erraticwisdom: Interesting Psychology Experiments

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Sifting through hundreds of pages of my Psychology textbook while studying for my final wasn't a complete waste of time. I collected the most interesting experiments and examples I came across and have described a few of them here.

Conforming to an Obviously Wrong Majority:
Psychologist Solomon Asch conducted a famous set of experiments involving a seemingly simple question asked to a group of participants. However, there was only a single actual test subject with the remainder of the group consisting of “confederates” who were instructed to give the wrong answer.

The group was arranged so that the subject gave their answer next-to-last so that they could hear the confederates’ incorrect answers first. The majority of subjects (37 out of 50) conformed to the incorrect majority at least once. Asch later said this about the results: “That we have found the tendency to conformity in our society so strong…is a matter of concern. It raises questions about…the values that guide our conduct.” (Asch 1955)
Escalation of Conflict:
Less of a psychology example and more of a handy way to make some money is the “Dollar Auction”. In this example, someone auctions off a dollar with no starting minimum bid. The only problem is that both the winning bidder and second highest bidder must pay their bid. The initial bids quickly escalate into the 80 and 90 cent range as one would still make a profit. However, once the dollar barrier has been reached and exceeded, the bidding continues because if a person wins the auction for $1.15, they sustain a loss of only 15 cents whereas the second highest bidder would lose their entire bid. Most auctions end up in the $3 to $5 range, and bidders become very distressed once the $1 barrier is passed, sometimes even crying (Brockner & Rubin, 1985).
Bystander Apathy:
In 1964, a young woman, Kitty Genovese, was stabbed to death near her apartment. While not an uncommon event in Queens, New York, what was different was that for 30 minutes, at least 38 of her neighbors heard her screams without calling the police or helping. After one resident shouted for the attacker to “let that girl alone”, he did but returned minutes later to continue his attack. Another witness finally called the police, but only after he had first called a friend to decide whether he should.

This is an example of “diffusion of responsibility”, where we are less likely to act in the presence of others who could do the same.
Obedience to Authority:
Another disturbing experiment concerning our actions and independence was performed by Stanley Milgram in 1974 (prior to more stringent research regulations). The experiment tested the idea that people would perform an action that could harm someone if they were told to do so by an authority figure.

The experiment involved a “teacher” and a “learner”. The teacher was instructed to deliver an increasingly powerful shock to the learner (a confederate) for each error the learner made while answering the test subject’s (teacher) questions.

The results showed that the majority of participants would continue to deliver shocks up to the maximum amount despite hearing the learner’s screams of agony and even not hearing any sounds at all once a certain voltage was reached.
Strategies of Persuasion:
Foot-in-the-door technique - Start with a modest request and follow it with a larger one later. A much higher percentage of people will agree to perform a relatively large task if they have done a smaller task for the same group before (Schwarzwarld et al., 1983).

Door-in-the-face technique - Following an outrageous request with a more reasonable one. For example, if someone calls and asks for a $10,000 donation, you will be more likely to comply if the lower their request to $5 than if they had asked for that amount from the beginning.

bait-and-switch technique - Getting the subject to commit to a good deal before making additional demands. For example, a car salesman could entice you with a new car for $3,000 but might bump up the price if you want it to include wheels and an engine.
Trolley & Footbridge Dilemmas:
These examples describe the influence of emotions on moral decisions. The trolley dilemma involves a trolley car coasting downhill with defective breaks towards a group of 5 people standing on the tracks. You can either let it continue on its path or flip a switch to divert it onto another track where only a single person stands.

The Footbridge Dilemma is similar to the Trolley dilemma as it also involves a trolley with defective brakes moving towards a group of five people. However, in this case you stand above the trolley on a footbridge. Near you stands a fat person who could presumably halt the trolley if you pushed them over.

Most people say yes to flipping the switch, but either say no or hesitate for a long time on the second dilemma despite their identical outcomes (J.D. Greene, 2001). Why? People also incorporate their emotions into moral decisions. The thought of directly _pushing_ someone to their death is emotionally repulsive regardless of the outcome.

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At: 09:38:00 PM
On: May 12
In: Science
By: Tom Fadial

Comments

In a TV show recently, a pretty well known mind-trickery-makes-you-say-what guy (Derren Brown) subjected a number of participants to the “Obedience to Authority” test. I found it really interesting.

It’s interesting to wonder whether you’d be prone to these tests yourself. I’m prety sure I probably would if they were well executed – particularly the strategies of persuasion. I expect i have been in the past at some point, in fact.
Richard

May 12, 10:18 PM #
Unfortunately, I sold back my textbook (with gas costing $19,000/gallon and all) so I can’t dig up any more specific information on the experiment but the Wikipedia article is pretty good.

