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Perception of Authority

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Back in the 60s, there were some experiments done to see how likely people were to obey an authority figure, even if they were doing something they felt was wrong.  The results were scary.  Most people would continue to administer lethal electric shocks to another human if someone in a lab coat told them they had to. In the book Influence: Science and Practice (5th Edition) the author talks about the different ways we perceive someone as being an authority.  This perception causes you to obey them more than would be expected. The book lists three things that cause people to identify someone as an authority: Impressive Title Their Clothes Driving an Expensive Car On one … [Read more...] about Perception of Authority

Turkeys and Skunks

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Turkeys don't like skunks.  Skunks like turkeys, but mainly because they can eat the baby chicks.  So it isn't surprising that when a skunk comes around, a mother turkey will attack it to keep it away from her babies. Here is another fact about turkey mothers.  They respond to their chicks saying "cheep cheep".  If the chick says "cheep cheep" the mother will care for it.  No "cheep cheep" and the mother will ignore it and sometimes even kill it.  So if you are a baby chick, the "cheep cheep" is very important. In a slightly bizarre experiment, scientists rigged a stuffed skunk and sent it toward a mother turkey.  Ask expected, the turkey attacked the stuffed skunk with her claws … [Read more...] about Turkeys and Skunks

Chimps and Children

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Psychologists have been doing some experiments with chimps and young children looking for differences in the way they solve problems.  In one of the experiments, they gave chimps a clear box containing food.  The scientists showed the chimp how to open the box, but included several steps that were obviously unnecessary.  When the chimps were left alone with the box, they retrieved the food imitating the method they had been shown.  However, the chimps eliminated the unnecessary steps. The scientists then tried the same experiment with 3 and 4 year olds.  Unlike the chimps, children imitated the entire sequence of actions they had been shown, including the unnecessary steps. This is an … [Read more...] about Chimps and Children

The Rat Experiment

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There was an experiment where researchers were given a set of rats and told to rate their ability to learn mazes.  They were told that certain rats were "smart rats" and had an abnormally high IQ.  When the researchers tested the rats, their studies showed that the "smart rats" performed significantly better than the ordinary rats. The experiment, however, wasn't focused on the rats, it was testing the researchers.  All of the rats were the same, but telling the researchers that some of the rats were smart caused them to rate the rats better, even though there was no difference. People will view what you do through their own set of prejudices.  To a certain extent, your ability to … [Read more...] about The Rat Experiment