sherif Flashcards
what was the aim of his research
to establish establish whether RCT was accurate in predicting in group and out-group dynamics as a cause of prejudice.
what was the sample used
white, middle class, protestant, 22 boys aged 12. matched on sporting ability. they all had a stable home life and were unaware of the aims of the study. at Roberts cave America in Oklahoma. non of them new each other.
how did they collect data
observations, tape recorders and experiment.
outline the procedure
the boys initially became friendly with their group (unaware that there was another group at the camp) formed names Rattlers and Eagles. then they met the other group and competed in competition with one another. zero sums fate - there could only be one winner. ie baseball competition, tug of war, who had the cleanest cabin). then they had to fix a car and a water pipe together in order to watch films (this included having to work together to achieve outcome) superoordiante goals.
what were the results
rattlers and eagles used discriminatory phrases to put their opposition down and bring themselves above them. they burnt their flag and they raided their cabins. refused to watch films with them. after the superordinate goals they chose tot watch a film together and ride home on the same bus together.
what is the application
superordinate goals can increase in-group and outgroup prejudice. ie Arason used the jigsaw technique when class completes and group project and they have to go away and research individual parts. increased the ethic minorities inclusion in the tasks.
what are strengths
high external validity - reflects real life conditions, ppt unaware of the study so no demand characteristics.
high reliability - could easily be replicated in order to establish consistency of his findings.
what are weakness.
lacks generalisability - unrepresentative sample
lacks internal validity - subjective observations, group leaders had more influence on behaviour then sheriff credits
low inter rateable reliability - as the study was replicated on an English scout boy group and there was no ongorup it group hostility
