1.4 Summary

• Milgram found that most people would administer potentially lethal levels of shock to another human being, just because they were told to do so by an authority figure.
• The use of a controlled experimental procedure enabled Milgram to explore different aspects of the situation that influence the extent to which people will obey authority.
• Two key factors in obedience are the presence of a clear authority figure, and the distance between the person administering the shock and the ‘victim’.