Hello and Welcome to the first blog in the Psychology Experiments series! I wanted to discuss an experiment that still has relevance to today’s issues in society. Specifically I am going to describe a study conducted in 1968 by a school teacher named Jane Elliot. For those who aren’t familiar, it’s known as “A Class Divided” experiment. This experiment was conducted at a critical time in history. After the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., Jane Elliot was inspired to reveal an important point about life to her students. Using previous knowledge you probably know that a common issue back then was racism and segregation, so the goal was to show everyone how it feels to be discriminated against and how it affects others.  

Jane Elliot started off by dividing her class by eye color (specifically blue and brown). At the start of the experiment, the kids with blue eyes were given the impression that they were superior to those with brown eyes. She described them as being smarter, nicer, and more organized. Adding to that, she showed favoritism to the blue eyed students for the rest of the day. They were wrongly granted the right of cutting the lines and having extra recess time. On the other hand, the brown eyed students were strictly scolded by Elliot and were forced to wear collars around their necks as if they were some sort of animals. On the second day of the continued experiment, roles were reversed making the brown eyed children dominant for that day instead of the blue eyed group. 

Of course after this two day experiment was over, students began to realize the true meaning behind the exercise. Elliot observed that when each group was labeled as being inferior to the other they would actually behave and look the part. With that being said, you can probably guess what happened when each group was labeled superior. This title caused them to behave in absurd ways- even those who she said were sweet. It caused the students to become mean and discriminate towards the other group in as little as fifteen minutes. Jane Elliot felt as if she recreated the ways of society in her own third grade classroom. Years after, she continued to carry out the experiment with similar results each time. This simple, yet meaningful experiment allowed each group to see what it felt like to be looked upon as inferior. Which only caused the students to become closer with one another. This was a great exercise for students to learn at an early age to never judge by skin color, but rather by one’s inside characteristics. 

Extra Info: Jane Elliot also decided to try and test out her experiment in a different institution. The same study was done for the employees of a prison in Iowa where she too found that adults acted the same as children did. It was a way to show jail employees how to treat the inmates.

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Introduction