Shock treatment: using immersive digital realism to restage and re-examine Milgram's 'obedience to authority' research

This is the final version of the article. Available from Public Library of Science via the DOI in this record.Attempts to revisit Milgram's 'Obedience to Authority' (OtA) paradigm present serious ethical challenges. In recent years new paradigms have been developed to circumvent these challenges but none involve using Milgram's own procedures and asking naïve participants to deliver the maximum level of shock. This was achieved in the present research by using Immersive Digital Realism (IDR) to revisit the OtA paradigm. IDR is a dramatic method that involves a director collaborating with professional actors to develop characters, the strategic withholding of contextual information, and immersion in a real-world environment. 14 actors took part in an IDR study in which they were assigned to conditions that restaged Milgrams's New Baseline ('Coronary') condition and four other variants. Post-experimental interviews also assessed participants' identification with Experimenter and Learner. Participants' behaviour closely resembled that observed in Milgram's original research. In particular, this was evidenced by (a) all being willing to administer shocks greater than 150 volts, (b) near-universal refusal to continue after being told by the Experimenter that "you have no other choice, you must continue" (Milgram's fourth prod and the one most resembling an order), and (c) a strong correlation between the maximum level of shock that participants administered and the mean maximum shock delivered in the corresponding variant in Milgram's own research. Consistent with an engaged follower account, relative identification with the Experimenter (vs. the Learner) was also a good predictor of the maximum shock that participants administered.The main work on this paper was supported by a grant from the Australian Research Council to KM and SDR (“Reinterpreting Milgram’s Obedience Studies via Documentary Film”; DP1301108). Additional funding was provided by the Australian Research Council to SAH (“An Advanced Social Identity Approach”; FL110100199) and by the Economic and Social Research Council to SDR (“Beyond the Banality of Evil”; ES/L003104/1). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Stairway to heaven? (Ir)religious identity moderates the effects of immersion in religious spaces on self-esteem and self-perceived physical health.

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the publisher via the DOI in this record.The present research explored how immersion in religious spaces influenced self-perceived psychological and physical health among Christians and Atheists. Study 1 (N=97) provided preliminary evidence in that self-identified Christians reported higher self-esteem when they focused on their external environment outside a cathedral (versus a castle or shopping district), whereas Atheists reported higher self-esteem when they focused away from this religious environment. Study 2 (N=124) followed up on these findings by immersing Christian and Atheist participants in virtual environments. Christians reported better physical health when immersed in a cathedral (versus a mosque or museum) compared to Atheists immersed in the cathedral, who reported the greatest health while disengaging from this religious place. These results suggest that immersion in spaces that reflect one’s own religious beliefs and identity has positive consequences for health and well-being.This research was supported by the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research

Power through 'us': leaders' use of we-referencing language predicts election victory

This is the final version of the article. Available from Public Library of Science via the DOI in this record.Leaders have been observed to use distinct rhetorical strategies, but it is unclear to what extent such strategies are effective. To address this issue we analyzed the official election campaign speeches of successful and unsuccessful Prime Ministerial candidates in all 43 Australian Federal elections since independence from Britain in 1901 and measured candidates' use of personal ('I', 'me') and collective pronouns ('we', 'us'). Victors used more collective pronouns than their unsuccessful opponents in 80% of all elections. Across all elections, victors made 61% more references to 'we' and 'us' and used these once every 79 words (vs. every 136 words for losers). Extending social identity theorizing, this research suggests that electoral endorsement is associated with leaders' capacity to engage with, and speak on behalf of, a collective identity that is shared with followers whose support and energies they seek to mobilize.This research was supported by grant FL110100199 of the Australian Research Council awarded to the second author [http://www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/laureate/laureate_default.htm]. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Contesting the "Nature" Of Conformity: what Milgram and Zimbardo's studies really show

This is the final version of the article. Available on open access from Public Library of Science via the DOI in this record.Understanding of the psychology of tyranny is dominated by classic studies from the 1960s and 1970s: Milgram's research on obedience to authority and Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment. Supporting popular notions of the banality of evil, this research has been taken to show that people conform passively and unthinkingly to both the instructions and the roles that authorities provide, however malevolent these may be. Recently, though, this consensus has been challenged by empirical work informed by social identity theorizing. This suggests that individuals' willingness to follow authorities is conditional on identification with the authority in question and an associated belief that the authority is right

Multiple social identities enhance health post-retirement because they are a basis for giving social support

This is the final version of the article. Available from the publisher via the DOI in this record.We examine the extent to which multiple social identities are associated with enhanced health and well-being in retirement because they provide a basis for giving and receiving social support. Results from a cross-sectional study show that retirees (N = 171) who had multiple social identities following (but not prior to) retirement report being (a) more satisfied with retirement, (b) in better health, and (c) more satisfied with life in general. Furthermore, mediation analyses revealed an indirect path from multiple social identities to greater satisfaction with retirement and better health through greater provision, but not receipt, of social support to others. These findings are the first to point to the value of multiple group membership post-retirement as a basis for increased opportunities to give meaningful support to others. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications for the management of multiple identities in the process of significant life transitions such as retirement.This work was supported by three grants from the Australian Research Council awarded to JJ (FT110100238), CH (DP160102514), and AH (FL110100199

Social group memberships in retirement are associated with reduced risk of premature death: evidence from a longitudinal cohort study.

