Social classic study - Sherif et al (1954/1961)

Question 1

What was the aim of Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (2 points)

Answer 1

To study inter-group relations to examine the development of in-group hostility directed at the out-group

To study if the introduction of superordinate goals can overcome prejudice between in-groups and out-groups

Question 2

What was the methodology (type, pps, location, design) of Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (4 points)

Answer 2

Type: 3-week field experiment

Participants: 22M aged 11 years old

Location: Boy Scouts Camp at Robber’s Cave State Park, Oklahoma, America

Design: Matched pairs based on IQ, sporting ability, home life, and religion

Question 3

What were the 3 stages of Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (3 points)

Answer 3

Stage 1: In-group formation

Stage 2: Inter-group friction

Stage 3: Inter-group integration

Question 4

What did Stage 1 (In-group formation) of Sherif’s study involve? (2 points)

Answer 4

Boys were randomly divided into 2 equal groups

Named their groups (Rattlers and Eagles) and assigned group leaders

Question 5

What did Stage 2 (Inter-group friction) of Sherif’s study involve? (2 points)

Answer 5

Out-group hostility created through competition in tournaments

Activities:
Collecting beans experiment
Tug of war
Raiding each other’s cabins

Question 6

What did Stage 3 (Inter-group integration) of Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study involve? (2 points)

Answer 6

Superordinate goals were introduced that the teams had to work together to achieve

Activities:
Restoring water and food supply
Restarting broken camp bus

Question 7

How was data collected during Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (3 points)

Answer 7

Boys were observed for 12 hours a day

Friendship patterns studied through sociometric analysis

Tape recordings used to study language used when referring to in-group and out-group

Question 8

What were the results of Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (3 points)

Answer 8

Quantitative:
93% of friends in own group at Stage 1
30% of friendships in out-group by end of Stage 3

Qualitative:
‘Sneaks’, ‘smart alecs’, ‘stinkers’ to ‘brave’, ‘tough’, ‘friendly’

Question 9

What was the conclusion of Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (3 points)

Answer 9

Contact not sufficient for groups to reduce hostility

Competition for limited resources is required for prejudice and discrimination to occur

Cooperation in the form of working together towards superordinate goals is required to overcome out-group hostility

Question 10

How generalisable is Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (3 points)

Answer 10

Sample population: 22 11-year-old boys from a middle-class, Caucasian, catholic upbringing

Androcentric - findings can’t be generalised to female populations

Ethnocentric - results reflect an individualistic society that values autonomy and freedom of speech; not representative of collectivist cultures which value interdependence

Question 11

Sherif - Reductionism

Answer 11

Reduces prejudice down to just competition and ignores other factors like biology (testosterone)

Question 12

How ethical is Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (4 points)

Answer 12

Participants were deceived about the nature of the experiment - told it was a ‘summer camp’ - but it was required to avoid demand characteristics

Presumptive consent from parents rather than fully informed consent from actual participants (too young)

Prejudice caused by Sherif intentionally introducing inter-group conflict could lead to long-term psychological and physical harm - could have caused distress to participants

The boys could have learned aggressive behaviours from the camp and taken these home into their daily life

Question 13

Sherif - Nature-nurture

Answer 13

Uses nurture to explain human behavior in social environments

Question 14

Is Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study applicable to real life? (3 points)

Answer 14

The results have strong application to real-life - demonstrates how prejudice
between groups in society can be reduced by bringing them together

This has been applied to:
+ Anti-bullying campaigns in schools
+ Violence observed between opposing football fans during competitive matches

Supported by Allport’s (1954) Contact Hypothesis:
More inter-group contact = less stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination

Question 15

Sherif - Decades (Time)

Answer 15

Theories from social psychology and learning theories remain time-locked - they are only applicable and reflective of a particular decade

Question 16

How reliable is Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (3 points)

Answer 16

Although a range of data collection methods were used to compare results, the procedure is not fully standardised

The researchers conducted observational research for only 12 out of 24 hours a day - the boys were left unsupervised during the evenings

Extraneous variables could have affected the results, making it difficult to repeat the study, decreasing the reliability

Question 17

How is Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study internally valid? (2 points)

Answer 17

Matched pairs design allowed for individual differences between the participants to be accounted for

Controlled variables kept constant - cause and effect could be established

Question 18

How ecologically valid is Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study? (3 points)

Answer 18

High ecological validity - it was a field experiment taking place at a real-life summer camp

Realistic activities commonly carried out on a camping trip in Stage 2 - increased mundane realism

The boys weren’t aware that they were taking part in a study - less likely to display demand characteristics and were more likely to behave naturally

Question 19

How is Sherif’s Robber’s Cave Study not internally valid? (2 points)

Answer 19

Some of the qualitative data collection methods are subject to researcher bias - difficult to establish cause and effect between the formation of in-groups/out-groups and prejudice

Due to the naturalistic environment, there are extraneous variables which have not been carefully controlled - decreased internal validity

Question 20

Sherif - Science

Answer 20

Sociometric tests were used to objectively measure the impact of superordinate goals on friendship patterns - falsifiable quantitative data

Question 21

Sherif - Social control

Answer 21

How hostility may arise over competition for resources

Question 22

Sherif - Socially sensitive research

Answer 22

???

Question 23

Sherif - Themes

Answer 23

Focuses on the influence of society (competition) on an individual’s behaviour