's set-up?
Orne's main challenge was that the subjects had an expectation of safety. They all expected that there would be protective safeguards. Ornes had a study in which 50% of the people were willing to touch a snake, 5/6 were willing to touch nitric acid, and a
Describe the puppy torture study and the nurse/overdose study.
People tortured the puppy (Male: 7/13 or 54% Female 13/13 or 100 %). To test this possibility, Sheridan and King decided to repeat Milgram's experiment, introducing one significant difference. Instead of using an actor, they would use an actual victim who
What is the significance of these studies vis-�-vis Orne's criticism?
Thus, the puppy torture study and the nurse/overdose study showed that Milgram's experiments were valid. Diffusion of of responsibility showed that people diffused it to experimenters--most diagnose as emergency, but it doesn't happen. Pluralistic ignoran
What are the crucial differences between Milgram's paradigm and the real-world cases of organized political violence (especially, the Holocaust) that it attempted to model?
nationalism in NAZI (cultivated hatred of Jews) vs. thinking of learners as equal; much greater risk of fleeing NAZIs compared to subjects stopping; Milgram's was gradual, while NAZIs just murdered; "fairness in Milgram's", but not in concentration camps;
What were the concrete features of Zimbardo's study that made it more difficult for the guards to inhibit their aggressive impulses?
The guards used humiliation tactics while the prisoners were stripped and taken during the day. The prisoners also had bags over their heads at times as well. The key is dehumanization. Common with Asch and Milgram, once the person put the fire extinguish
Many textbook authors have argued that Milgram's obedience study and Zimbardo's mock prison study belong in the same ethical basket. Do you agree?
The Zimbardo study was supposed to be more ethical due to the role-playing, since people are not deceived. It was supposed to subject people to less deception and make it psychologically less stressful. They did not, however, know that they would be taken