STANLEY MILGRAM

By: Zach Melms

“THE MAN WHO SHOCKED THE WORLD”

1933-1984

WHAT WAS HAPPENING

Great Depression End of prohibition Franklin Roosevelt Racism WWII

Nuremburg trials

INTERESTING FACTS

Social PsychologistHated directional hypothesis testing

DrugsPeyoteMescalineWeedAmphetaminesCocaine

Prostitutes?

PARENTS

Samuel Milgram HungaryMoved to America in 1921

Adele Milgram RomaniaMoved to America in 1913

Met in America Married February 1931 Parents owned and ran a bakery

FAMILY

Older sister MarjorieNot very close as children“throw him in the incinerator”

StanleyBorn in South Bronx 1933Naturally inquisitive

Younger brother JoelClose relationship

Moved houses a lot due to the depression

SCHOOLING

Excelled in schoolClassmates with Phillip ZimbardoGraduated High school in 3 years

Attended Queens College Political ScienceTrip to France

Originally denied entrance to Harvard University

SCHOOLING CONT.

Took 6 classes at 3 different UniversitiesBrooklyn UniversityHunter UniversityNew York University

Accepted into Harvard in 1954Gordon AllportMet Solomon Asch

SOLOMON ASCH

“Most important scientific influence” Milgram was his teacher’s assistant for a

year Studied conformity Asch conformity experiment

Naïve participant agreed with the majority approximately 1/3 the time

Inspired Milgram’s interest into conformity

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyDDyT1lDhA

DISSERTATION

Cross National ComparisonNorway

College Students/ factory workers Jante Laws

France Failed statistics portion necessary for

graduation Spent 1 year at each place

PRINCETON

Moved to Princeton to help his mentor Solomon Asch

MiserablePoor housingNo free time for his dissertation

Assisted him in book on conformity researchReceived no credit

YALE

Became assistant professor in 1960 Married his wife Alexandra Menkin in

1961 Kids

Michele 1964Marc 1967

Started his Shock Tests Later started “Lost Letter Tests”

SHOCK STUDY

2/3 went all the way in his original set up Had more than 20 variations

Distance between participant and “learner” Distance between participant and

experimenter Seeing others defy the experimenter Participant can choose the level of shock

No difference between male and female Trial of Adolf Eichmann https://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwqNP9HRy7Y

0:19-2:20, 4:06-4:34

ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS

Used deception Participants experienced high levels of

stress This and things like Tuskegee Syphilis

Study lead to the creation of the IRB

HARVARD (AGAIN)

Assistant professor 1963 Continued “Lost Letter” Started the “Small World Problem”

6 degrees of separationTurns into 6 degrees of Kevin Baconhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9u-TIT

xwoM Denied tenure in 1966

CUNY

Graduate Center of the City University of New York

Head of Social Psychology PhD department 1967

Expected to leave in 5 years Created an Urban Emphasis

INTEREST IN CITIES

Interested in “Overload” With help from a student they created

the movie “The City and the Self” Looked at:

Mental MapsSubway Norms

56% give up their seatFamiliar Strangers

TELEVISION

Antisocial Gained permission from CBS Had a show replicated 3 times and only

changed the ending Resulted in no increase in antisocial

behavior Results not special but the fact that he

got such control over the Independent variable

NOT ALL CONTENT BUT STYLE

Writing style was understandable to all readers

Used comedy to keep readers interested Often used sarcasm in academic

debates“Orne’s suggestion that the subjects only

feigned sweating, trembling, and stuttering to please the experimenter is pathetically detached from reality, equivalent to the statement that hemophiliacs bleed to keep their physicians busy”

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS Knowing now that Milgram did illegal

things such as drugs/prostitution does that make you view his work any differently?

Does all of the valuable information that we gained from his studies justify his unethical treatment of participants?

RESOURCES Alic, M. (2008, January 1). Milgram,

Stanley. Retrieved April 29, 2015, from http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Stanley_Milgram.asp

Blass, T. (2004). The man who shocked the world: The life and legacy of Stanley Milgram. New York: Basic Books