Sherif

Question 1

Aim

Answer 1

To see if prejudice can develop between 2 similar groups by competition + if it can be reduced by superordinate goals

Question 2

Sample

Answer 2

• 22 boys aged 11-12
• all from middle class protestant backgrounds
• all white Americans
• matched on IQ and sporting ability

Question 3

Stage 1 of procedure

Answer 3

• 5-6 days
• boys randomly allocated into 2 groups
• kept separate to encourage in group formation
• relationships and communications were observed

Question 4

Stage 2 of procedure

Answer 4

• 4-6 days
• groups told about eachother
• tournament set up where there won points - e.g baseball and tug of war
• bean collecting experiment - had to collect as many beans as they could and then estimate how many the other group collected

Question 5

Stage 3 of procedure

Answer 5

• 6-7 days
• superordinate goals were introduced
• had to fix water tank that supplied them both with water, pull a broken down truck from mud and pay for a movie together

Question 6

Results of stage 1

Answer 6

• both groups established a leader
• both groups developed rules, names (Eagles and Rattlers) and a flag
• groups viewed eachother as “stinkers” whilst viewing themselves as “brave” and “friendly”

Question 7

Results of stage 2

Answer 7

• when they were made aware of eachother, there was a lot of name calling, fights and they raided each others bunkhouses
• prize given to winning group was stolen by losing group

Question 8

Results of stage 3

Answer 8

• water supply - all cheered with one another
• film - each group paid equally
• truck - increased number of friendships compared to stage 2

Rattlers - stage 2 friendships with out group was 6.4% and was 36.4% in stage 3

Question 9

Conclusion

Answer 9

Competition increases prejudice and discrimination

Question 10

Strengths

Answer 10

• Ecological validity - boys of their age usually went to summer camps and so they were in a natural environment - more likely that they showed authentic behaviours
• Validity - didn’t know they were a part of a study and so demand characteristics are less likely to be present - increases validity of results

Question 11

Weaknesses

Answer 11

• Generalisability - sample were all age 11-12 and from middle class protestant backgrounds and were all white boys - results may not apply to girls or girls and boys from different backgrounds
• Reductionist - doesn’t take into account testosterone may have increase aggression levels and hostility in boys - validity is questioned - is competition really the cause for hostility?