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QLDPsychologyQuick questions
Unit 4: The influence of others
Quick questions on Social identity, stereotyping and prejudice: Tajfel, in-group bias and reducing conflict (QCE Psychology Unit 4)
3short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is social identity theory?Show answer
Henri Tajfel and John Turner proposed that people have both a personal identity and a social identity drawn from the groups they belong to. Because people want positive self-esteem, they are motivated to see their own group (the in-group) as better than other groups (out-groups). The theory unfolds in three steps.
What are the minimal group studies?Show answer
Tajfel's minimal group experiments showed how little it takes to produce in-group favouritism. Participants were divided into meaningless groups (for example, by a coin toss or preference for one artist over another) with no contact, no conflict and nothing to gain personally. Even so, they consistently allocated more resources to anonymous members of their own group. This demonstrated that mere categorisation, with no history or competition, is enough to trigger in-group bias.
What is reducing intergroup conflict?Show answer
Psychology offers evidence-based strategies for reducing prejudice and discrimination.
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