1st Edition

Norms, Groups, Conflict, and Social Change Rediscovering Muzafer Sherif's Psychology

By Ayfer Dost-Gozkan Copyright 2015

    This book is about the life and work of a Turkish-American social scientist, Muzafer Sherif (1905–1988). He was known for his seminal work on norm and group formations, social judgment, and intergroup conflicts and cooperation. Although Sherif is identified as one of the founders of social psychology, his contribution to the science of psychology goes beyond the limits of social psychology as it is generally defined today.

    This volume aims to rediscover the theory and research of its subject in the socio-historical context of his time, as well as his relevance for contemporary psychology. Chapters cover a range of topics: an in-depth portrayal of Sherif's life and intellectual struggle in Turkey and in the United States; his metatheoretical considerations on the science of psychology; his theory and research on group and intergroup relationships, social norms and social change; formation and change of frames of reference, ego-involvements and identity; and psychology of slogans.

    Sherif had profound life experiences in different cultural contexts from the Ottoman Empire and World War I to American universities, which enabled him to see the essentiality of the historico-cultural context in the formation of human phenomena. Sherif's psychology is an elegant exemplar of an integrative science of psychology that is worth rediscovering.

    Series Editor's Foreword
    Jaan Valsiner

    Introduction
    Ayfer Dost-Go;zkan and Doga Sonmez Keith


    Part I: Early Years: Turkey and the United States

    1. A Young Scientist in a Changing World:
    Muzafer Sherif's Early Years
    Sertan Batur

    2. Muzafer Sherif in America: Confidence,
    Crisis, and Beyond
    Ersin Aslturk


    Part II: Years in the United States after 1945

    3. Th e Sherifs' Long Quest to Keep Social
    Psychology Social
    Donald K. Routh

    4. Muzafer Sherif in FBI Files
    Sertan Batur

    5. Dynamics of Group and Intergroup Relations
    Lucas B. Mazur, Rashmi Nair, and
    Johanna Ray Vollhardt

    6. Sherif's Thoughts on Social Science and the Social
    Scientist: Theoretical and Methodological
    Considerations
    Maggie Campbell-Obaid and Katherine Lacasse

    7. Social Norms and Social Change
    Caitlin O. Mahoney, Elliot Weiner, and Tierza Loskota


    Part III: Contemporary Psychology in Light of
    Sherif 's Work

    8. Sherif's Historical Role and Current Relevance
    for Social/Cultural Psychology
    cidem Katcba

    9. Sherif's Perspective on Contemporary Social
    Psychology
    Zachary Beckstead

    10. Reflections on Muzafer Sherif's Legacy in Social
    Identity and Self-Categorization Theories
    Michael J. Platow, John A. Hunter,
    S. Alexander Haslam, and Stephen D. Reicher

    11. Applications and Extensions of Realistic Conflict
    Theory: Moral Development and Conflict Prevention
    Jessica McKenzie and Gabriel Twose

    12. Re-emergence of ar sija: Revisiting Sherif's
    Psychology of Slogans
    Sandina Begi

    13. An Integration of Social and Developmental
    Psychology: Sherif's Research with Adolescents
    Ayfer Dost-Go;zkan


    Conclusion: A Scholar Between and Beyond
    Fathali M. Moghaddam

    About the Contributors

    Name Index

    Subject Index

    Biography

    Ayfer Dost-Gozkan