Seventy years ago, a landmark psychological study that has been described as a real life Lord of the Flies took place in an Oklahoma state park. But although the Robbers Cave Experiment, like the novel, focused on a bunch of schoolboys, it offered a very different perspective on human nature.
KGOU thanks all the contributors to this How Curious episode: Marty Gooden, Gina Perry, and Ovis "Smut" Smith; plus Mauricio Carvallo, Nyk Daniels, and Krischan Dietmaier; and the The Drs. Nicholas and Dorothy Cummings Center for the History of Psychology at The University of Akron, which supplied all of the featured audio archive material and photos taken during the experiment.
How Curious is a KGOU Public Radio production. Rachel Hopkin is its host and producer, the Managing Editor is Logan Layden, and David Graey composed the theme music.
The How Curious team loves getting listeners’ suggestions for How Curious subjects, so you have an Oklahoma-related question or idea, please send it in via curious@kgou.org.
