I’d like to think that I, upper-middle-class white dude with a 401(k), wouldn’t be so quick to fold to a perceived authority. But then I put myself in the shoes of a middle-aged fast food worker, someone who’s pretty much on the bottom of society’s totem pole, who’s probably no stranger to the feeling of being pushed around by larger forces they can’t control or understand… and I don’t know. Maybe your mindset and life experience has a lot to do with it.
Well, I think not being a complete moron helps. Education doesn’t matter. There are a lot of highly educated morons. I think it depends on a persons succeptability to authority and their sense of self. Not to mention having a little sense.
A lot of highly educated people are very naive and clueless. They have enjoyed success in life mostly by following authority and doing exactly what is expected of them. This is why hazing in fraternities and sororities or on sports teams is so easy. You have a bunch of freshmen who are in a new and strange environment. Like everyone else, they want to fit in so they put up with a certain level of crap.
Plus, a lot of people really are just pathetic sheep without a lot of fight in them. They are unwilling or unable to stand up to someone.
I’ve made phone calls requesting that a retail person do something silly, then came into the store a half hour later to see if they obeyed. You’d be surprised how often people will do as requested based simply on a 60 second call (about 30%). I’m not pretending to be anybody in authority, just a regular guy. If the caller is persuasive enough and the employee is suggestible enough, I find the obey gene is pretty strong in some people. No, I haven’t found that I can tell ahead of time who will and who won’t.
Honestly, I think the answer to your original question is, check identity. Human? Right. Then you are susceptible to it (barring some kind of neurological or psychological disorder, anyway, I can think of a few that might impact an individual’s reaction but that would be fighting the hypothetical). I think even whistle-blower types are susceptible to this phenomenon: indeed, I think that’s the point. And I don’t think that by examining character traits we get anywhere in terms of figuring out the implications of Milgram. After all, no subject in the Milgram experiment stopped before 300 volts. So it isn’t just the baddies we are talking about.
I think the more interesting question is under what circumstances people succumb to it.
I once had an incident where I was talking to the principal of the school where I worked about Nazism and its effect on teaching. The principal admitted, rather off-handedly, that he knew he would comply with a Nazi or Nazi-like regime because he tended to trust authority and didn’t want to rock the boat. It was kind of like reading Shagnasty’s admission-- the level of complacency with his own conformity was a bit shocking in an educator, a man with lots of degrees and a decent amount of personal authority. But hey, at least he was honest.
The upshot is, I think it has to do with your strength of character. Do you fear authority or do you trust your own conscience? We’ve been taught to accept what people above us say, either out of fear or out of ingrained respect. A healthy questioning would probably help a lot. But some people are naturally oppositional to what they perceive as authority’s abuses; it’s a blessing and a curse.
I’ve always been a contrary loner who responds poorly to peer pressure.
Here’s an example: About ten years ago I was working for a software company that was planning a big new business initiative. A lot of the planning had been going on in secret, so when management finally decided to unveil their plans they called a meeting of the entire company and gave us a rah-rah 20 minute PowerPoint presentation on the Grand Way Forward that would define our business for the next five years. After they were done the president asked if there were any questions.
I raised my hand. When he called on me I stood up in front of the entire company, said I thought the plan was shite and laid out my reasons why. Amazingly enough, I wasn’t fired, and the grand plan died a quiet death about six months later.
I’ve done similar things repeatedly throughout my professional career. I doubt I would shock someone just because a researcher told me to.
I think if you are the type of person who joins in The Chicken Dance or the Electirc Slide, then you are probably susceptible to Milgram style control.
I suspect it might have to do with suggestibility and/or susceptibility to hypnosis. And if it doesn’t, well, those are two other interesting topics.
I had a similar thought, and if that’s true, there are tests for it. The one I’m familiar with is you have people stand up, make a show of watching them closely for a few minutes, and then say, “Gosh, I don’t know if you realize it, but you’re starting to sway on your feet.” The highly suggestible ones will start to sway.
I’d love to pound my fist and go “Hell no! I’m not taking orders from the man! I think for myself!” but until you’re in that situation who knows what you’ll do. Props to Shagnasty for being honest. I’m sure susceptability would vary from one situation to another, but I really have no idea what my limits are. None at all.
I was thinking that people like Darren Brown certainly have “tests” to determine who is especially suggestible, so they can eliminate the non-suggestible ones from their pools - he’s mentioned it on his show. I don’t know what they are, though. I suspect they’re along the lines of the one **AudreyK **mentions. I would not be surprised if those suggestible to the kind of tricks used on Mind Control were also more prone to the Milgram effect.