The Dangers of Obedience to Authority: Writing and Reading Across the Cirriculum

Physical abuse - is use of physical force that may result in pain or injury this can range from poking, pushing, pulling hair and hitting this can be with hands or weapons there are many more forms of physical abuse.

Obedience to people in authority is a deep-rooted trait that we all possess by virtue of our upbringing, and as Milgram put it, “it is only the person dwelling in isolation who is not forced to respond, with defiance or submission, to the commands of others” (Milgram 1974). This trait is exhibited every day in family circles, workplace and school. People are most likely to obey instructions from people they perceive their authority to be legal or moral. We see people obeying their pastors, leaders in various societies and other people they see as higher to them; and they obey anything they are being told even if it involves killing another human being. They justify their actions, however wrong, on obedience to authority.

Individuals often yield to conformity when they are forced to discard their individual freedom in order to benefit the larger group. Despite the fact that it is important to obey the authority, obeying the authority can sometimes be hazardous especially when morals and autonomous thought are suppressed to an extent that the other person is harmed. Obedience usually involves doing what a rule or a person tells you to but negative consequences can result from displaying obedience to authority for example; the people who obeyed the orders of Adolph Hitler ended up killing innocent people during the Holocaust. In the same way, Stanley Milgram noted in his article ‘Perils of Obedience’ of how individuals obeyed authority and

Physical abuse can result in serious injuries like broken bones, internal bleeding or even death, as well as withdrawal, aggression or even a reluctance to change in public such as for PE.

Physical abuse involves hitting, kicking, poisoning, burning and shaking or causing harm to a child, and it can occur when parents fabricate symptoms, or purposely induces illness to a child (DfES, 2010). According to National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty Children (NSPCC) (2013), explains that when parents are caring for children can sometimes be a struggle, and they can use punishment like hitting as a way to discipline them which can cause physical injuries such as scares and fracture, and the best way to do it is by setting boundaries, talking, explaining and listening which can be a better way than kicking or burning a child. However, according to Beckett (2003), described there those injuries that

Abuse can come in many different forms such as verbal, physical, and sexual. Each of these can affect a person differently, and sadly even become hereditary. A factor that causes abuse to be so lethal is that the majority of the time it is directed towards children. At a young age, the brain is extremely impressionable and that is why something like verbal abuse can cause so much damage. “Parents who tell their children that they are dumb, bad, etc., raise children who think they are dumb or bad and act as

Physical abuse is typically described as the use of physical force against another person that may in turn cause injury, pain or impairment. This type of abuse could be perform with or without an object.

Physical Abuse is when, a person inflicts physical force that is non-accidental and results in pain, impairment or bodily injury.

Physical abuse includes the smashing of furniture and personal belongings, being pushed or shoved, being held against your will,slapped, bitten, kicked, pinched, punched, choked or ducked under water, threatened or hurt with a weapon, threats of violence, locked in or out of the house, hair pulled …burnt with cigarettes, acid, an iron, hot food or water … Signs: bruising, particularly in well-protected and covered areas, fractures, sprains or dislocations,

Physical abuse is where someone is causing physical harm to another. This could be hitting, pushing, slapping, pinching, kicking, scalding, restraint, misuse of medication and other things causing harm. Signs or this would be unexplainable; red marks and bruising, cuts and grazes, burns, weight loss, finger marks, fractures, scratches, pressure ulcers and sores and/ rashes from wet/soiled bedding. The person being abused would also have behavioural changes, health deterioration with our obvious cause.

Today our society raises us to believe that obedience is good and disobedience is bad. We are taught that we should all do what we’re told and that the people that are disobedient are almost always bad people. Society tells us this, but it is not true. Most people will even be obedient to the point of causing harm to others, because to be disobedient requires the courage to be alone against authority. In Stanley Milgram’s "Perils of Obedience" experiment, his studies showed that sixty percent of ordinary people would agree to obey an authority figure even to the point of severely hurting another human being. (Milgram 347).

Physical abuse involves the use of force by pinching, punching, slapping, scalding, hitting, kicking, burning or misuse of medication, restraint or inappropriate sanctions. It is a form of physical attack on an individual, it can also be a intentional neglect to prevent physical injury.

Those who are in an authoritative position over someone and in a position of care for example, family members, friends or professional health workers (such as a carer, staff member in a residential or nursing home or hospital), can put vulnerable people at risk of abuse. Because of the

According to Cardwell (1996) obedience is a type of social influence whereby somebody acts in response to a direct order from another person. There is an implication the actor is made to respond in a way that they wouldn’t have otherwise done without the order. You are in no doubt when you are obeying an order (explicit). It is obvious when you are following an order and you won’t change your attitudes as you are behaving as instructed. We will always find ourselves in situations in which we are told to do things by other people, for example boss or supervisor at work. Within society we work in a hierarchy. We may disagree or resent the orders we are given even when they are legitimate. It is unlikely we will be given an order or instruction that goes against our conscience or involves us inflicting serious harm on another person.

An example of physical harm is if a supervisor were to place their hands on a worker threatening them and causing them harm, this would be seen as physical assault if it is extreme enough. Abusive supervision has various effects on not only the individual at which the supervisor is targeting, but on the company as well. Abusive supervision often causes employees to quit their job due to a lack of job satisfaction, leading the company to a high turnover rate. Abusive supervision also causes a decrease in life satisfaction, psychological distress and conflict between the individuals work and family life. Targets of abusive supervision primarily remain in the relationship with their supervisor because they feel powerless to take corrective action, they are economically dependent on the abuser, or they fear the unknown associated with the separation more than the fear of the abuse itself (Consequences of Abusive Supervision, 2000).