Scapegoat Theory

• What is the scapegoat theory of prejudice?

  It blames one social group for another's problems
• What does the frustration-aggression hypothesis state?

  All frustration leads to aggression
• Who proposed the frustration-aggression hypothesis?

  Dollard et al. (1939)
• What happens when goal achievement is blocked according to Dollard et al.?

  Psychic energy rises and frustration occurs
• How is frustration expressed when it cannot be directed at the source?

  It is displaced onto a substitute scapegoat
• When does prejudice against scapegoat groups tend to increase?

  In times of social and economic threat
• What is an example of a common scapegoat group?

  Immigrants
• What cognitive shortcut is linked to scapegoat theory?

  Confirmation bias
• How does confirmation bias affect perceptions of out-group members?

  It reinforces existing stereotypes
• What happens when an out-group member commits a crime?

  Ingroup members notice and remember it
• How do schemas about out-group members typically differ?

  They tend to be more simplistic
• What can lead to a more realistic schema about out-group members?

  More real-life interactions with them
• When is scapegoating more likely to occur?

  When ingroup members know little about out-group members
• What are the advantages of scapegoat theory?

  • The theory has face validity
  • It explains common human behavior of displacing aggression
  • Research supports scapegoating as an explanation for prejudice
• What are the disadvantages of scapegoat theory?

  • Suggests aggression always follows frustration
  • Ignores alternative consequences like depression or anxiety