Chapter 7 discusses the concept of social categorization, specifically, our tendency to form "ingroups" and "outgroups." Should you wish to complete this assignment for course credit, you'll look more into these two concepts.
Please complete the following:
- What is an ingroup? Outgroup?
- Although these stereotypes are beneficial in that they help us categorize quickly, they can without a doubt cause havoc. Please read this article.
- (You are also welcome to watch the link to the blue eye/brown eye experiment, but just know that it was originally aired in the 1980s, so they use some language a lot of people would cringe about today. Nonetheless, it's interesting! Here is a direct link to it.)
- Summarize what you read. Please use concepts discussed in the book or previous class periods (where applicable) in your summation.
- How does the article suggest you combat the tendency to fall into the "ingroup-outgroup trap"?
Simply put:
ReplyDeleteAn ingroup is a social group to which a person psychologically identifies as being a member.
An outgroup is a social group to which an individual does not identify.
The article was quick to point out that it’s a well-known fact that people tend to define themselves based upon their social groupings and are quick to make fun of others who don’t fit in. Others that share our qualities are “in”, while those who do not are “out”. Some groupings are based upon who we are as individuals (skin color, age, sex) while others are based upon more material means (Fashion, sports team, etc...). The article described how people who grow up in different areas will like different sports teams (Red Sox and Yankees were used as examples) but that doesn’t mean they are different species. Rivalries, such as sports, are resultant of manufactured distinctions that individuals make themselves. A school teacher in Iowa by the name of Jane Elliot had her class partake in a social experiment the day after Mr. Luther King’s assassination. She was able to show how easy it was to make one group “bad” and have all the children pick on them and shun them, and then also how easy it was to reverse the roles. Since this demonstration, scientists now have literally thousands of studies on the subject. Elliot went on to make her experiment her life’s work. She now conducts workshops for diversity sensitivity training, reasoning that once you know how it feels to be the victim you are less likely to make others feel the same way. The article then finished with five ways to help train sensitivity:
1.) Recognize the arbitrary nature of many ingroup-outgroup distinctions
a. Realize that the hate you have of the outgroup has no real solid basis
2.) Put yourself in the place of the outgroup member
a. Pretend you are the outgroup, why and how do you feel the way you do
3.) Look for commonalities between opposing groups
a. Why do the groups exist, what causes them to form (example: faith leads to
different religions, but they all practice faith)
4.) Work on building your inner sense of security
a. The more confident you are, the less you need to tear others down
i. In our last lesson, we talked about how we tear others down in order to build
up our self-confidence. If our ego is healthy, we don’t need to feed it more
5.) Pass along the lesson
a. Try to facilitate others in understanding we are all human in the end. We all are
born the same, and we all die the same.
The ingroup is the group of people that are all sharing particular qualities, and the outgroup is the group that do not share the qualities. Therefore, the ingroup sometimes feels more entitled to poke fun at or discriminate against the out groups. A few examples of this are pedestrians and motorists, black people and white people, and people of different religions. The outgroup can sometimes feel ganged up upon and have a lower self-image. This can spiral the outgroup into depression or anxiety. The ingroup will have a higher sense of self-efficacy because they are the one with the preferred traits for the moment. In the example of pedestrian and motorist, the ingroup and outgroup can result in aggression and anger.
ReplyDeleteThe article goes over numerous examples of ingroup and outgroup situations. It starts off by stating that sex, age and race are major things that contribute to ingroup or outgroup. It then gave various examples of ingroup and outgroup. The first example was Red Sox and Yankee fans. This division between the two groups is bred within themselves because the two people are physiologically identical. The article also discussed Jane Elliots social experiment in her classroom following Martin Luther King Jr.’s assignation. She proved to her seven year old students how easy it is for ingroups and outgroups to occur in real life. She gave both groups of kids to be both the in and out groups. The article also states that the more physically or morally threatened a group feels, the more the group will pull together. The article outlined five ways to combat the tendency to fall into ingroup and outgroup tendencies. These included recognizing the arbitrary nature of many ingroup-outgroup distinctions, putting yourself in the place of the outgroup member, looking for commonalities between opposing groups, working on building your inner sense of security, and passing along a lesson.
