Remember the Titans

Attribution theory: suggests how we explain someone’s behavior by crediting either the situation or the person’s disposition.
 Example: there were several good examples; one happened during the game with Eagles(the first game). Coach Yoast’s defense team did do so well, and failed to block out opponent’s player 23. Coach Boone falsely attributed the failure of defense to Yoast’s intention of getting him fire, since he can’t afford to lose any game. However, it turned out that Yoast wanted to win the game just much as Boone did. Another one happened when “Sunshine” took P and Blue (I guessed the names) to one of the local restaurant, but was denied by the owner due to the racial discrimination. P was very angry at Sunshine for embarrassing him after he had told Sunshine that it was not a good ideal to go into the restaurant. P falsely attributed Sunshine’s intention and Sunshine’s acknowledgement. P thought Sunshine knew the outcome already and was embarrassing him on purpose.
Foot-in-the door phenomenon: the tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request.
 Example: Foot-in-the door trick was used at the beginning of the movie by coach Boone, for he wanted to successfully integrate the two races into one team with nothing between them. However, the first approach was not by coach Boone. Every football player who wanted to play will have to stay in the team, so these ensured that both black and white players would have to be on the same team, and that was the first step. Next, coach Boone took them to the camp where they will be bedding with one another (black and white). To increase the intimacy between the team players, Boone stepped another step further, he ask everyone to learn things from another, which according to psychology, the more one knows about each other the closer and perhaps the better the relationship gets. As result of such effort, the team came together. As one of the parent had remarked, “they look like they had been brain washed.”
Scapegoat theory: the theory that prejudice offers an outlet of ranger by providing someone to blame.
 Example: Scapegoat phenomenon was a common scene during the first quarter of the movie, all white players blame on the black failure and the black player blame the white players too. In on occasion, Gerry was blaming Julius for not blocking the opponent team, and in particular, he blame Julius for left him open to the opponents tackle. In return, Julius blame Gerry for not treating the teammates equally and not doing what a captain supposed to do. Yet, in reality, they both took the blame, because they both contributed to the failure of the team work.
Social trap: a situation in which the conflicting parties, by each rationally pursuing their self-interest, become caught in mutually destructive behavior.
 Example: Both black and white players try to stay in the team but wanted other out of the team or at least for the black players they wanted white players to stay out of their way. At the very beginning of the movie, Gerry went up the coach Boone and told him that the team does not need his black players, but was humiliated by the coach. None of the black player nor did any white players wanted to cooperate with one another, especially the defense, they don’t want to protect the quarter back of opposite race. As result, no one wins. After all, they managed to create a double win situation, in which both races learn to respect and love each other.
Ingroup bias: the tendency  to favor one’s own group.
 Example: this was best shown in the open speech done by coach Yoast at the beginning of the movie, when he publicly declared that he will not deign himself to work under coach Boone. His players also supported his action and decided to leave the team if coach Yoast was not going to coach. This phenomenon showed that how good the white players felt bout themselves and how perceive black players and black coach (black people if to be general).