What Is the Most Serious Ethical Objection to Milgram's Studies

question 29

Multiple Choice

What is the most serious ethical objection to Milgram's studies on obedience?

• A) Milgram's results are not replicable outside of the laboratory.
• B) Experimental procedures should not cause emotional harm to subjects.
• C) Subjects' actions were governed by the "experimental subject role."
• D) All participants in the study were male.

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Definitions:

Rationalization

In psychoanalytic theory, the defense mechanism that produces a seemingly logical rationale for an impulse or thought that otherwise would cause anxiety.

Defense Mechanism

Psychological strategies used unconsciously to protect oneself from anxiety arising from unacceptable thoughts or feelings.

Psychosexual Stages

A Freudian theory describing how personality develops through five stages from infancy to adulthood, centered on sexual pleasure from specific body areas.

Phallic Stage

A phase in Freudian psychosexual development, occurring roughly between the ages of three and six, where the libido's focus is on the genital organs.