... the commands of others (Milgram "Behavioural Study of Obedience" p. 371 1963, cited in Arther G. Miller 1968). An example of an authority are doctors; Cohen and Davis (1981, cited in Gross & McIlveen, 1998) found when a doctor left instructions for a nurse to prescribe ear drops for a patient with an ear infection, asking the nurse to 'place drops in R ear'. However the doctor left a small gap between the letter 'R' (inferring right) and 'ear'. Neither the nurse or the patient questioned the treatment for earache which was given rectally. There are a number of areas that should be considered when thinking about why people act in personally distasteful ways in obedience to authorities, including: just following orders, factors moderating obedience, factors contributing to obedience and the social impact theory. The study by Milgram (1963) was originally considered because Milgram wanted an explanation for the horrors of ...

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