Stereotyping

What is a stereotype?

A generalisation about characteristics of people based on category membership.

Two key features of stereotypes

They are evaluative and they are shared across individuals.

Why do stereotypes persist?

They are cognitively useful, socially reinforced, and resistant to change.

Descriptive approach to stereotypes

Focuses on identifying stereotype content (e.g., Katz & Braly 1933).

Key finding of Katz & Braly (1933)

People readily apply a few stereotypic traits to groups.

How stereotypes change over time

Slowly, often in response to major social, political, or economic shifts.

Authoritarian personality theory (Adorno et al., 1950)

People with rigid, black-and-white thinking are more prone to stereotyping.

Critique of authoritarian personality explanation

Both authoritarians and libertarians use stereotypes (Billig 1978).

Tajfel’s cognitive view of stereotyping

Stereotyping results from normal cognitive categorisation processes.

Categorisation effect (Tajfel & Wilkes, 1963)

Categorising continuous stimuli makes between-group differences appear larger and within-group differences smaller.

Value-based accentuation effect (Bruner & Goodman, 1947)

Categorisation biases are amplified when categories carry personal or social value.

Purpose of cognitive categories

They simplify complexity and reduce cognitive load.

Macrae et al. (1994) finding

Using stereotypes frees up cognitive resources for secondary tasks.

Sherman et al. (1999) finding

Under cognitive load, people rely more heavily on stereotypes.

Macrae et al. (1995) finding

People recognise stereotype-consistent words more quickly after priming.

Why stereotypes save cognitive energy

They provide fast, schema-based expectations about others.

Stereotype maintenance through memory (Stangor et al., 1992)

People recall stereotype-consistent information better than inconsistent information.

Transmission of stereotypes (Kashima, 2000)

Stereotype-consistent details are more likely to be reproduced in conversations.

Effect of stereotypes on perception (Payne, 2006)

Stereotypes about aggression increase the likelihood of misidentifying tools as weapons.

Implication of Payne’s weapon task

Stereotypes can directly shape perceptual judgments under time pressure.