Origins of Conflict & Conflict Resolution: The Contact Hypothesis (DP IB Psychology)
Revision Note
The origins of conflict
Conflict between groups (intergroup conflict) involves:
A disagreement, point of ideological difference or confrontation between one group and at least one other group, for example:
Those who voted to leave the EU and those who voted to remain in the EU
Those who believe in one religion and those who believe in a different religion
Those who feel that their identity is being swamped or ‘invaded’ by one or more other groups
Intergroup conflict may be based on:
Fear, wariness or suspicion of other groups
Feelings of superiority or inferiority to other groups
Feelings of injustice/unfairness about the treatment and experience of one’s own group compared to that of other groups
Intergroup conflict will depend on:
The size of each group involved in the conflict
The attitudes and ideologies of each group involved in the conflict
The goals, aims and objectives of each group involved in the conflict
The structure and organisational capacities of each group involved in the conflict
One theory of intergroup conflict is realistic conflict theory which was covered on a previous revision note and which stems from the idea of ‘us’ versus ‘them’ i.e. ingroups and outgroups
The contact hypothesis & conflict resolution
The contact hypothesis (Allport, 1954) was suggested as a way of:
resolving conflict between communities
improving intergroup attitudes and relationships
reducing intergroup anxiety
Allport suggested that intergroup conflict and prejudice might be reduced by:
increased contact between groups
contact between groups that is regular and frequent
contact between groups that could lead to genuine relationships being built
meaningful cooperation between groups that happens over time and which may involve a joint project or goal, for example:
reducing drug-related crime in the area
hosting a street party
Local councils, schools, police and other official sources should support the efforts made by the groups
Intergroup contact must be seen to be important to those from each group involved
Evaluation of the contact hypothesis
Strengths
The theory has good intentions in that it is seeking to find a solution to prejudice, discrimination and conflict which means that it could be applied to a range of real-life situations, giving it external validity
The theory draws from a range of established psychological theories such as:
social identity theory
realistic conflict theory
which means that it can be tested using these theories to form hypotheses
Limitations
There has been robust criticism of the theory:
There are too many criteria involved, making the theory somewhat ‘messy’
Pettigrew (1986) likened the theory to a ‘laundry list’, stating that it was incoherent and overly vague
One major issue with the contact hypothesis is the requirement that members of different groups must interact, which is not always possible, for example:
Israelis and Palestinians
Blacks and Whites in Apartheid South Africa
Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland during the Troubles
Examiner Tip
There are (sadly) a lot of current examples of intergroup conflict that you could use in an exam response in a question on conflict and conflict resolution. Using current events in your exam answers will show that you are fully aware of global events which is part of the IB Learner Profile.
Research which investigates the contact hypothesis
Pettigrew & Tropp (2006): a meta-analysis of contact hypothesis research
Turner et al. (2007): merely imagining contact with an outgroup can increase positive feelings for that group
Pettigrew & Tropp (2006) and Turner et al. (2007) are available as ‘Two Key Studies of Origins of Conflict & Conflict Resolution’ – just navigate the Group Dynamics section to find them.
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