Ingroups are groups that an individual identifies with whereas a outgroup is a group an individual does not identify with. There are hundreds of groups that can be created and sometime the assignment of in or out is completely arbitrary. Sometimes an individual can be a part of both the ingroup and outgroup, depending on the situation. For example, an individual can be both a pedestrian and a motorist. Groups can be formed for sports fans, religious groups, race, sex, ethnicity, the list is truly endless. One reason in and out is so commonly used is it is a quick assessment. An individual can quickly make friends if they are part of the “in” group. An ingroup can make the outgroup feel like outcasts. They can be extremely cruel to individuals who differ from the ideals of the “in” group. I think the best way to combat the tendency to form these groups is to value and appreciate diversity. Sometimes, the reason an individual differs from others is what makes them the most interesting. The article provides several other important tips. Recognizing the possibility of a ingroup-outgroup trap is important. Secondly, placing yourself in the shoes of an outgroup member or looking for similarities between the groups is helpful. Finally, building an inner sense of security is important. If an individual has a strong sense of security, it is less important to identify with a particular group.
ReplyDeleteYour ingroup is the group of people with which you share a common ground in any situation/aspect, whether it be intrinsic or extrinsic. Your ethnicity and culture provide a large ingroup, but so does for college major, your favorite place to eat, etc. Those who are not included in your ingroup are included in your outgroup; those who do not share this common ground with you.
ReplyDeleteThis article discusses these two categories-ingroup and outgroup-and how arbitrary they can be. Your ingroup can included a major defining aspect of your life, such as your religion, gender, or ethnicity, but it can also be as meaningless as “pedestrian vs motorist,” as the article described. Many studies have been conducted regarding the blurred lines of ingroup/outgroup and how quickly they can change. Elliot’s study showed that children can be set against each other based on a category as meaningless as eye color. Often we use social comparison to feel better about ourselves by putting down members of our outgroup via outgroup derogation, as the students did in Elliot’s study, or showing ingroup favoritism. However, because the tables can be turned so quickly, and our ingroup is constantly changing we should avoid setting ourselves apart from others based on an outgroup distinction. To avoid doing so, the article suggests first recognizing the arbitrary nature of these categorizations. Putting yourself into the shoes of a member of your outgroup or looking for shared interests will prevent you from putting them down. Also, if you solidify your own identity and feel better about yourself, you will be less likely to rely on distinctions of ingroup vs outgroup.
An ingroup is a group the you have common grounds with, the group you identify with. An outgroup is one you do not identify with. An ingroup would be someone who shares the same music taste as you, has the same major, etc.
ReplyDeleteThis article discusses a lot about ingroups and outgroups. It can be a major part of your life. You can identify with an ingroup by sex, age, race. The people of an ingroup cant be very cruel to people in an outgroup. For example an ingroup would be Caucasians and how they hated on African Americans, the "outgroup". It even lead to murders such as Martin Luther King Jr. I think it is very important that we appreciate diversity and realize it is ok to step outside of our "ingroup".
Make sure you complete all of the questions/steps I outline for each post!
DeleteAn ingroup is a group of people who share our same qualities and an outgroup is a group of people who do not share our same qualities. This article discusses the difference between ingroups and outgroups. The example that was described in this article is the difference between a red sox fan and a Yankees fan. The author discussed that it was not their physical qualities that made them different but their qualities of everyday life. The author then described an experiment done by a teacher in Iowa based on discrimination. She divided the class into blue-eyed children and brown-eyed children and the class then segregated and the blue-eyed children (when told they were better) ridiculed the brown eyed children calling them names. She then turned the tables and the exact same thing happened. The author then described virtual fences that we put up as a defense mechanism. This fence shuns out people who are not in our in-group. The author then describes ways that we can eliminate these virtual fences. The article suggests ways that we can eliminate the ingroup outgroup trap. These suggestions include:
ReplyDelete1. Recognize the arbitrary nature of many ingroup-outgroup distinctions.
2. Put yourself in the place of the outgroup member.
3. Look for commonalities between opposing groups.
4. Work on building your inner sense of security.
5. Pass along the lesson
An ingroup is usually an exclusive group of people with shared interests or identity. People in ingroups are similar. They share the same qualitites and interests. The people who don't share the same interests or qualities are referred to as the outgroup. People in the outgroup are dissimilar.
ReplyDeleteThe author of this article defines ingroup and outgroup. The author also gives some examples of people who are in ingroups and people who are in outgroups. The author then goes on to talk about different experiments that have been done. There was the example about Red Sox and Yankees fans and how they are two different groups, but they are also the same in many ways. The author lists some of these similarities which include they are both fans, they are passionate, devoted, they have drive, and spirit. I think that people are always going to be different in some ways, but they are also similar in some ways. Some times you are in the "ingroup" and sometimes you are in the "outgroup". People cannot be in the "ingroup" or "outgroup" in every situation.
