Prejudice, Discrimination, and Stereotyping

A set of vocabulary flashcards focusing on key concepts related to prejudice, discrimination, and stereotyping.

What is prejudice? What are stereotypes?

Prejudice is an unjustifiable and usually negative attitude toward a group and its members, often emotional in nature. Stereotypes are generalized beliefs about a group of people that can consist of positive or negative beliefs and have harmful consequences.

Example: Believing that all teenagers are irresponsible is a stereotype that can lead to prejudice against them.

Why are stereotypes harmful?

Stereotypes are harmful because they can lead to misconceptions and reinforce negative attitudes toward groups, resulting in social inequality and discrimination.

Example: Stereotyping all elderly people as unable to use technology can prevent them from receiving help and support, leading to isolation.

What is discrimination? What are microaggressions?

Discrimination is behaving negatively and unjustifiably toward members of a group based on characteristics like race or gender. Microaggressions are subtle forms of discrimination that minorities routinely experience, such as making dismissive comments about their competence.

Example: A microaggression might be saying to a woman in a meeting, 'You're so articulate,' implying it is surprising she is competent.

What is ingroup bias?

Ingroup bias is the tendency to favor one's own group over others, which can lead to biased responses and beliefs.

Example: A student might think their school sports team is the best simply because they attend that school, ignoring evidence of other teams' achievements.

What is the difference between implicit and explicit prejudice?

Implicit prejudice refers to unconscious biases that can influence behavior without awareness, while explicit prejudice involves conscious and acknowledged biases.

Example: An explicit prejudice might be a person openly stating they dislike a particular ethnic group, while an implicit prejudice might be feeling uncomfortable around that group without realizing why.

What is social dominance orientation?

Social dominance orientation is a personality variable that predicts a person's preference for inequality among groups and their desire to maintain that hierarchy.

Example: Someone with high social dominance orientation might believe that certain groups should have more power and privileges compared to others, supporting policies that benefit only those groups.

What are ways to reduce prejudice and discrimination?

Ways to reduce prejudice and discrimination include fostering proximity to outgroup members, encouraging positive interactions, providing exposure to counter-stereotypic exemplars, promoting perspective taking, and implementing laws that condemn prejudice.

Example: Organizing community events where different cultural groups come together to share their traditions can help reduce prejudice and build understanding.