Psychology I / Social Identity Theory and the Dynamics of Intergroup Conflict
Practice question · Multiple choice

At Robbers Cave, two hostile boys' groups were brought together for pleasant joint meals, and the hostility got worse. What finally reduced it?

Hints
  1. The meals put them in the same room. Ask what a shared meal does not require them to do.
  2. What changed when the camp's water failed?
Show the answer

C. Superordinate goals neither group could solve alone

Why

Proximity alone gave them a better venue for hostility, the joint meals became food fights. What worked was needing each other: a goal neither group could reach alone makes the other group's success part of your own. That is also the crucial condition the contact hypothesis later formalised.

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