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Explanations of prejudice and discrimination between groups (Tajfel…
Explanations of prejudice and discrimination between groups
The Robbers Cave experiment- Sherif
Aim
: To find out if prejudice develops when groups are in competition for scarce resuources
Method
: An American summer camp as organised for 22 boys. The boys were randomly split into two teams and the teams were kept away from each other. They weren't aware that the other group existed. The boys were given time to settle and form a group identity. After a while the 2 groups discovered each other and the staff introduced a series of competitions with the prize for the winning team being a silver cup.
Results
: Very quickly,the teams began unpleasant name calling towards each other and tried to attack each other
Conclusion
: Competition is a cause of prejudice.
Evaluation points
It is unethical because some of the name calling and aggression that was shown by the boys could have potentially been damaging to some of the more sensitive boys.
The sample is biased. You cannot generalize it because all the participants were white, American and male.
The setting was natural which means it has greater ecological validity.
Tajfel
Aim: The show how easily people discriminate against their out-groups
Method: 14-15-year-old boys were randomly assigned to two groups. Each boy was given a game to play where he had to award pairs of points to his own team, and the other team. They were told the points could be swapped for prizes at the end
Results: The boys awarded points by choosing the pairing that created the biggest difference between the groups, not the pairings that gave them the most points
Conclusion: People will discriminate against others just because they are members of an out-group.
Evaluation points
He used boys aged 14-15. We can't generalize the results to females or to other ages
The groups were artificially created so this doesn't reflect real life. In real life, the groups we belong to mean something to us.
link to www.google.co.uk
Levine
Aim: To show that if people believed they had a relationship with a stranger, they would be more likely to help them
Method: A situation was set up so that a stuntman fell over in front of Manchester United fans. Half the time he was wearing a Man U shirt; the rest of the time he was wearing a Liverpool shirt.
Results: When he was wearing the Man U shirt, he was helped to his feet every time. However, when he was wearing the Liverpool shirt, he was left to help himself every time.
Conclusion: When we feel we have something in common with others, we are more likely to help them. We are less likely to help out-group members
Evaluation points
This study has mundane realism because it was set at a football match which is not an artificial setting. This means people will have acted normally.
It is unethical because a confederate was used and the football fans weren't asked about consent.
