The Influence of Authority Figures

by Naomi Smith

Adolf Eichmann on trial for war crimes, 1961
(inset: as Obersturmführer, early 1940s)

There are figures of authority in any hierarchical structure such as businesses, governments and schools. Stanley Milgram decided to question just how influential such figures are over individuals. The Milgram experiment analysed how ordinary individuals were able to compromise their personal conscience to carry out the order of an authoritative figure.

Milgram conducted the experiments just three months after the start of Nazi war criminal’s Adolf Eichmann trial started in Jerusalem. Eichmann claimed that he was not guilty of war crime as he was simply following orders from higher-ranked Nazi figures. Milgram questioned how far authoritative figures could push ordinary people. 

The participants in his experiment were led to believe they were assisting in an unrelated investigation, where they were ordered to administer electric shocks to a ‘learner’ whenever they answered a question incorrectly, with the voltage increasing by 15 volts each time. Although the electric shocks were fake and the “learner” was an actor the subject was led to believe they were causing physical pain. Convincing audio responses to the shocks were played and when the highest voltage was reached the “learner” fell silent, acting as if they were unconscious.

With the “learner” pleading for the experiment to stop as the voltage reached high levels, the authoritative figure (in this case the “experimenter” dressed in a white lab coat) was instructed to give four series of verbal responses (before allowing the experiment to finish) whenever the subject hesitated or expressed a desire to stop the experiment. These included, ‘Please continue’ and ‘the experiment requires that you continue’. Milgram shockingly found that 65% of subjects were willing to administer the extremely dangerous final 450-volt shock despite most showing deep discomfort in doing this. 

The results were shocking, the majority of subjects were willing to obey the instructions of an authoritative figure with firm commands. Societal nature means that as ordinary citizens we respond to power and authority, in this case as with many, placing the moral conscience of somebody else above our own. Controversially, perhaps Adolf Eichmann was simply following orders. Equally, shouldn’t individuals be held responsible for their own actions rather than blaming others? Whatever your personal opinion may be Milgram found that figures of authority are incredibly powerful, having the ability to exert great influence over individuals.