essay stereotypes

113 Stereotype Essay Topics & Examples

Looking for good stereotypes to write about? Look no further! This list contains only the best themes about stereotypes in society for your college essay or project. Whether you need research questions about stereotypes, essay writing tips, or free samples, you will find them here.

❓ How to Write a Stereotype Essay: Do’s and Don’ts

🏆 best stereotype topic ideas & essay examples, 👍 good essay themes about stereotypes, 📌 most interesting stereotype topics to write about, 👍 good research topics about stereotype, ❓ research questions about stereotypes.

All people are different, which makes living without some ingrained assumptions difficult. From discrimination to mere harmless expectations, stereotyping plays a prevalent part in people’s interactions, often imposing particular behavior on them.

Thus, writing a stereotype essay is only as simple as recognizing both the every-day and the society-wide patterns of thinking, finding the connections between them, and writing them down.

• Think of a specific topic before you begin writing or outlining your paper. Do so by penning a thesis statement, which will not only help you stick to your central theme but also remove any irrelevant ideas. Since there are multitudes of stereotype essay topics, this action will help you focus your thoughts on a single issue.
• Brainstorm your problem beforehand by drafting an outline. Whether you are writing a stereotype threat essay or creating a comprehensive list of anti-female education beliefs, you should create a smooth narrative that flows with ease from one point to another. Furthermore, an outline saves you time, which you would have spent on rewriting those parts of your stereotype essay that are lacking in information or structure.
• Read sample essays. An outstanding stereotypes essay example can act as an excellent incentive to begin writing by demonstrating writing tactics and ways of presenting information to the audience. You may even uplift some of those techniques to your own work to increase the quality of your paper.
• Give your essay an eye-catching title. Stereotype essay titles should not only give the audience a glimpse of what the central theme is but also invite them to read further. The more hooks you have at the beginning of your paper, the higher the possibility of a reader going beyond the first paragraph.
• Generate a comprehensive bibliography. With the number of studies on this topic, there exists a vast amount of book and journal titles that can help you find plenty of interesting themes about stereotypes.
• Pick a broad problem. An essay has a specified word count, and your instructor will not reward writing over the set limit. Choose an issue that you are sure you can adequately cover in the specified pages, and remember to adhere to your received instructions. There is nothing worse than writing an excellent essay and losing marks for not following directions.
• Plagiarize from others’ essay examples. Copying and pasting sentences is an academic offense, as is merely rewording them, and you should avoid discrediting your hard work. Getting your paper disqualified is not worth a small increase in marks.
• Attempt to subvert every stereotype you come across. While deconstructing some issues is a noble endeavor, this work may be extensive and exhausting, as well as not the main point of your paper. Remember your thesis statement, and work in those facts that relate to it.
• Make light of your chosen problem. Just as with your title, your writing should remain respectful and academic, using only credible information and referencing trusted sources. Remember that, as with any humanities issue, stereotypes are a societal byproduct that affects living people, who deserve fair treatment.
• Skip the pre-writing stages. Doing so may lead you to write an essay, which is not only off-point but also overwhelmingly one-sided. Your paper should give adequate attention to different sides of one issue, presenting different viewpoints, studies, and academic opinions, which brainstorming helps achieve.

Need more tips? Let IvyPanda guide your writing process!

