Small Group Research by Herbert Blumberg M. Valerie Kent A. Paul Hare & Martin F. Davies

Author:Herbert Blumberg, M. Valerie Kent, A. Paul Hare & Martin F. Davies
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Springer New York, New York, NY

Picture to Be Completed

The picture we have of intergroup relations is very far from complete. We begin to know something of the cognitive and affective factors involved, of their development, and even of biological and evolutionary processes which may be important. Despite the increasingly large and detailed literature on the role of contact in reducing prejudice and hostility toward outgroups, our understanding is still partial, although the identification of mediating variables is leading to many clarifications. Pettigrew (2007) identifies the distinction between primary and secondary emotions made by Leyens and colleagues as a particularly interesting approach for the future. It seems likely that there is much more to learn about the affective processes involved in intergroup relations. The role of affect in cognitive organization is also imperfectly understood, as are the links among affect, cognition, and behavior. The insights of the earliest researchers have proved remarkably enduring but the extent of theoretical development and the body of empirical literature of recent years has given us a much more complex, detailed and layered view. Pettigrew (2006) advocates multilevel approaches to intergroup relations, for enhancing understanding and, at the macrolevel, for developing effective interventions and building on the strengths of intra- and inter-group diversity. The level of conflict in the world continues to provide a tragic setting and an urgent rationale for acquiring greater understanding of outbreaks of murderous hostility between groups and also of their reconciliation. The hope is always that better understanding of intergroup processes at every level will help groups of all kinds and of all sizes to coexist in peace and flourish in diversity.

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