Obedience: The dilemma of a democratic society One of the most famous studies ever conducted on the subject of human obedience was that of Stanley Milgram's electric shock experiments. In Milgram's experiments, subjects were pressed to transmit what they believed were deadly electric shocks to fellow human beings. The purpose of Milgram's experiments was in part to understand how Nazi soldiers could have possibly have committed such horrific atrocities during World War II, simply because they were 'following orders.' However, even within the U.S. military, strict compliance is demanded in terms of the soldiers' behavior, dress, and bearing (Wenker 1981). Milgram's subjects came from a wide array of cultural backgrounds and many had not served in the military, yet the commanding presence of an authority caused them to obey and give apparently deadly shocks for no discernable purpose. The construct of the experiment was seen as horrifyingly strange by many individuals who read about Milgram's...
possesses a highly individualistic culture, the military places a strong premium upon obedience, partially by virtue of necessity. In the field, absolute obedience is required to ensure there are no needless American causalities (Wenker 1981). Rank and deference to one's commanding officer's superior wisdom and experience is required for the military to function. However, this also makes it all the more important that officers must behave morally and ethically, given the profound conflict they create in the hearts of their soldiers when they give orders that do not seem to be in the nation's best interest or morality.
Criminal Justice in Today�s SocietyAbstractThe modern-day society has evolved, and so are the security and social issues that face it. To determine the specific challenges that face today�s society and thus, the criminal justice system, it requires a critical and analytical research study that will filter through the information available and determine the thematic areas that emerge as critical for modern-day criminal justice. Research for this study was done through
Introduction The consideration of when it is or is not legitimate to use military force against another group or country is one that requires astute ethical analysis. Deontological ethics can be useful for determining the moral righteousness of military intervention, specifically given the ability of a duty-based ethical system to offer the international community a set of ground rules member states can agree upon. The Geneva Convention is a prime example
Kohlberg's theory of moral development presents three levels with two stages each of moral reasoning. The reason or motive for the behavior of an individual is what defines each stage (Crain, 1985). In order to come up with this developmental theory Kohlberg carried out studies using various dilemmas and finding out how the subjects responded. His main interest in the process is not a "yes" or "no" said by the
If the leaders of our national financial institutions had asked 'are these moral actions right, ethically speaking, from the point-of-view of my profession' rather than 'will these moral actions make money,' the world financial crisis would never have occurred. Utilitarianism also tends to deemphasize minority rights -- but merely because a group is in the minority does not mean that it is engaged in a moral wrong. This can be
Germany Before the rise of Nazism in Germany and the Second World War, there had been acts of violence and discrimination against the Jews, but there had never been a systematic policy for ridding Germany of its non-Aryan population. However, as the Third Reich gained homeland power under the banner of postwar nationalism and soon too began expanding its own borders, the territories conquered brought with them a larger collection of
In order to affect the formation and exercise of conscience, the church had to create, convince, and project an image of benevolence of itself to the world. This image, finely contructed, was then used to define its institutional mission in terms of some universal moral imperative that the church had assumed responsibility for serving.. The writer mentions the "doctrine of original sin" as a means to create this moral dilemma
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