In social psychology, superordinate goals are goals that are worth completing but require two or more social groups to cooperatively achieve. The idea was proposed by social psychologist Muzafer Sherif in his experiments on intergroup relations, run in the 1940s and 1950s, as a way of reducing conflict between competing groups. Sherif's idea was to downplay the two separate group identities and encourage the two groups to think of themselves as one larger, superordinate group. This approach has been applied in many contexts to reduce intergroup conflict, including in classrooms and business organizations. However, it has also been critiqued by other social psychologists who have proposed competing theories of intergroup conflict, such as contact theory and social categorization theory. In the context of goal-setting theory, the concept is seen in terms of three goal levels. These are classified as subordinate, intermediate and superordinate. An organization's superordinate goals are expressed through its Vision and Mission Statement and support strategic alignment of activities (subordinate and intermediate goals) with the overall purpose (superordinate goals).
Origin Superordinate goals were first described and proposed as a solution to intergroup conflict by social psychologist Muzafer Sherif. He studied conflict by creating a boys' summer camp for his Robbers Cave experiments. Sherif assigned the participating campers to two separate groups, the blue and red groups. The boys had separate games and activities, lived in different cabins, ate at different tables, and only spent time with their own group. Sherif then introduced competition between the groups, setting up athletic contests between them. This created conflict between the two groups of boys that developed into hostile attitudes towards the other group, pranking, name-calling, shows of group pride, negative stereotyping, and even occasionally physical violence. In order to reduce the conflict between the two groups of boys, Sherif had first attempted to have both groups spend time together non-competitively. He had also encouraged them to mix and eat meals and play games with boys from the other group. However, the groups remained hostile toward each other. He had also tried to unite both groups against a common enemy, an outside summer camp, in an early version of the experiment. However, this was deemed an inadequate solution as this simply created a new conflict between the new group and the common enemy. Sherif then introduced superordinate goals as a possible solution to the conflict. These were goals that were important to the summer camp but could only be achieved with both groups working together, such as obtaining water during a water shortage or procuring a film that both groups wanted to see but did not have enough money for. Sherif found that these goals encouraged cooperation between the boys, which reduced conflict between the groups, increased positive beliefs about boys from the other group, and increased cross-group friendships.
Background Superordinate goals are most often discussed in the context of realistic conflict theory, which proposes that most intergroup conflicts stem from a fight over scarce resources, especially in situations that are seen as zero-sum. Under realistic conflict theory, prejudice and discrimination are functional, because groups are tools used to achieve goals, including obtaining scarce resources that would be difficult to get as an individual. In this case, groups see other groups with similar goals as threats and therefore perceive them negatively. Groups that are both competing for the same limited resource are said to have a negative interdependence. On the other hand, there are groups that benefit from working together on goals that are not zero-sum. In this case, these groups are said to have a positive interdependence. In order to remove competition between different factions under realistic group conflict theory, it is necessary to have non-zero sum goals that create a positive interdependence within groups rather than a negative interdependence. Superordinate goals can create positive interdependence if they are seen as desirable by both groups but are not achievable by each faction independently.
Psychological Mechanisms Work in social psychology suggests that superordinate goals differ from single group goals in that they make the larger group identity more salient and increase positive beliefs about everyone in the larger superordinate group.
Cooperation and Interdependence Superordinate goals differ from smaller group goals in that they cannot be achieved by a single small group, and thus force multiple groups to work together, encouraging cooperation and penalizing competition. This encourages each group to consider the other group positively rather than negatively, as the other group is instrumental to achieving the common goal. This fosters a sense of positive interdependence rather than negative interdependence.
Superordinate Goals and Identity In addition to increasing positive interdependence, having two groups work together on a single superordinate goal makes the larger group identity more salient. In effect, superordinate goals make it more likely that both groups will consider themselves as part of a larger superordinate group that has a common goal rather than two independent groups who are in conflict with each other. In the case of Sherif's summer camp, both groups of boys, the red and the blue, thought of themselves simply as campers when they were working together, rather than as part of the blue or red groups.
Ingroups Having both groups consider themselves part of one larger superordinate group is valuable to the reduction of discrimination, because evaluation of members in one's own group tends to be more positive than evaluation of members outside of one's group. However, the two groups do not need to lose their individual identities in order to become part of the superordinate group. In fact, superordinate goals work best to reduce intergroup conflict when both groups consider themselves subgroups that have a shared identity and a common fate. This allows both groups to keep the positive aspects of their individual identities while also keeping salient everything that the two subgroups have in common.
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