One of the first experiments done on this subject was done in a school. The experiment was done about racial prejudice. The class was divided into eye colors. First, the students with blue eyes were treated very well and the students with brown eyes were treated bad. Then, the roles were reversed. The children got to take turns being in the ingroup and the outgroup. They got to feel what it was like to be stereotyped and discriminated against. They didn't like it. I think this is a good example and hopefully it taught them to not be prejudice and discriminated against others. The author of this article also discussed about if a person feels threatened or at risk, they will turn to their ingroup or people who are similar to them. I also think the statement about how if you have been a victim of the "outgroup" you know what it feels like, so you will be more likely to treat others who are in the outgroup better.
The author of this article gives several suggestions on how to not fall into the "ingroup-outgroup trap." The suggestions are: 1) recognize the arbitrary nature of many ingroup-outgroup distinctions, 2) put yourself in the place of the outgroup members, 3) look for commonalities between the opposing groups, 4) work on building your inner sense of security, and 5) pass along the lesson. I think all five of these suggestions are very helpful if they are followed.
As defined in the article, an ingroup consists of the individuals with whom we surround ourselves on the basis of shared qualities or interests. Outgroups, then are those who do not share these particular interests. The article goes on to say that people can be divided into ingroups and outgroups depending on anything from sports teams to religion. However, underlying our preferences when it comes to which team to root for is the same passion, drive, and love for the sport itself; rather than overlook the rivalry, followers prefer to indulge it and separate themselves from fans of other teams. Also pointed out in this article is the fact that group distinctions are essentially arbitrary: "your ingroup at one moment is your outgroup the next."
ReplyDeleteJane Elliot's school room experiment on racial prejudice is perhaps one of the most significant on the topic. By separating her students into groups of brown-eyed and blue-eyed students, Elliot was able to get the blue-eyed children to look down on and ridicule their brown-eyed classmates. She then reversed the situation and gave the brown-eyed children a chance to inflict the same punishments on their former oppressors. This was revolutionary for studies on prejudice. Her experiment somewhat correlates to last week's discussion on the self, also. Being segregated by eye color (or any means) is definitely degrading, and will have negative effects on one's self esteem.
The article ends by arguing that ingroup-outgroup distinctions may be formed as a means of survival. Surrounding ourselves with those who share our interests and are easy to bond to makes us feel safe and secure from those who might harm us. However, building this virtual fence to separate ourselves from other people just because they might not like the same things as us cuts us off from bonding with the rest of the population. To avoid this separation, then, we need to keep a few key points in mind: recognize the arbitrary nature of many ingroup-outgroup distinctions, put yourself in the place of the outgroup member, look for commonalities between opposing groups, work on building your inner sense of security, and pass along the lesson. These five reminders are essential for breaking down the barriers that ingroups and outgroups form.
The ingroup is a group of people to which an individual identifies with. On the reverse side an outgoup is a group that individuals do not identify with. Some ingroup identifiers could be race, gender, or religion. When I personally think of an ingroup I think of the popular cliques in high schools and outgroup as the stereotypical uncool people. Many people would probably agree based on what is presented in movies and media. One topic brought up in the article was baseball teams. Red Sox fans and Yankee fans are no different in nature or how they support their team. The only difference is where they were born. Just the location and area you are born in can have an extreme influence on your ingroup and outgroup. Another example given is the difference between a person crossing the street and a motorist. You could potentially belong to both groups, but both sides have opposing opinions about the other. There was then an experiment conducted comparing brown eyes to blue eyes in 7 year olds. Whichever eye color the children were told was better, was terribly mean to the other group. Self-concept could be another factor that influences outgroup, especially when told your group is better. When people feel mortally threatened the effect of ingroup intensifies. Once a person experiences outgroup stereotyping they are more likely to commit it themselves. We are more likely to turn to people in our ingroup when we feel attack from outgroup. The article then explains the five ways to beat ingroup outgrop stereotyping recognize the arbitrary nature of many ingroup-outgroup distinctions, put yourself in the place of the outgroup member, look for commonalities between opposing groups, work on building your inner sense of security, pass along the lesson.
ReplyDeleteAn ingroup is a group of people who generally share the same preferences, values, and friends. They are usually similar in some way and that is what drew them to be part of a group.
