Answer to Question 1
In my case, I am a student but also a member of a family. When I am at school, my student identity is the salient one. When talking with one of my brothers, my family identity is most salient. In my student identity, I see myself as, and behave in keeping with, being studious, bookish, and a little bit argumentative. When talking with family members, I try to stay away from the psychological jargon and focus on my role as a good brother and uncle. In that capacity, I am less analytical and more open about feelings.
Answer to Question 2
First, in many situations, the people in authority relieve those who obey the responsibility for their own actions, and because of this many people defend their actions, saying I was only carrying out orders. Second, people in authority often have visible badges, signs of their status, special uniforms, special titles and more, and these remind people of the powerful social norm to obey people who are in charge. Third, commands are often gradual in nature and do not start out with orders to perform extreme actions. This form of the foot-in-the-door technique enables a person of authority to ask for small actions first but larger ones later. Lastly, events in many situations involving destructive obedience move at a very fast pace, and this gives the people involved little chance to consider their options.
The Social Brain
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