Muzafer Sherif

Muzaffer Serif Basoglu ( Muzafer Sherif ) ( born July 29, 1906 in Ödemiş, Izmir, Turkey, † October 16, 1988 in Fairbanks, Alaska, United States) was a Turkish social psychologist who was among the founders and leading scientists in his field.

In particular, he was concerned with inter-and intra group conflict (see Conflict Research). In addition to his " summer camp experiments " ( " Robber's - Cave " experiment ) of 1949, 1953 and 1954 he gained international recognition for his inquiry into peer pressure and conformity using the autokinetic effect in 1935.

Life

Serif graduated from the American College in Izmir ( Izmir Amerikan Koleji ). He completed his university studies in philosophy at the Faculty of Literature of Istanbul University. After moving to the United States he received his master's degree at Harvard University; he earned his Ph.D. at Columbia University. Later researched and taught at Yale University, the University of Oklahoma and Pennsylvania State University.

Research and experiments

Serif worked intensively with the behavior of groups, with the influence of the group on the individual and the resulting compliance behavior of individuals.

Experiment to informationalen social influence

One of his most famous experiments was based on the autokinetic effect. This effect is a movement illusion of a stationary point of light in the dark. As evidence of the position of the light spot is missing, the spot seems to be subjectively move. Serif had subjects perform in a dark room and told them to give estimates of the extent of movement of the light spot. At each meeting, the point was 100 times presented. Here Serif formed three groups. The first group than the control group should assess the movements of the point in individual sessions. It turned out that each person develops a standard, which may differ from person to person but is retained in subsequent sessions. The second group should make the estimates first alone, and then subsequent round in groups of two to three people. The third group should make the first estimates in a group and only after that alone.

Serif was able to show that the subjects of the second group rather rapidly a standard estimate charges, their so-called personal norm. But as soon as they valued in the group, their previously very different judgments were approaching towards a common position, the group norm.

The estimates of the third group, however, went in the opposite direction. The fact that the subjects gave their estimates within the first group, the group norm from the beginning developed to. The subjects talked even then to the group norm, as they gave their own estimates.

These and many subsequent studies showed that other group members are used as a source of information in ambiguous situations. This is called informationaler social influence. For other type of pressure to conform, the normative social influence, come the fundamental work of Solomon Asch.

Robber's - Cave experiment

Serif also led by the so-called summer camp experiment. He brought boys together in a holiday camp, who did not know previously. After the boys had spent several days as a large group, she shared Serif into two equal groups ( "I Group " and the " we group " ), ensuring where appropriate made ​​sure that boys who had befriended, not in the same group came. Now, the group took the time being separated from each other trips until they had developed a group feeling. Then allowed the groups compete against each other in competitions which, however, were manipulated in favor of always the same group. It did not take long for the members of a group, the members of the other group cursed and became aggressive towards them.

After they had created two rival groups, began the actual experiment. First, both groups were allowed to eat together or watch movies, but this did not reduce the stereotypes and animosities between the groups. Only when the groups presented tasks that they could only solve together (for example: they were only allowed to see a movie when they all did it together ), the stereotypes reduced gradually.

With this experiment it was shown that it is not sufficient for degrading stereotypes to make enough contact between the different groups, but also, inter alia, common goals and active cooperation are needed. These findings formed the basis, inter alia, for Elliot Aronson's jigsaw concept.