Some psychological experiments could never be conducted today - they would simply be too cruel or unethical. However, it was these very studies that showed how susceptible we are to the influence of authority and how easily we can be led.

The Bobo doll experiment - how children learn aggression

In the 1960s, Albert Bandura, a professor of psychology, conducted the famous "Bobo" doll experiment.
Early school-age children were invited into a room. In the corner stood an inflatable doll resembling a clown-balloon. The psychologist informed the children that his colleagues would show them certain behaviors.

And they did: they hit the doll, kicked it, struck it with a stick, shouted, and "shot" it with a toy gun.
When they left, the children immediately began to imitate the adults – beating the doll, calling it names, and some came up with even more creative forms of aggression.
Children in the control group, who did not observe the violence, did not exhibit any aggressive behavior.

This experiment proved that we learn through observation and imitation, and the authority of an adult has a huge impact on a child's behavior.

"Captainitis" - or blind faith in authority

Professor Robert Cialdini, a well-known researcher of social influence, called this phenomenon captainitis - a situation where we blindly believe an authority, even when their decisions are wrong.

In the 1980s, he conducted an experiment in a flight simulator. The captain deliberately made mistakes that would lead to a disaster in a real flight. Despite this, the crew did not react - no one wanted to question the captain's authority.
This showed how much we fear opposing someone "more important," even if we feel that something is wrong.

The Milgram experiment - obedience to authority

Similar conclusions come from one of the most famous psychological studies of the 20th century - Stanley Milgram's experiment at Yale University.

Participants believed they were taking part in a study on learning. They were divided into "teachers" and "learners."
For every wrong answer, the teacher was to press a button that - as they were told - sent an electric shock to the learner sitting behind a wall.

Although in reality there was no electricity and the screams were faked, most participants did not stop the experiment, even when the "learners" begged for help.
65% of people administered the highest shock - 450 volts - simply because the man in the white lab coat said: "Please continue".

After the experiment, many participants admitted they felt immense stress and internal opposition but were unable to defy authority.

Why it is so easy to manipulate us

These experiments - ethically unacceptable today - show something very important:
- we succumb to influence unconsciously.
- authority (a white lab coat, position, title) can turn off our critical judgment.

Therefore, it is worth remembering that not everyone who looks like an expert is right.
It's not worth repeating something just because "someone smarter said so".

Humans and social influence

Humans are social beings - we are easily shaped, inspired... but also manipulated.
Awareness of this mechanism is the first step toward freedom of thought.

Before you listen to an authority, ask yourself:

"Do I really agree with this"?