On 2-Jan-2009, at 11:36, Kevin Callahan wrote:
> Four Decades After Milgram, We’re Still Willing to Inflict Pain
Like Jared, I think the writer missed the point entirely. The
experiment is all about authority figures and trust. The experiment is
designed to instill the test subject with the idea that everyone else
knows what is going on, is better informed, and frankly smarter than
the test subject. After all, Doctors/Scientists tell us things all the
time that seem counter-intuitive.
> Professor Burger was not surprised. He believes that the mindset of
> the individual participant including cultural influences is less
> important than the “situational features” that Professor Milgram
> shrewdly built into his experiment. These include having the authority
> figure take responsibility for the decision to administer the shock,
> and having the participant increase the voltage gradually. It is hard
> to say no to administering a 195-volt shock when you have just given a
> 180-volt shock.
This is the key paragraph. The experiment is not so much about
inflicting pain, but on how much a person will do to please an
authority figure. Repeat the experiment in a run-down warehouse with a
wine soaked hobo giving the instructions and see what sorts of results
you get.
--
"Your stepmom is cute"
"Shut up, Ted"
"Remember when she was a senior and we were freshmen?"
"Shut up Ted!"
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