I too wonder if I would really deliver a deadly shock if I was instructed too. Something that I do remember from the book was that the experimenters did say that they would accept all responsibility, which might have an effect.
Thame

May 12, 10:42 PM #
Is it true that the Stanley Milgram test also derived a feeling of pleasure when one could force torture without any retribution by authority?

I think I had read that somewhere.
Aayush Iyer

May 13, 01:42 AM #
zimbardo’s prison experiment is the absolute last word.
saumya

May 13, 02:03 AM #
Ooh, Aayush, that sounds really interesting (freaky, but interesting). I’ll try to look that up.

saumya: I have a whole new list written down that I’ll try to expand a little before I post.
Thame

May 13, 09:27 AM #
Whatever! These are all, like, totally depressing psychological experiments. There are some totally awesome experiments out there as well, you know. For sure! Check out my latest post.
the valley girl philosopher

May 13, 12:22 PM #
Just thought i would drop a link for those that want to read more about these – and hundreds of other – classic psychology experiments:

http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/author.htm
Eric Irvine

May 13, 01:02 PM #
... maybe the main page is better: http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/index.htm
Eric Irvine

May 13, 01:06 PM #
Yesterday on Operah she visited the Jewish death camps – neither could understand how people could do this to other people – most if us can’t either, really .. but Millgrams experiments open eyes to how if we put responsibility on others (I’m just following orders) we are easily capable of hurting people. The specific results in his experiment are most revealing – not ONE person refused to shock the other at first, some later refused, but they were all fine with it in the beginnig – must learn from that – and other studies – to become really more aware. We do not need to be automotons.
Brandy

May 25, 03:50 PM #
The shock experiment had a less-reported side to it. The participants were sometimes seriously traumatized, and several had nervous breakdowns over the course of the experiment.
Tim McCormack

May 29, 11:45 PM #
I was a psychology student at Yale when Stanley Milgrams did the experiments.

I want to add that some more sophisticated experiments were conducted that never saw publication. These were National Training Laboratory experiments performed in the Organizational Behavior Dept for reading group dynamics under Professor Chris Argyris who reputedly developed two interventions:

1. For President JFK he devised the way to rule over an intransigent “career” group that won’t follow a new leader, namely the US State Dept.

Method 1: Dis-orientation: Week after week JFK ordered the members of the State Dept. to change their offices and telephone numbers. After several weeks of being moved, they gave in and followed his orders.

Method 2: Touchy-Feely-Open GrouP Discussion: Replace the authoritarian pyramidal structure with a horizontal structure that gives responsiblity to a group facilitator who has no authority over the group. When no one is in charge, authority will go to the one who has the best idea or strategy by merit, and the group will out-perform pyrimidal competing groups.

This was done by Argyris in several corporations: Polaroid-Land was given the horizontal non-authoritarian group dynamic and Kodak was given the standard pyrimid of authority to test the hypothesis with in-vivo models.

Polaroid outperformed Kodak in the 1960’s by a hundred to one in profits, stock movement, and product quality. Horizontal , non-authoritarian group dynamic beats pyramidal authoritarian group dynamic.
Tiger Thompson

Aug 12, 03:50 PM #
When I was growing – up,my parents used” difusion of respondsibility” as part of their parenting skills.When one of us asked permisson to go some where or to do something.For example – I would ask my mother permission and she would say,it’s okay with me but you must ask your father.Then when I would ask my father,he would say yes, but you must ask your mother.This was not an easy task because one worked days and the other worked nights.That left each one of them not responsible because neither one of them gave exact permission.
charlotte bailey

Aug 24, 01:32 PM #
At one time or another we can all say we have been a victim of the bait and switch tactic,just look in the sales papers you get with your newspaper.They advertise one real good product on the front,but when you read the fine print or go to the store that product was very limited but one that costs a little more can be made available.
charlotte bailey

Aug 24, 01:54 PM #
Tiger: That’s amazing.

charlotte: That’s funny, reminds me of an ad I saw.
Thame

Aug 27, 12:47 AM #
Trolley & Footbridge Dilemmas: In regards to this experiment, I can see how most people would not hesitate in the Trolley, by flipping the switch you either kill five people or you kill one. Most would agree it is better to kill one than five. It is still not an easy decision obviously someone will be killed. However, the Footbridge experiment one would hesitate because they feel they are the direct result (more hands on) because you actually push the person onto the track. Even though you get the same result kill one not five. You would think without usually emotions you would pick killing one over five instictively, but with emotions involved you can’t make yourself actually push the one person into the path of the runaway trolley, flipping the switch is easier.
Tracy Edwards

