Situational variance in intergroup conflict: Matrix correlations, matrix interactions, and social support

Although concern with the consequences of group formation can be traced back to Plato’s Republic, it was not until the waning years of the 19th century that this issue began to receive the attention of prominent social scientists (Durkheim, 1898; LeBon, 1895) that would continue into the next century (Allport, 1924; Freud, 1922; McDougall, 1920). The central question pertained to why decent people, when banded together, behave indecently.