The article is based on the book «Social Psychology» by David Myers
What happens if two conflicting individuals or two conflicting groups come into close contact? Will this help them get to know each other better and feel mutual sympathy? We know that negative expectations make our judgments biased and trigger a self-fulfilling prophecy. But we also know something else: territorial proximity, combined with interaction, the expectation of this interaction, or the very fact of the presence of an individual, can increase sympathy. At the same time, it is especially important that the contact be equal, and not competitive.
However, in cases where a hostile relationship between the parties has already formed, one equal contact for sympathy will no longer be enough. →