Milgram Experiment Analysis

794 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Milgram's experiment conclusion

Some people argue on many different things about Milgram’s experiment and how it was related to the Nazis treatment towards the prisoners. One critique was that the people participating in his experiment were assured in advance that no permanent physical damage would result from their actions. However, the Holocaust criminals were completely aware of their hands-on killing and damage of the victims. Another consideration was that the participants of the experiment did not know their victims and were not motivated by racism. Conversely, the Holocaust enforcers displayed an intense diminishing of the victims through a lifetime of personal development. Other people are inclined to believe that people who were serving punishment at the lab were not sadists and often displayed great torment and conflict in the experiment, which is dissimilar to the designers and assassins of the Final Solution, which was a plan to completely annihilate the Jewish population and had a clear "objective" on their hands set ahead of time. The last critique was that the experiment lasted for only an hour, which was no time for the subjects to consider the effects of their performance. On the other hand, the Holocaust continued for years with plenty of time for a good calculation of all individuals and organizations involved (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum).
Milgram’s experiment ties into the way the Nazis treated the prisoners in concentration camps by the means of the researcher being thought of as Hitler, the teacher being the Nazi soldiers, and the learner being the Jews. Although the Nazis may have not wanted to kill the Jews, they had no other choice or they would lose their life. In this case it makes the affairs of the 1940's Nazi Germany an...

... middle of paper ...

...d never act like they did and that what they did questioned morality. This could be the same way for the Nazi Germany soldiers.
Supporting the general ideas of the understanding of evil, Milgram and Zimbardo’s research has shown that people conform compliantly and carelessly to both the commands and the roles that authorities provide however wicked the orders may be. In recent times this consensus has been challenged by experimental work informed by social identity inferring. This suggests that individuals' inclination to follow authorities is restricted on empathy with the power in question and a related belief that the authority is correct. Many people argue that Philip Zimbardo’s experiment was a complete failure, when in actuality it was a success because he created an authoritative machine that simulated the real life violence of the Nazi concentration camps.

Show More
Related

  • The Capricious Camera

    2721 Words  | 6 Pages

    Clay, Catrine and Michael Leapman. Master Race: The Lebensborn Experiment in Nazi Germany. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1995.

    Read More

  • Review of Stanley Milgram’s Experiments on Obedience, by Diana Baumrind and Obedience, by Ian Parker

    890 Words  | 2 Pages

    In her excerpt, Baumrind discusses the potential dangers of the aftereffects on the participants of the experiment. On many occasions she suggests that these people are subjects of a cruel and unethical experiment, and suffer from harm to their self-image and emotional disruption (227). She also calls Milgram’s experiment a “game” (Baumrind 225); this illustrates her negative outtake on the experiment which is seen throughout the article. On the contrary, Parker discusses the aftereffects on Milgram himself. He expresses how the experiment, although it shows light to what extent of obedience a person may travel, ruined Milgram’s reputation. Parker also cites many notable authors and psychologists and their reactions to Milgram’s experiment. Despite their differences, Baumrind and Parker are able to find common ground on a few issues concerning the Milgr...

    Read More

  • Analyzing Stanley Milgram's Obedience Experiment

    1077 Words  | 3 Pages

    According to Wes Bertrand, author of "Abstract", states that "the degree of self- responsibility practiced by a person drastically affects his or her level of obedience to unjust commands" (Bertrand). Milgram related his experiment with Hitler 's Germany by relating that "the man in the camp who actually dropped Cyclon-b into gas chambers was able to justify his behavior on the ground that he was only following orders from above" (Milgram 89). Baumrind supports his statement coming from one point of view; she argues that because Hitler made the Jews sound subhuman and not worth the extra effort, a subordinate officer slaughtering the Jews has no need to feel guilt because he was acting right within his frame of reference" (Baumrind 93). In agreement with Baumrind claiming the Jews were made subhuman, the article "German Jews during the Holocaust, 1939–1945" explains how they took their belongings claiming to use them to produce weapons for the war, the level of obedience and officers acting as they were ordered to by their superiors was necessary or tragedy might strike them as well.If what Diana Baumrind says is true, she is supporting Milgram by saying that the officer was acting right because he was told so, rather than disputing him; like the experiment when the experiment when the experimenter asked the teacher to continue with the

