Research article summary (published 30 Mar 1975):

Components of "authority" as determinants of compliance.

Full Abstract

This study investigated factors affecting compliance, to orders from a formal authority. The design created a two-level status hierarchy in which subjects occupied identical low-status positions and responded to demands from a simulated high-status leader. Four components of authority-normativity,coervice power, collective justification, and success-failure-were manipulated as independent variables. Another component, the endorsement accorded the leader, was included in the design as a measured variable. Results indicated that compliance increased significantly when coervice power was high (rather than low), when justification was collective (rather than partisan), and when demands were normative (rather than counternormative). Contary ti the theoretical expectation, endorsement did not affect compliance by low-status members. The findings show that the normative aspect of legitimacy serves as a compliance-gaining base even when stripped of enforcing sanctions and under-lying goals and that the distinction between normativity and endorsement is valid for research on social power.

Author information

Author/s: Michener, H A (HA); Burt, M R (MR);

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

Journal: Journal of personality and social psychology (J Pers Soc Psychol), published in UNITED STATES. (Language: eng)

Reference: 1975-Apr; vol 31 (issue 4) : pp 606-14

Dates: Created 1975/12/04; Completed 1975/12/04; Revised 2006/11/15;

PMID: 1159611, status: MEDLINE (last retrieved date: 2/18/2009)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article
(including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.

MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MeSH Headings (categories) shown below.

Achievement Authoritarianism Cooperative Behavior Goals Group Processes Hierarchy, Social

Humans Leadership Male Motivation Social Control, Formal Social Dominance

Note: Bold headings indicate primary MeSH headings or qualifiers.

Related articles

These are the most related articles currently in our database:

• Endorsement of formal leaders: an integrative model. 30 Jan 1975
• Enhancement of leader power after election or appointment to undersirable leader roles. 30 Aug 1977
• An unconscious desire for hierarchy? The motivated perception of dominance complementarity in task partners. 30 Aug 2007
• Influence of sex and gender roles on high school status systems. 30 Dec 1986
• Internal-external control, power position, and satisfaction in task-oriented groups. 29 Nov 1974
• The costs of benefits: help-refusals highlight key trade-offs of social life. 29 Apr 2008
• Group member prototypicality and intergroup negotiation: how one's standing in the group affects negotiation behaviour. 27 Feb 2007
• The role of the self-concept and the social context in determining the behavior of power holders: self-construal in intergroup versus dyadic dispute resolution negotiations. 29 Sep 2007
• Gang characteristics: an empirical survey. 29 Sep 1976

See 100+ related articles.

Related Article Map

Legend: - FREE Full text Article. - Abstract only. - Title only. More help.

See a larger map of 100+ related articles.