The Lost Boys

The fascinating true story of one of the most controversial psychological experiments of the modern era - a real-life Lord of the Flies. Competition. Prejudice. Discrimination. Conflict. In 1954, a group of boys attended a remote summer camp where they were split into two groups, and forced to bully, harass, and demonise members of the other group. The results would make history as one of social psychology's classic studies: the Robbers Cave experiment. Conducted at the height of the Cold War, officially the experiment had a happy ending: the boys reconciled, and psychologist Muzafer Sherif demonstrated that while hatred and violence are powerful forces, so too are cooperation and harmony. Today it is proffered as proof that under the right conditions warring groups can make peace. Yet the true story of the experiments is far more complex, and more chilling. In The Lost Boys, Gina Perry explores the experiment and its consequences, tracing the story of Sherif, a troubled outsider who struggled to craft an experiment that would vanquish his personal demons. Drawing on archival material and new interviews, Perry pieces together a story of drama, mutiny, and intrigue that has never been told before.