9.5
Obéissance
According to obedience research, we may harm others under the forceful pressures of an authority figure (Milgram, 1974). How about if the inappropriat…
Parfois, les gens sont prêts à aller à l’encontre de leurs normes personnelles et à obéir à des ordres qui peuvent causer du tort. Cette forme d’influence sociale s’appelle l’obéissance, c’est-à-dire le fait de suivre les ordres ou les demandes de figures d’autorité perçues.
Par exemple, au cours d’une étude de terrain originale – dans un hôpital naturel – un prétendu médecin, en l’occurrence l’autorité, a ordonné par téléphone à des infirmières d’administrer un médicament « inconnu », qui ne figurait pas sur la liste officiellement approuvée, et qui dépassait la dose quotidienne maximale sûre. En réalité, le médicament était un placebo.
Les infirmières – au moins 95 % d’entre elles – ont honoré les ordres du « médecin », même si c’était contraire au protocole et que cela aurait pu entraîner la mort du patient.
Fait intéressant, dans le groupe témoin, on a simplement demandé aux infirmières ce qu’elles feraient dans une situation similaire. Le même pourcentage, 95 %, a déclaré qu’il n’obéirait PAS aux ordres donnés.
Ainsi, lorsque les gens sont placés dans la situation réelle, ils peuvent agir contre leur propre jugement.
Q1: What is obedience in social psychology?
Obedience is a form of social influence where people follow orders or requests from perceived authority figures, even when those commands conflict with personal standards. In a classic hospital field study, nurses administered an unapproved drug exceeding safe dosage limits when ordered by an alleged doctor, demonstrating how authority can override individual judgment and protocol.
Q2: Why do people obey harmful orders from authority figures?
Research suggests that situational pressures from authority figures compel obedience despite potential harm. In the Hofling study, 21 of 22 nurses complied with a doctor's phoned request to dispense an unfamiliar drug at dangerous dosages. Participants later reported embarrassment, anxiety, and guilt, indicating they acted against their better judgment under perceived authority pressure.
Q3: How do questionnaire responses differ from actual obedience behavior?
When asked hypothetically, 95% of nurses said they would not obey harmful orders. However, in actual field conditions, 95% of nurses complied with the dangerous drug request. This discrepancy reveals that people overestimate their ability to resist authority pressures when placed in real situations, suggesting self-awareness alone does not reduce compliance.
Q4: What workplace factors can reduce harmful compliance?
Research identifies several factors that decrease compliance with questionable orders. Opportunities to discuss decisions with colleagues successfully reduced compliance in replications of the Hofling study. Additionally, an increased sense of personal responsibility distinguished non-compliant nurses from compliant ones, suggesting that fostering autonomy and team communication strengthens ethical decision-making.
Q5: Why might nurses feel conflicted when obeying harmful medical orders?
Nurses experience competing pressures between duty to patients and need for acceptance by authority figures and their team. While a sense of duty to challenge questionable practices exists, the desire for team acceptance can override it. This internal conflict creates negative emotions like guilt and anxiety, even when nurses comply with orders, reflecting the psychological cost of obedience.
Q6: How does the interdependence between nurses and physicians affect obedience?
The increasing interdependence between nurses and physicians creates power dynamics that influence compliance. Doctors hold perceived authority, while nurses depend on them professionally, strengthening the likelihood of obedience. This hierarchical relationship, combined with workplace pressures, makes it difficult for nurses to resist harmful orders despite their medical training and ethical obligations.
Q7: Can awareness of social pressures prevent obedience to authority?
No. Later replications of obedience research strongly suggest that awareness of forces underlying social pressures does not necessarily reduce compliance to authority in actual situations. Even when people understand the mechanisms of social influence, situational factors and authority presence remain powerful enough to override conscious resistance and ethical judgment.