The minimal group paradigm is a research method used in social psychology to investigate the minimal conditions needed for discrimination to arise between groups. Studies using it have found that even arbitrary distinctions, such as a stated preference for one painter's work over another's or the color of a shirt, are enough to trigger favoritism toward one's own group and against another, even when the favoritism costs the in-group something to grant it and the participants have no history, face-to-face contact or personal stake tied to the group they were assigned. The paradigm remains one of the most widely used tools for studying the psychological basis of intergroup bias.
Facts
Core ClaimA social psychology research method best known for investigating the minimal conditions required for discrimination to occur between groups. 1 Replication Standing Classification
Type of PhenomenonSocial or Interpersonal Phenomenon 1 Connections
In Branch
Source Wikipedia: Minimal group paradigm
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1. Wikipedia: Minimal group paradigm
Lead, second sentence
it is best known as a method for investigating the minimal conditions required for discrimination to occur between groups.
lead section, phenomenon-kind classification
The minimal group paradigm is a method employed in social psychology.
In Branch: Social Psychology, Lead
The minimal group paradigm is a method employed in social psychology.
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FORRTEntry: Minimal group effectQuote, Entry: Minimal group effect
Minimal group effect (Minimal group paradigm). An intergroup bias that manifests as ingroup favouritism (i.e., a tendency to prefer ingroup members) when participants are assigned to previously unfamiliar, experimentally created and largely meaningless social identities. In essence, the paradigm investigates the impact of social categorization on intergroup relations in the absence of realistic conflicts of interests, showing that mere social categorization is sufficient to produce ingroup favouritism. Statistics Status: replicated
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