This is the final version of the article. Available from [publisher] via the DOI in this record.OBJECTIVES: Retirement constitutes a major life transition that poses significant challenges to health, with many retirees experiencing a precipitous decline in health status following retirement. We examine the extent to which membership in social groups following retirement determines quality of life and mortality. DESIGN: The longitudinal impact of the number of social group memberships before and after the transition to retirement was assessed on retirees' quality of life and risk of death 6 years later. SETTING: Nationally representative cohort study of older adults living in England. PARTICIPANTS: Adults who underwent the transition to retirement (N=424). A matched control group (N=424) of participants who had comparable demographic and health characteristics at baseline but did not undergo the transition to retirement were also examined. OUTCOME MEASURES: Analyses examined participants' quality of life and mortality during a period of 6 years. RESULTS: Retirees who had two group memberships prior to retirement had a 2% risk of death in the first 6 years of retirement if they maintained membership in two groups, a 5% risk if they lost one group and a 12% risk if they lost both groups. Furthermore, for every group membership that participants lost in the year following retirement, their experienced quality of life 6 years later was approximately 10% lower. These relationships are robust when controlling for key sociodemographic variables (age, gender, relationship status and socioeconomic status prior to retirement). A comparison with a matched control group confirmed that these effects were specific to those undergoing the transition to retirement. The effect of social group memberships on mortality was comparable to that of physical exercise. CONCLUSIONS: Theoretical implications for our understanding of the determinants of retiree quality of life and health, and practical implications for the support of people transitioning from a life of work to retirement are discussed.This research was supported by two grants from the Australian Research Council awarded to JJ (FT110100238) and SAH (FL110100199). The funding body did not play any role in the research design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to submit the manuscript for publication

Social and relational identification as determinants of care workers’ motivation and wellbeing

AcceptedArticleA growing body of research in the field of health and social care indicates that the quality of the relationship between the person giving care and the person receiving it contributes significantly to the motivation and wellbeing of both. This paper examines how care workers’ motivation is shaped by their social and relational identification at work. Survey findings at two time points (T1, N = 643; T2, N = 1274) show that care workers’ motivation increases to the extent that incentives, the working context (of residential vs. domiciliary care), and the professionalization process (of acquiring vs. not acquiring a qualification) serve to build and maintain meaningful identities within the organization. In this context care workers attach greatest importance to their relational identity with clients and the more they perceive this as congruent with their organizational identity the more motivated they are. Implications are discussed with regard to the need to develop and sustain a professional and compassionate workforce that is able to meet the needs of an ageing society.Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)Australian Research Counci

Walking together: behavioural signatures of psychological crowds

Research in crowd psychology has demonstrated key differences between the behaviour of physical crowds where members are in the same place at the same time, and the collective behaviour of psychological crowds where the entire crowd perceive themselves to be part of the same group through a shared social identity. As yet, no research has investigated the behavioural effects that a shared social identity has on crowd movement at a pedestrian level. To investigate the direction and extent to which social identity influences the movement of crowds, 280 trajectories were tracked as participants walked in one of two conditions: 1) a psychological crowd primed to share a social identity; 2) a naturally occurring physical crowd. Behaviour was compared both within and between the conditions. In comparison to the physical crowd, members of the psychological crowd i) walked slower, ii) walked further, and iii) maintained closer proximity. In addition, pedestrians who had to manoeuvre around the psychological crowd behaved differently to pedestrians who had to manoeuvre past the naturally occurring crowd. We conclude that the behavioural differences between physical and psychological crowds must be taken into account when considering crowd behaviour in event safety management and computer models of crowds

Having a lot of a good thing: multiple important group memberships as a source of self-esteem.

Copyright: © 2015 Jetten et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are creditedMembership in important social groups can promote a positive identity. We propose and test an identity resource model in which personal self-esteem is boosted by membership in additional important social groups. Belonging to multiple important group memberships predicts personal self-esteem in children (Study 1a), older adults (Study 1b), and former residents of a homeless shelter (Study 1c). Study 2 shows that the effects of multiple important group memberships on personal self-esteem are not reducible to number of interpersonal ties. Studies 3a and 3b provide longitudinal evidence that multiple important group memberships predict personal self-esteem over time. Studies 4 and 5 show that collective self-esteem mediates this effect, suggesting that membership in multiple important groups boosts personal self-esteem because people take pride in, and derive meaning from, important group memberships. Discussion focuses on when and why important group memberships act as a social resource that fuels personal self-esteem.This study was supported by 1. Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (FT110100238) awarded to Jolanda Jetten (see http://www.arc.gov.au) 2. Australian Research Council Linkage Grant (LP110200437) to Jolanda Jetten and Genevieve Dingle (see http://www.arc.gov.au) 3. support from the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research Social Interactions, Identity and Well-Being Program to Nyla Branscombe, S. Alexander Haslam, and Catherine Haslam (see http://www.cifar.ca)