Sep 2, 05:11 PM #
I believe “diffusion of responsibility” is a way for people to avoid a potentially difficult situation. In the example of Bystander Apathy, I do not understand how anyone could just ignore someone cries for help. However, I believe it happens all the time, especially in the big cities. People do not want to be involved in a crime investigation. They have fear for their own well-being and fear that the one causing harm to another will find out who they are and then come after them. Therefore, it is easier to just stay out of the way and say or do nothing.
Tracy Edwards

Sep 2, 05:53 PM #
I believe that all these experiments are done just to see how people will react. It is a shame that most people play follow the leader. It seems to me that the power of persuasion is very strong, I believe that it would be a better world if we all had a back bone and could react without worrying about what everyone else thinks or does.
Betty

Jan 18, 12:31 PM #
I looked at a website about Stanley Milgram’s because his Obedience to Authority was disturbing, but I found it to be the most interesting. On this website I found little known facts like men and women are both 65% obedient, but women are found to be more stressed.

Here is the website:
www.stanelymilgram.com
Kelli Ellis

Jan 25, 10:27 AM #
The bait and switch technique is very true. Everyone is very greedy about money that they will switch there story around to make it seem like it would be a good deal when you are actullay spending more money. That happened to me when I was purchasing a trailer.
Kelli Ellis

Jan 25, 04:35 PM #
I can’t imagine that all of those neighbors would ignore screams of help, I personally would not have tried to get involved physically but I would have definatly called for police. That is just plain wrong.
Leslie Miller

Jan 25, 05:32 PM #
These things are all pretty terrible to read about, and I’m disgusted to think about them applying to people. However, when I think about it, I have done these things plenty of times myself (and am none too proud):

* Done nothing when someone nearby was being hurt. * Ignored the screams of a neighbour (so did the rest of my street, apparently). * Changed an answer I knew was correct after seeing a large group of people giving an incorrect answer.

I’m very ashamed of these things and feel no better for knowing that they’re somewhat normal human behaviour. I always hope I’ll do better next time, in a different situation.
Silvia

Mar 7, 07:07 PM #
This sounds strangely similar to the tactics of the Bush Administration. Thame, you may be interested in reading a book I have read and found to be incredibly insightful in regards to the psychological makeup of our leaders is Political Ponerolgy.

Following on similar line with some of what Hare and others have written about psychopaths in positions of authority, the book ‘Political Ponerology: A Science on The Nature of Evil adjusted for Political Purposes’ by Andrew M. Lobaczewski is worth reading for those who have had experiences with psychopaths. A review of the book can be found at this link:

http://www.qfgpublishing.com/

I think you’ll enjoy it!
Beau

Mar 16, 08:06 PM #
Stanley Milgram’s infamous obedience experiments had a profound effect on ethical conduct within psychological research and this type of research would simply not be allowed today. However, a modern reenactment of the Milgram experiment was carried out by psychological illusionist Derren Brown for his TV show ‘The Heist’ and is absolutely fascinating to watch.

I included the Milgram reenactment video along with other information relating to the original experiment on my exploring-psychology blog (see following link)

Exploring Psychology
Exploring Psychology

Oct 11, 11:59 AM #
I think it’s important to remember that in REAL LIFE the time factor plays a role.

1. You could make it worse: Suppose you derail the trolley, but the moment before you do so, the moment before the train actually jumps the tracks, someone else warns the five workers, or one of them hears the train, and they all jump away. In that event, you’ve killed someone for no reason. Most people can hear a train coming, they’re LOUD.

I once gave directions to someone, sending them quite a distance back the way they came, and moments after they had gone on, I noticed I was reading my map upside-down.
ATATPoster

Feb 4, 02:52 AM #
This is an interesting site.

I especially like the trolley car dillema, so I think this should be expanded slightly and a slight change to scenarios adopted.

you notice before switching tracks that the one person is a member of your family do you now kill one or kill 5?

second scenario involves the fact that if you switch tracks and kill one you will also be killed would you then save yourself and kill 5 or would you save the 5 and die yourself?
Alan

Jun 13, 12:11 PM #
I seem to always get the wrong directions. Now I have something to go on.
MGL

Mar 15, 10:52 AM #
Also, in the Footbridge one, maybe the hesitation is because you could potentially stop the trolley by jumping on to the tracks yourselves rather than the fat guy.., and that begs the question as to who is a better person to be alive and the other sacrificed.., where as in the trolley experiment, there is no question of you have to die.., the choice is lot more between 1 vs. 5
Uday Singh

Feb 28, 02:47 AM #