Orders Backfire in Obedience Experiments

Updated: 2025.08.27 1M ago 2 sources
Reanalyses of Milgram show the most authoritarian prod ('You have no other choice, you must continue') produced the least compliance, while appeals to the importance of the study worked better. People didn’t obey raw power; they complied when the request felt purposeful and prosocial. — This reframes how governments, schools, and employers should seek compliance—persuasion tied to shared goals beats coercive commands.

Sources

When Good Intentions Alienate: The Unintended Consequences of Anti-Racist Zeal
Michael Inzlicht 2025.08.27 78% relevant
Inzlicht cites his 2011 study (with Legault and Gutsell) showing that controlling 'erase racism/stop prejudice' messaging increased modern anti‑Black prejudice versus control, while intrinsic, autonomy‑framed messaging reduced it—mirroring Milgram reanalyses where authoritarian prods yielded the least compliance compared to purpose‑based appeals.
You MUST read this post
Paul Bloom 2025.08.14 100% relevant
Bloom highlights Milgram’s different prods and reports that explicit orders reduced obedience compared to science‑justifying prompts.
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