Evaluate Realistic Conflict Theory - Sherif (8 marks)

Question 1

CREDIBILITY

Answer 1

→ There’s a lot of research in support of Realistic Conflict, especially the’Robbers Cave’ and also a lot of attitude surveys like theMichigan National Election Studies.
→ Football fans tend to have negative stereotypes about rival teams, but no particular view about teams much lower (or higher) in the league that aren’t in competition with their team.
→ Extremists who try to whip up prejudice often claim that outgroups represent a threat to people’s jobs, education, money or privileges. In other words, they try to create aperception(which may not be true) that resources are scarce and the outgroup are competitors. This is exactly what RCT would predict.

Question 2

OBJECTIONS

Answer 2

→ The “Robbers Cave” study was carried out on American schoolboys, not on adults.
→ 24 participants (11 year old boys) → American school boys
→ Testosterone and upbringing might make schoolboys especially likely to form tribes and be competitive. There’s a danger ingeneralisingfrom them to adult behaviour.

Question 3

DIFFERENCES - RCT

Answer 3

→ Social Identity theory is different in contrast to RCT.
→ SIT claims that prejudice is natural and instinctive and happens immediately, as soon as you categorise yourself as belonging to an ingroup (social categorisation) and notice other people belonging to an outgroup (social comparison).
→ This prejudice has nothing to do with competition over resources.

Question 4

DIFFERENCES - ’Tajfels Minimal Group’ studies

Answer 4

→ SIT is backed up by’Tajfels Minimal Group’ studies
→ where boys showed outgroup discrimination even though they weren’t in competition with the outgroup – they would choose options from the matrix booklets that offered scarce resources (in points)in order to create competitionrather than the options that would give their ingroup more points.

Question 5

DIFFERENCES - ‘Authoritarian Personalitity’

Answer 5

→ There are other theories that explain prejudice as well
→ Theodor Adorno (1950)argues that some people have an ‘Authoritarian Personalitity’ that is threatened by people who are different and enjoys disciminating against outgroups that have less status. Adorno’s research involved questionnaires (the “Fascism Scale”) and interviews to get quantitative and qualitative data.
→ this is a theory that suggests groups do not need competition in order for prejudices to form.

Question 6

APPLICATIONS - Superordinate goals

Answer 6

→ The idea ofsuperordinate goalshas a clear application for reducing prejudice and discrimination.
→ The ingroup and outgroup need to work together towards something that is valued by both of them; then they see each other as members of the one group, with a shared goal of achieving resources through cooperation.
→ This is how Sherif defused prejudice in “Robbers Cave”.

Question 7

APPLICATION - Allport’s Contact Hypothesis

Answer 7

→ Allport’s Contact Hypothesisapplies here
→ prejudice will be reduced if group members get to mingle freely with the outgroup and question their own stereotypes.→ It is important that leaders and authority figures support this mingling.
This is the base ofmulticultural educationthat brings children into contact with other children of different ethnicity. Schools often have days where they celebrate the religion, food and dress of minorities