Stereotypes and Stereotyping

Definition

A stereotype is a generalized belief about the characteristics that are associated with the members of a social group. In 1922, the journalist Walter Lippmann first popularized the term stereotype, which he described as the image people have in their heads of what a social group is like. Early researchers examined the content of social stereotypes by asking people to indicate which psychological traits they associate with various [Page 940]ethnic and national groups (e.g., Germans, Blacks, Jews). This research indicated that there was a good deal of consensus in the public's image of these social groups, with generally strong agreement about which characteristics are typical of each group. There was also a tendency for these “pictures in our heads” to contain more negative than positive characteristics.

Origins

Having cataloged the content of stereotypes, subsequent generations of researchers sought to explain how and why stereotypes develop. One approach examined how socialization processes perpetuate stereotypes, emphasizing the ways whereby parents, peers, and the media communicate and reinforce stereotypic images of social groups. The consensus of stereotypes can be explained, from this perspective, by the transmission of broader cultural biases to new generations of children as they develop within a society. However, this approach does not explain where the stereotypes came from in the first place. To answer that question, some researchers turned to motivational approaches. From this perspective, stereotypes arise to satisfy important psychological needs. For example, a person's stereotypes about other groups may make the person feel superior. In support of that possibility, researchers have shown that after experiencing a threat to one's self-esteem, stereotypic thoughts about a minority group are more likely to come to mind. Stereotypes also function to support and rationalize intergroup conflict over valuable resources, making one social group feel justified in hostile actions taken toward other groups. In addition, as noted in system justification theory, stereotypes work to justify the status quo, making a person feel comfortable with the disparities that are present in society. That is, stereotypes provide people with a way of convincing themselves that there are good (and fair) explanations for social inequality. For example, a person might reason that if some social groups have achieved less economic success, it must be because of their inherently deficient characteristics (e.g., laziness, lack of ability). In this way, social inequality can be blamed on the disadvantaged groups themselves (rather than on unfair discrimination or the legacy of historical disadvantages). Interestingly, the need to justify the social system appears to be so strong that even disadvantaged minorities themselves sometimes accept these negative stereotypes of their own groups. These kinds of motivational explanations can readily account for the predominantly negative quality of many social stereotypes.

Recent research shows that stereotypes tend to cluster around two broad themes. One theme concerns competence: Are members of the group smart and successful? The second theme concerns warmth: Are members of the group likeable, friendly, and unthreatening? Perhaps unsurprisingly, members of the dominant (majority) social group tend to regard their own group as both competent and warm. Many other groups are regarded with a mixture of ambivalent stereotypes. Some groups, such as women and the elderly, are commonly seen as being quite warm but lacking competence, whereas other groups, such as Asians and Jews, tend to be seen by the majority group as being quite competent but lacking in warmth. Only relatively few groups (e.g., the homeless, drug addicts) are seen as lacking on both dimensions. In general, however, this research confirms that the stereotypes of many social groups are marked by at least one negative theme.

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