STEREOTYPE
A given social stereotype may or may not have much basis
in fact. Stereotypes can sometimes be a relatively value-neutral categorization of
behavior as in the view that most parents have a tendency to nag their children.
This term 'stereotype' derives from the
printing process and refers to a plate made by taking a cast or mold of a surface. A
stereotype then is anything which lacks individual marks or identifiers, and instead
appears as though made from a cast.
Stereotypes are ideas that some individuals hold about
members of particular groups, based solely on membership in that group. They tend to be in
a negative or prejudicial sense and are frequently used to justify certain discriminatory
behaviors
In sociology the stereotype (the plate or cast)
is always a social construction which may have some basis in reality but is a gross
generalization (eg: women like romance novels).
To stereotype is to apply these casts, or gross
generalization, to people or situations rather than seeing the individual variation.
When unjustified stereotypes are applied to groups, the
result is often negative. Negative stereotyping is the main feature in prejudice, as in
racism and sexism.
Stereotype threat refers to being at risk of confirming,
as self-characteristic, a negative stereotype about one's group (Steele & Aronson,
1995).
Stereotypes
as Explanations : The Formation of Meaningful Beliefs about Social Groups Book by
Craig McGarty, Vincent Y. Yzerbyt, Russell Spears (Editors)
Stereotyping is one of the most important issues in social psychology, but little is known
about how and why stereotypes form. This book explores the process of stereotype
formation; the way people develop impressions and view social groups. The authors of this
study propose that stereotypes form to explain aspects of social groups and; in
particular; to explain relationships between groups.
Stereotyping is one of the biggest single issues in social psychology, but relatively
little is known about how and why stereotypes form. Conventional approaches to
stereotyping assume that stereotypes are based on erroneous and distorted processes.
According to the authors stereotypes form in order to explain aspects of social groups and
in particular to explain relationships between groups.
Black Criminal Stereotypes and Racial
Profiling
Kelly Welch, Villanova University, Pennsylvania
Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, Vol. 23, No. 3, 276-288 (2007) DOI:
10.1177/1043986207306870
The racial stereotyping of criminals has been an enduring and unfortunate feature of
American culture. However, following the civil rights movement, the linkage between Blacks
and crime was galvanized. The stereotyping of Blacks as criminals is so pervasive
throughout society that "criminal predator" is used as a euphemism for
"young Black male." This common stereotype has erroneously served as a subtle
rationale for the unofficial policy and practice of racial profiling by criminal justice
practitioners. This article details the theoretical elements contributing to the
development of Black criminal typification to understand how this has been used to justify
racial profiling.
Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans.
Steele CM, Aronson J.
Department of Psychology, Stanford University, California 94305, USA.
J Pers Soc Psychol. 1995 Nov;69(5):797-811.Click here to read
Stereotype threat is being at risk of confirming, as self-characteristic, a negative
stereotype about one's group. Studies 1 and 2 varied the stereotype vulnerability of Black
participants taking a difficult verbal test by varying whether or not their performance
was ostensibly diagnostic of ability, and thus, whether or not they were at risk of
fulfilling the racial stereotype about their intellectual ability. Reflecting the pressure
of this vulnerability, Blacks underperformed in relation to Whites in the
ability-diagnostic condition but not in the nondiagnostic condition (with Scholastic
Aptitude Tests controlled). Study 3 validated that ability-diagnosticity cognitively
activated the racial stereotype in these participants and motivated them not to conform to
it, or to be judged by it. Study 4 showed that mere salience of the stereotype could
impair Blacks' performance even when the test was not ability diagnostic. The role of
stereotype vulnerability in the standardized test performance of ability-stigmatized
groups is discussed.
Developing a New Gender Role Stereotype Index for Television Advertising: Coding
Stereotypical and Reverse-Stereotypical Portrayals
Kim, Kwangok. and Lowry, Dennis
Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association
Abstract: The mass media continue to reinforce stereotypical gender roles. Few studies
have conducted content analyses that effectively measure stereotypes in advertising other
than using nominal level data. Accordingly, this study was designed to develop a new
“Stereotype Index,” measuring at the ordinal level the extent to which an
advertisement uses stereotypical images. The index was developed based upon a probability
sample of prime-time U.S. television commercials during a sweeps month (November
4-December 1, 2004). The final sample included 845 advertisements and 1,062 central
figures. Each advertisement received positive points for the use of stereotypes and
negative points for the use of reverse- stereotypes in its content based on the Stereotype
Index. The mean of each variable could subsequently be compared directly using parametric
statistics rather than traditional chi-square analysis. Differences between nominal
(categorical) and ordinal level data were examined. The new Stereotype Index enables
researchers to make precise statistical comparisons among studies cross-culturally and
longitudinally, something not possible before. Since science often is advanced by
detecting and reporting changes in variables, not just static scores, this is an important
contribution of the new Stereotype Index.
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