    Read More

  • The Perils of Obedience, by Stanley Milgram

    1490 Words  | 3 Pages

    If a person of authority ordered you inflict a 15 to 400 volt electrical shock on another innocent human being, would you follow your direct orders? That is the question that Stanley Milgram, a psychologist at Yale University tested in the 1960’s. Most people would answer “no,” to imposing pain on innocent human beings but Milgram wanted to go further with his study. Writing and Reading across the Curriculum holds a shortened edition of Stanley Milgram’s “The Perils of Obedience,” where he displays an eye-opening experiment that tests the true obedience of people under authority figures. He observes that most people go against their natural instinct to never harm innocent humans and obey the extreme and dangerous instructions of authority figures. Milgram is well aware of his audience and organization throughout his article, uses quotes directly from his experiment and connects his research with a real world example to make his article as effective as possible.

    Read More

  • Authority In V For Vendetta And The Stanford Prison Experiment

    1172 Words  | 3 Pages

    Authority can only become an issue once the rights of the individual are being impinged, a concept represented in both V for Vendetta and the Stanford Prison Experiment. These two texts, along with the study of the concept of authority and the individual, have expanded my understanding of myself, individuals and the world. It has especially broadened my knowledge on the crossover of the concept, the ability for the individual to have authority and the ability for both sides to be perceived as good or bad and the power of a person’s individuality. “The line between good and evil is permeable and almost anyone can be induced to cross it when pressured by situational forces.”

    Read More

  • Summary Of Stanley Milgram's Obedience Experiments

    1187 Words  | 3 Pages

    Baumrind’s article begins by assessing the fallacies in the results of the experiment and continues to present an extensive examination of the ethical complications of the trials (90). She quotes Milgram many times throughout the article and offers arguments to his methodology and morals (90-93). Although in some cases Baumrind ineffectively attempts to use the ethical issues to discredit the legitimacy of Milgram’s experiments, Parker effectively and extensively analyzes the applicability of the trials with numerous credible outside sources, and both articles effectively prompt readers to reassess both the legitimacy and morality of Milgram’s

    Read More

  • Milgram and Zimbardo: Overpowering Situations

    1031 Words  | 3 Pages

    Milgram’s experiment started shortly after the trial of Adolf Eichmann began. Adolf Eichmann was a Nazi who tortured many Jews during the Holocaust, and had others under his hand do whatever he told them to do. Milgram decided to plan a study to merely see if the followers of E...

    Read More

  • Exploring Social Influence and the Experiments that Attempt to Explain Social Influence

    2031 Words  | 5 Pages

    We live in a society where each individual has their own set of thoughts and beliefs. Occasionally one will modify their beliefs and behavior to coincide with a group. This is an example of social influence. Social influence has three main components; conformity, compliance and obedience. The concept of compliance is similar to conformity, however there is a slight difference. Compliance only requires a person to perform a task. The person does not have to agree or disagree with the assignment, just simply complete it. Conformity requires the person being influenced to change their attitudes and or beliefs. An example of this aspect of social psychology is the holocaust in World War II. Adolph Eichmann was a Nazi officer responsible for filling up death camps in Germany. After the war he went on trial in Jerusalem for crimes against the Jewish people, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. On May 31, 1962, he was sentenced to death for the horrible crimes he committed. His defense was "Why me? Why not the local policemen, thousands of them? They would have been shot if they had refused to round up the Jews for the death camps. Why not hang them for not wanting to be shot? Why me? Everybody killed the Jews". A few months after the start of Eichmann’s trial, Stanley Milgram instituted an experiment testing ones obedience to authority. He wanted to find out if good people could do atrocious things if they were just obeying authority. Was Eichmann and millions of others in Nazi Germany decent people who were just following orders? Some other famous experiments that have taken place to test the waters of social psychology are Philip Zimbardo’s Stanford prison experiment and Solomon Asch’s conformity experiments, all ...

    Read More

  • Summary Of Opening Skinner's Box By Lauren Slater

    618 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Lauren Slater’s book Opening Skinner’s Box, the second chapter “Obscura” discusses Stanley Milgram, one of the most influential social psychologists. Milgram created an experiment which would show just how far one would go when obeying instructions from an authoritative figure, even if it meant harming another person while doing so. The purpose of this experiment was to find justifications for what the Nazi’s did during the Holocaust. However, the experiment showed much more than the sociological reasoning behind the acts of genocide. It showed just how much we humans are capable of.

