Contributions - Reducing Prejudice
- Created by: revisinggoose
- Created on: 27-04-14 17:23
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- Reducing Prejudice
- Social Identity Theory
- Suggests that prejudice is formed because people identify with members of their in-group and denigrate members of the out-group.
- This explanation of prejudice would suggest that in-groups and out-groups need to merge in order to reduce prejudice.
- Social Conflict Theory
- Sherif's (e.g. 1954) social conflict theory says that not only are 2 groups likely to be prejudiced against one another but that prejudice also arises because 2 groups are in conflict over resources.
- In order to reduce prejudice the 2 groups need to work together to solve a common problem - called a superordinate goal.
- Strengths
- Sherif found that 2 groups he had instilled prejudice in worked together to solve common problems & claimed more friends in the opposing group than they had before.
- Evidence that working towards superordinate goals reduces prejudice.
- Studies use either lab (Tajfel) or field (Sherif) expts where there are clear controls and measurable variables, so can draw reliable cause and effect conclusions.
- Both theories suggest that it is the formation of groups that leads to prejudice and the removal of group delineation that reduces it, so they support on another.
- Sherif found that 2 groups he had instilled prejudice in worked together to solve common problems & claimed more friends in the opposing group than they had before.
- Weaknesses
- It is not easy to remove in-group/out-group behaviour as it is a feature of society that people have different affiliations.
- Even if some groups merge, they are likely then to be hostile to another group.
- It is likely that many different circumstances have to come together to reduce prejudice, as well as merging groups and having common goals.
- It is not easy to remove in-group/out-group behaviour as it is a feature of society that people have different affiliations.
- Social Identity Theory
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