ReplyDeleteAn outgroup is a group of people who do not fit in with the ingroup. Some can be loners, but others may be part of a different group in society.
The article started out with definitions and examples of what ingroups and outgroups are. I thought the examples provided actually made the concepts a little harder to understand, however they may have worked for other people. The one thing I learned from this article that I did not get from the textbook was the fact that we are all part of ingroups and outgroups. We never identify with only one end of the spectrum. At the same time, it showed me that maybe we can all do something about decreasing the feeling of being in an outgroup when we are in a social situation with someone who isn’t as confident in the situation as we are. Doing this can bolster self-esteem, increase communication skills, and help that person adjust with more ease.
The article follows the ingroup/outgroup definitions with the telling of Jane Elliot’s classroom experiment the day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. She separated her students into groups of blue-eyed and brown-eyed and made them play ingroup and outgroup roles. The results of her experiment were strong, pointing out just how easy it is to carry out acts of discrimination. A documentary was made about Elliot’s experiment and many research groups have conducted similar studies. These studies have proven time and time again how easy it is to instill hate.
I can avoid the ingroup/outgroup pitfalls by being open to new people and situations as well as discouraging others from exclusive behaviors. By being more open to people who would usually be in my outgroup and by straying more from my ingroup, I can have more diverse experiences.
Key Terms: ingroup, outgroup, self-esteem, adjustment, discrimination
Remember, psychology research can't "prove" anything.
DeleteAn ingroup is the group that you psychologically identify yourself with. The ingroup usually has the same interests and qualities as the person who associates themselves with the group. While being part of an ingroup, it is easy to show favoritism and bias towards your group above all else. An outgroup is a group that you do not identify or what to be identified with. When dealing with outgroups there is often times discrimination based on gender, religion, or race.
ReplyDeleteThe article about ingroup outgroup bias was very interesting. It talked about how when we identify ourselves with one group we think down or badly upon opposing groups. The example the article used was Red Sox fans versus Yankee fans and how they both love the sport but yet hate each other. The article also discussed how we put ourselves in these groups because in these groups is where we feel the most safe. We as human beings do not like being morally dehumanized so we associate with who makes us feel good and not make us feel that way. Sometimes we lash out on the outgroups to make ourselves feel more superior. The last sentence of the article stuck out at me that we are all from the same world. This to me meant that we really have no reason to lash out on these other groups yet we do anyways. The book talks about ingroup favoritism which is also very apparent in the article. I made the instant sports connection between USD and SDSU. If anybody at USD had made one life changing choice and went to SDSU then they would also probably ‘hate’ USD. The ingroup favoritism means showing favoritism towards certain people in your group.
The article suggests some of the ways that you can combat the tendency to fall into the ingroup and outgroup trap. The article talks about five ways. The first way is to recognize the arbitrary nature of ingroup and outgroup distinctions. This means that you should be aware that you can part of either group at any time. The second way is to put yourself in the place of an outgroup member. This means that you should think about a time when you were the one being out casted and how painful it was. You do not want to put anybody else through something that you would not want to go through yourself. The third way is to look for commonalities between the two groups. This means people just represent what is most important to them and like the sports fans, they all love the same sport. The fourth way is to work on building your inner security. This means that if you feel more confident with your own identity then you will be less likely to pick on somebody else’s. The fifth way is to pass along the lesson. This means that we can teach others about this stereotype and try to prevent it.
An ingroup is a social group where a person psychologically identifies as being a member of. This group you usually have similar interests as the other members. An outgroup is a social group where an individual does not want to be identified with.
ReplyDeleteThe article goes over different situations with both types of groups. The overall topic of the article is about how people define themselves in terms of social groups they are in and are quick to judge others who don't fit into their groups. Especially in high school people would be consumed in their social life and where they fit in. It is easy to fall into the in group and out group trap in may different ways. These ways were:
- Put yourself in the place of the outgroup member
- Look for commonalities between opposing groups
- Work on building your inner personal of security
- Pass along the lesson learned
Ingroup is where one identifies with others based on similar values or beliefs. Outgroup is where one does not identify with the others in the group. It reminds me of middle school and high school with the stereotypes. Always wanted to be in the group so you were not an outcast. This article discusses the difference of being in the ingroup of outgroup. It goes into examples like sports fans that like Boston versus New York. The article then discusses an experiment that Jane Elliot to show seven year olds what it is to be in the ingroup and outgroup based on the color of their eyes. The students discriminated others easily depending on what group their were in. At the end of the article it talks about five ideas to make sure that someone does not fall for the "ingroup-outgroup trap."
