Stereotype

A stereotype is a mental generalization, most often about a category or group of people. The generalization or assumption may be positive or negative, and may focus on any attribute or characteristic. For example, stereotypes may involve expectations of appearance, behavior, or attitude for people of a particular race, ethnicity, sex, religion, occupation, or any combination of such categories. They tend to ascribe overly simplified and frequently inaccurate qualities to all members of a group, regardless of evidence to the contrary and individual differences.

Stereotypes are likely rooted in cognitive developments such as categorical thinking that allow people to classify and access information more quickly. Psychologists and sociologists generally consider stereotypes to have a mostly negative effect on modern society. Stereotyped perceptions can contribute to misunderstandings, imbalanced social orders, and even prejudice and hatred.

Background

Psychologists have long studied the nature of stereotypes and how and why the human mind creates them. Stereotyping most likely evolved as a cognitive tool that helps the brain make decisions quickly and in cases with insufficient information. In this case, a pre-existing stereotype serves as a “cheat sheet” that provides information—accurate or inaccurate—to the brain to reduce the burden of gathering and processing new information upon entering a new situation or meeting new people.

This can, in theory at least, provide some potential benefits to the person making the stereotype. For example, a stereotype of a rival group as untrustworthy and dangerous may prompt a person to stay away from members of that group, thus protecting that person from potential harm. Like many other psychological systems, stereotyping may have developed as a tool for self-preservation.

Theorists have also connected stereotyping to another common feature of human cognition, categorical thinking. One of the main theorists of categorical thinking was Gordon Allport, whose 1954 study “The Nature of Prejudice” claimed that the human brain has an unavoidable tendency to create categories. These categories are meant to simplify perception and attempt to make sense of the surrounding environment.

Categorical thinking may be demonstrated using a simple square. When the square is presented normally, the human brain categorizes it as a square. If the square is gradually rotated, however, the brain struggles to find ways to describe or categorize the resulting shape. People would likely refer to it as some variation of a square, such as a “tilted square,” thus showing the strength of the original categorization. The brain will likely not recognize a new category until the shape has rotated approximately forty-five degrees, at which time the brain will probably classify the shape as a “diamond.”

Allport theorized that this categorization process is not only inborn and unavoidable, but also necessary for orderly living. However, it has other implications, not all of which are helpful. For example, as demonstrated by the square-and-diamond test, categorical thinking struggles to understand or accept people, objects, ideas, and experiences that do not neatly conform to a category. That may cause difficulty when people try to approach and understand members of personally unfamiliar or culturally nonstandard groups.

Another implication is that, once the brain forms a category, that category remains and creates a standard for later judgments. People, objects, ideas, and experiences a person encounters later will almost inevitably be compared to that category. Over time, these accumulated encounters generally impart feelings—positive, neutral, negative, or mixed—to that category that will affect future judgments of things perceived as being part of that category. These feelings may be seen as stereotypes. They may be helpful, such as in cases of avoiding harm, but in many cases they have even stronger negative effects.

Overview

Stereotypes have likely existed for many thousands of years, but they only became a major topic of social discussion and scientific research in the twentieth century. The term “stereotype” first became widely known through the work of journalist Walter Lippmann in the early 1920s. Lippmann defined the term as a mental image or perception people hold toward various groups within a society. Subsequent research and testing proved that stereotypes are extremely common. Many stereotypes are also widespread, with large numbers of people, sometimes spanning regions, cultures, and countries, sharing them.

In 1933, researchers Daniel Katz and Kenneth Braly performed an experiment on stereotyping at Princeton University. Katz and Braly distributed questionnaires to students, with each questionnaire containing a list of commonly known ethnic and racial groups in the United States along with a list of eighty-four personal characteristics. The researchers asked respondents to connect each group with the five or six traits that seemed most appropriate, based on the respondents’ perceptions.

The results of this poll were striking, with most students quickly and easily matching groups to descriptions. Moreover, most of the stereotypes uncovered—at least of groups outside the respondent’s group—were decidedly negative. Respondents unquestioningly passed judgment on groups even if they had no personal experiences with members of those groups. In addition, significant trends appeared in the results, suggesting that certain stereotypes were well-known and shared by many.

Research in later decades determined that some stereotypes had changed or lessened, and some had become more positive. However, researchers concluded that stereotypes, and the activity of stereotyping, was entrenched in humans even despite growing social efforts to educate people and warn against the dangers of unfair stereotypes.

Two reasons for the perpetuation of stereotypes are their strength and persistence. Stereotypes form inevitably during everyday events. They may also be taught by family members, teachers, or others. Existing stereotypes may then be bolstered by media representations, conversations with like-minded friends, or observations that confirm some aspect of the stereotype. In this way, stereotypes may become strongly ingrained over years or decades in a person’s mind.

At that point, the stereotype will likely affect the holder’s perspective, leading that person to notice or even seek more confirmation of the stereotype. A person may knowingly or unknowingly overlook evidence that contradicts the stereotype and focus disproportionately on anything that may seem to support it. Often, people cannot overcome stereotypes because they have limited first-hand exposure to the targeted group. In many cases, people may have positive interactions with members of the targeted group, but still cling to pre-existing negative stereotypes.

Stereotyping is a very common occurrence that may be applied to almost any perceptual subject. However, the most pervasive and impactful are usually those that involve people forming and holding stereotypes of other people. Interpersonal stereotypes may fall among many categories, most commonly race/ethnicity, sex, sexual preference, religion, regional situation, personal traits, and occupation.

Stereotypes may be additionally varied due to differences in their criteria. In general, stereotypes of people typically focus on themes of intelligence and behavior. The theme of intelligence asks whether members of a group are smart, resourceful, and successful. The theme of behavior deals with the activities and attitudes of the group: Are people in the group friendly and easy to get along with, or are they dangerous or detrimental? In many cases, a particular group may rate differently between these two criteria. For example, a group may be seen as intelligent but unlikeable, or as friendly but incompetent.

Perspective is another variable in stereotypes. Most stereotypes tend to be negative. A particular group may be considered lazy, prone to violence, overly emotional, or generally unintelligent. However, other stereotypes are positive. Some positive stereotypes include beliefs that a group is generally smart, hardworking, nurturing, or fun-loving. Although positive stereotypes carry little or no ill will, researchers warn that they may be misleading, unfair, and even dangerous simply because they are stereotypes and have no true basis in fact.

Stereotypes affect individuals, groups, and societies in countless and often extremely complex ways. In line with their evolutionary development, stereotyping may hold some limited advantages. People may use stereotypes to categorize perceptions and make this information more easily and quickly accessible. That way, when approaching unfamiliar people or situations, people may draw potentially helpful insights from their preconceived notions that may assist their later decisions and actions. In dangerous situations, stereotypes may help people form bonds with similar people for safety.

However, stereotypes in modern society have a mostly negative effect. Stereotypes help to perpetuate social categories that may have no true value or basis in fact, contributing to needless “us versus them” mindsets. Stereotyping can make people ignore the uniqueness of individuals by forcing them awkwardly into mental categories. Finally, stereotypes can foster ignorance, prejudice, unfairness, and even hatred and violence when taken to extremes. Many experts push to use education and other means to disassemble old stereotypes and prevent future stereotypes from forming.

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