Bookfilter: I can't remember the name of a book I read in 7th grade (circa 1987). It's about a school in which a teacher starts a club to teach the kids about the power of groupthink. In the club the kids are divided into groups with armbands and symbols, and at some point things get out of control and the group becomes cult-like and disturbing. Does anyone have any idea what this book was called?
posted by odayoday on Jul 19, 2008 - 10 answers

Are there any studies on combating the groupthink phenomenon that seems to arise in situations like My Lai, where in a group otherwise "normal" people come up with and perform the most horrific crimes? Studies like the Asch and Stanford prison experiments seem to imply this phenomenon exists, but I'm wondering how (if?) someone can "break out" of the "hive mind" once they're trapped inside.
posted by schroedinger on Jan 6, 2006 - 24 answers