“This is, perhaps, the most fundamental lesson of our study: ordinary people, simply doing their jobs, and without any particular hostility on their part, can become agents in a terrible destructive process.”
The study is famous. A subject is brought in to supposedly study the effects of punishment on learning. The punishment, an electric shock that can be dialed up to fatality, is administered to a student with each incorrect answer. The true study is of a typical person's response when obedience conflicts with morality. I'm sure you've read about this study before, but I had never read the essay by Stanley Milgram, the study's architect. His thoughts are quite illuminating.
Oh, trust me, I'm aware that this is cheerful stuff. But I am built to muse on the black gook of the human heart. How often do we conspire with each other against what virtue we possess? Our collective living space appears to be designed for private gain from public loss.
Posted by Mike at December 11, 2003 09:19 PM | TrackBackI think that study has had more of a profound impact on me than any other psychological study. Intense.
Then there's the one in the fake prison. The weird thing is that all the subjects KNEW what the experiment was, and still fell into abusive or submissive roles.
Maybe Mike can explain that study in full if he wants to. I mean, it's his blog for god's sake. If I wanted to keep going on and on, I'd create my OWN blog! I don't even know why I'm typing now! I'm outta here! …
Posted by: Don E. Mann on January 19, 2004 09:52 PM