Psy 211- Essay 1-Due 11/3/2011
Last year, High Point high school in Beltsville, MD experienced a great deal of conflict between its’ students. The media reports that the this conflict started with a fight between two students in the school cafeteria however, several students report that increased levels of aggression and anger began as a result of conflict between the African-American and Hispanic-American students at this school. The principle of the school was subsequently fired due to an inability to control the fighting. Students that attend High Point reported that the increased level of aggression at school made for a difficult learning environment and the police were called in to patrol the school to prevent anyone from being injured.
Pretend that High Point high school is still in a state of crisis and needs your help. As a social psychologist, you have been called to diagnose the core issues that would result in such a large sense of conflict and then to provide suggestions for how the school can repair and rebuild its’ social connections between students.
In your diagnosis please be sure to discuss/address the following:
Why did the African-American and Hispanic-American students divide themselves in the first place? What are the consequences of dividing into ingroups and outgroups?
What might the two groups think about each other (what are some of the stereotypes that the groups may endorse)? Provide a plan to measure the stereotypes that the students believe about their outgroups.
Provide an argument for either realistic conflict theory or social identity theory as an explanation for the conflict.
What is the role of self-esteem and attribution in helping to explain the conflict?
What cognitive factors might get in the way of helping the students get along?
Now create a plan for helping the students get along.
Integrate methods of the contact hypothesis, jigsaw classroom and shared identities to give the school a tangible plan to rebuild...