    Read More

  • The Milgram Experiment of The 1960s

    1238 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...’s initial false persona and promises to make Germany better. The Milgram experiment can be further extended to the use of “enhanced interrogation,” which can easily lead to insensitivity in the people who conduct such interrogations. The Milgram experiment serves as a significant explanation for the cooperation of Germans with the Nazi party and serves as a compelling warning for the future.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Article If Hitler Asked You To Electrocute A Stranger, Would You? Probably

    1026 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is only natural to dismiss the idea of our own personal flaws, for who with a healthy sense of self wanders in thoughts of their own insufficiency? The idea of hypocrisy is one that strikes a sensitive nerve to most, and being labeled a hypocrite is something we all strive to avoid. Philip Meyer takes this emotion to the extreme by examining a study done by a social psychologist, Stanley Milgram, involving the effects of discipline. In the essay, "If Hitler Asked You to Electrocute a Stranger, Would You? Probably", Meyer takes a look at Milgram's study that mimics the execution of the Jews (among others) during World War II by placing a series of subjects under similar conditions of stress, authority, and obedience. The main theme of this experiment is giving subjects the impression that they are shocking an individual for incorrectly answering a list of questions, but perhaps more interesting is the results that occur from both ends of the research. Meyer's skill in this essay is using both the logical appeal of facts and statistics as well as the pathetic appeal to emotion to get inside the reader's mind in order to inform and dissuade us about our own unscrupulous actions.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Perils Of Obedience Stanley Milgram

    1107 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...g factors such as fear of consequences for not obeying, human nature’s willingness to conform, perceived stature of authority and geographical locations. I also believe that due to most individual’s upbringings they will trust and obey anyone in an authoritative position even at the expense of their own moral judgment. I strongly believe that Stanley Milgram’s experiments were a turning point for the field of social psychology and they remind us that “ordinary people, simply doing their jobs, and without any particular hostility on their part, can become agents in a terrible destructive process”. Despite these findings it is important to point out it is human nature to be empathetic, kind and good to our fellow human beings. The shock experiments reveal not blind obedience but rather contradictory ethical inclinations that lie deep inside human beings.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Stanley Milgram's Behavioral Study Of Obedience

    1241 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is human nature to respect and obey elders or authoritative figures, even when it may result in harm to oneself or others. Stanley Milgram, an American social psychologist, conducted an experiment to test the reasoning behind a person’s obedience. He uses this experiment in hope to gain a better understanding behind the reason Hitler was so successful in manipulating the Germans along with why their obedience continued on such extreme levels. Milgram conducts a strategy similar to Hitler’s in attempt to test ones obedience. Diana Baumrind, a clinical and developmental psychologist, disagreed with Milgram’s experiment in her article, ”Some Thoughts on Ethics of Research: After Reading Milgram’s “Behavioral Study of obedience”, Baumrind explains

    Read More

  • Blindly Obeying Authority

    1789 Words  | 4 Pages

    Introduction Individuals often yield to conformity when they are forced to discard their individual freedom in order to benefit the larger group. Despite the fact that it is important to obey the authority, obeying the authority can sometimes be hazardous, especially when morals and autonomous thought are suppressed to an extent that the other person is harmed. Obedience usually involves doing what a rule or a person tells you to, but negative consequences can result from displaying obedience to authority; for example, the people who obeyed the orders of Adolph Hitler ended up killing innocent people during the Holocaust. In the same way, Stanley Milgram noted in his article ‘Perils of Obedience’ of how individuals obeyed authority and neglected their conscience, reflecting how this can be destructive in real life experiences. On the contrary, Diana Baumrind pointed out in her article ‘Review of Stanley Milgram’s Experiments on Obedience’ that the experiments were not valid, hence useless.

    Read More

  • Aggression In Human Beings

    2077 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Milgram experiment can show you how psychological affects the humans nature on aggression. This experiment showed how when person when they were not near the learner, shocked them more than if they could see them. On Curiosity, a documentary, there was an episode called “how evil are you?” which showed exactly what Yale university psychologist Stanley Milgram did during his experiment (Roth).

    Read More

More about Milgram Experiment Analysis

Open Document