Robbers Cave Experiment: Why do conflicts tend to occur between different groups? Is there anything that can bring peace to rival groups? According to psychologist Muzafer Sherif, intergroup conflicts tend to arise from competition for resources, stereotypes, and prejudices. 1/5
In a controversial experiment, the researchers placed 22 boys between the ages of 11 and 12 in two groups at a camp in the Robbers Cave Park in Oklahoma. The boys were separated into two groups and spent the first week of the experiment bonding with their other group members. 2/5
It wasn't until the second phase of the experiment that the children learned that there was another group, at which point the experimenters placed the two groups in direct competition with each other. This led to considerable discord. 3/5
The boys clearly favored their own group members while they disparaged the members of the other group. In the final phase, the researchers staged tasks that required the two groups to work together. These shared tasks eventually led to a truce between the rivals. 4/5
Source: Kendra Cherry (2020)
Fact checked: Emily Swaim
Sherif, M. Superordinate goals in the reduction of intergroup conflict. American Journal of Sociology. 1958;63(4):349-356. doi:10.1086/222258 5/5
Fact checked: Emily Swaim
Sherif, M. Superordinate goals in the reduction of intergroup conflict. American Journal of Sociology. 1958;63(4):349-356. doi:10.1086/222258 5/5
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