The device used was a simulated shock generator that would administer the shocks but none would be physically damaging. The participants thought they were inflicting an electric shock on the victim ranging from 15 to 450 volts, but in reality the machine did not work. Participants included 40 men aged 20 to 50 (Milgram, 1963). Compensation was set at $4.50 for simply participating in the experiment, not based on the outcome. Participants believed they were helping someone with a learning experience to see how sanctions affected memory (Milgram, 1963). The sanction is the electric shock inflicted by the participants on the man they had never met. The person the participants thought was the subject of the experiment was a 47-year-old Irish-American man. The experimenter conducting the experiment was a 31-year-old high school biology student..