ReplyDeleteIt gave five ideas to make sure a person does not fall into the trap. First it states that what may be in one second maybe out the next. Second is to put yourself into the outgroup remember how you felt. Next the next idea is to look to see what all have in common. The fourth idea is to make sure that you are confident in yourself. Lastly is to educate others about the "ingroup-outgroup trap." People have to realized that not everyone has the same beliefs or values and no one is better than what another person may believe.
An ingroup is a social group of people that share a lot of the same interests and hobbies. And an outgroup is simply the opposite, people that do not share the same interests and hobbies as you and your in-group.
ReplyDeleteThe article discussed how people often define themselves by the social group they are in and are quite often quick to judge others who are not in the same group.Someone in an out group may often be discriminated against by the in-group members. Baseball was mentioned and you can actually talk about all sports when discussing social groups. Being a Dallas Cowboys fan I obviously hate the New York Giants. Giants fans are not in my in-group just like Packers and Vikings fans more than likely aren't in the same in-group. Interests and hobbies aren't the only thing that distinguish social groups though, so does age, sex, race, religious views and more. But just because you and another person may not have ALL the same interests and hobbies it doesn't mean you can't be friends or in one in-group together but not another. At certain times in a persons life its pretty easy to fall into a ingroup outgroup trap. The first thing that comes to my mind is during middle and high school. Kids are trying to both fit in and also find themselves and who they really are. Ways to avoid falling into this trap are: try to open your eyes and find commonalities in opposing social groups, don't judge other people before you put yourself in their shoes and try to bring them into your in-group, and more.
An ingroup is a group which an individual identifies with, while an outgroup is a group that an individual does not identify with. Such groups can be divided by age, race, sex, religion, or culture.
ReplyDeleteThe article was about how people identified with their ingroup, be it their faith, favorite sports team, or eye color. The article talks about how people from an ingroup my critize someone from an outgroup based solely on the difference in the groups. The article also gives some advice to break ingroups and outgroups. The article says to identify groups so that you can understand their view and try to find things in common with them. It also says to increase your confidence in who you are to make you more secure and to pass it along to others so that groups do not hate each other.
An ingroup is a group that people feel like they can identify with. Usually with other people that they have something in common with. An outgroup is a group of people that you do not affiliate with. This can be decided by race, gender, hobbies, and various others.
ReplyDeleteIn the article, the author stated that people within their own ingroups may criticize others from outgroups. It may be because they can all relate to each other on that level or it may be because they are different than their own group. It is important to not let the barriers of the groups become too serious. A good way to keep yourselves in check is to remember that you are all in groups because you want to identify with others and feel needed-just like everyone else. Others just may choose to express themselves differently.
Make sure to address all questions/points of discussion I raise in the blog post!
DeleteAn ingroup is a group that people feel as though they can personally identify with. An outgroup is a group of people that one does not personally affiliate with. These groups can be determined based off of aspects such as gender, race, or various areas of interests. The article discussed how those in a certain ingroup may judge or stereotype others from different outgroups. These negative judgements may be made solely on the fact that they are different. The article gave different suggestions to keep individuals from falling into the ingroup outgroup trap. One way to avoid this is to look for commonalities between groups.
ReplyDeleteAn ingroup is the group that you associate yourself with and are a part of. An outgroup is the other people who are not included in your group or people that you associate yourself with. Ingroups and outgroups can be seen as cliques or stereotypes that our society has. For example, if you are an athlete that is your ingroup and everyone who isn't an athlete is a part of the outgroup because they are not involved in athletics.
ReplyDeleteThis article discusses how the movement and experimenting of ingrouping and outgrouping. An experiment done with 7-year-olds was done and it was shown that anyone can easily be affected and influenced based on these two types of groups. Ingroup and outgroup is also discussed and possibly a result of the concept of survival because certain people band together in order to survive and keep away outsiders. A large majority of this article explains the ingroup-outgroup trap and how you can avoid this trap that has caused us issues with other human beings.
The article gives tips to keep from getting into the trap. A few of these tips include putting yourself in other's positions, have better confidence or security about yourself, and recognize that your ingroup can become your outgroup. When you follow these pieces of advice, it makes it more realistic and in perspective how people in the ingroup and outgroup act towards each other and how just because someone isn't in your ingroup doesn't mean that they should be shunned or pushed away.