• Importance of Stereotypes in Communication People are eager to use their prior knowledge about different ethnic groups to be ready for communicating, still, the impact of stereotypes cannot be pure negative or pure positive, and this is why it is […]
• The Male Bashing Stereotype: Formal Critique All of the mistakes and lack of social molding that they show women during their youth are not the stuff that dictates the kind of men they will be in the future.
• Stereotype of Aboriginals and Alcohol in Canada Therefore, it is necessary to research whether the given prejudice has certain grounds to base on, track the measures that are being currently undertaken to eliminate the stereotype and offer other efficient ideas that will […]
• White Female Stereotypes in Media In most instances, the images that are in the media are of exceptionally slim white girls and women, and this sends a negative image to those women that have bigger bodies.
• Hoodies and the stereotype. Bad or not? The hoodie marches had a lot of racial undertones, but it is clear that the victim’s piece of clothing was the centre of attention in these campaigns.
• The “Welfare Queen” Stereotype in the US Reagan’s portrayal of these ladies was used to justify real-world policy changes and contributed to the shrinkage of the social safety net.
• Stereotypes in United Kingdom A stereotype is a common or popular belief about certain people or behaviors of certain individuals. People from different cultures have different stereotypes.
• Stereotype of a Black Female In the following paper, three stereotypes that I have faced in my life will be addressed in terms of the reasons for their formation and the mistakes that lie at the heart of these stereotypes.
• To Be Disabled: Stereotype Analysis The purpose of this paper is to examine, how the stereotype is reinforced in the world, and how disabled people experience it.
• Common Stereotypes and Reinforcing Rhetoric It is safe to assume that due to this stereotype of lies, the members of the public are not willing to listen to politicians anymore because they expect these politicians to be feeding them with […]
• Perception, Stereotype and Empathy As a result, most of the people have believed that this is the case. The purpose of this activity is to illustrate that we all have different perceptions and explore the reasons associated with this.
• High Design, Stereotype, Postmodernism What is the most complicated about the heavenly goods is that one and the same object cannot be changed in a way which would distinguish it greatly from the objects of the same kind.”Beyond a […]
• The Dynamics of Stereotype Priming and Assimilation The activation of a mental representation of a social group leads to behaviour corresponding to specific attributes of the stereotype. For priming a stereotype some researchers have held that accessibility of the information and the […]
• Traditional Stereotype of Female Characters Analysis The methodology used by the author is a first content analysis of the video games, identification of the protagonists, and then studying the effect it has on girls.
• Racism Issues: Looking and Stereotype In order to find the answer to this question, it is important to introduce the concept of ‘looking’ supporting with the writing of Sturken and Cartwright, Hall, Goodwin, and Gooding-Williams.
• Women and the Industry of the Trap Music: Empowering or Succumbing to the Stereotype? Indeed, on the further scrutiny of the problem, one will see that the issue of female DJs in the trap music domain In light of the specified argument, one may infer that abandoning the trap […]
• Stereotype of Video Games Being for Boys In the article author speaks about the problem of different video games that designed for boys and for girls. In this article author explains that gender difference in the video games is a marketing strategy […]
• Stereotype Threats and Social Psychology Pickren defines social norm as “The rules of behavior that are considered acceptable in a group or society”.to the society, it was acceptable to treat the immigrants differently from the rest of the population because […]
• Stereotype-Conductive Behavior The notion that fat people are lazy is because many of them avoid doing activities that would require them to spend a lot of energy and movement. In many cases, the speed of fat people […]
• Chinese Stereotypes Reflected in Movies The main research objective will be to: “Analyse Chinese stereotypes in movies” The specific objectives will include: To identify the various stereotypical depictions of the Chinese in movies To determine the relationship between Chinese stereotype […]
• Review of Stereotype Threat and Arousal: Effects on Women’s Math Performance The variables used in the study were gender, difficulty of the tests, and the perception of stereotype threat. The results of the data were that the implication of stereotype threat did in fact negatively affect […]
• Stereotypes in the media Media has continued to group people by their tribes and the effects of the tribal stereotype is mostly felt in the less developed world.
• Influence of activating implicit gender stereotypes in females The results revealed that the participants who were subjected to the gender based prime performed relatively poorly compared to their counterparts on the nature prime.
• “Stereotype Threat: Effects on Education” by Smith, Cary Stacy, and Li-Ching Hung In some cases, only the topic of these sources is similar to that of the article and not their subject matter.
• Stereotypes of Islam and Muslims in the West This was evident after Shadid made analyses of various publications which analyzed the threat of Islam and the Muslim community to the western countries and fashion such stereotypical messages in the realm of myth.
• How Anthropology Helps to Evaluate Stereotypes The recent study on leadership shows that women have been enlightened and they are up to take their positions in leadership.
• Towards Evaluating the Relationship Between Gender Stereotypes & Culture It is therefore the object of this paper to examine the relationship between gender stereotypes and culture with a view to elucidating how gender stereotypes, reinforced by our diverse cultural beliefs, continue to allocate roles […]
• Stereotypes people have toward Chinese Most of these studies focus on the major stereotypes held about the Chinese but forget to address the effects of these stereotypes to the Chinese students especially the ones studying in other countries.
• How contemporary toys enforce gender stereotypes in the UK Children defined some of the physical attributes of the toys.”Baby Annabell Function Doll” is a likeness of a baby in that it that it has the size and physical features of a baby.
• Stereotypes and Their Effects Three common stereotypes include the perception that Muslims are terrorists, Christians are ignorant, and that women are less intelligent than men.
• Stereotype Threat: Women’s Abilities in Math On the other hand, in study 2, they demonstrated that it is possible to reduce the performance differences when elimination of the stereotype that is descriptive of the anticipated performance is done to ensure that […]
• Gender Studies: Gender Stereotypes From what is portrayed in the media, it is possible for people to dismiss others on the basis of whether they have masculinity or are feminine.
• Gender stereotypes of superheroes The analysis is based on the number of male versus female characters, the physical characteristic of each individual character, the ability to solve a problem individually as either male or female and both males and […]
• Cross-Cultural Interaction: Prejudices and Stereotypes In this regard, the concept of stereotype also influences social categorization and information sharing in the course of cross-cultural communication. One of the most effective ways to exterminate stereotypic and linear thinking is to change […]
• Aspects of Rhetoric and Stereotype Image It is clear then, that feminists are found to be of negative stereotypes from the start. The stereotypes in this group are a complete revelation of both positive and negative image.
• African-American Students and Mathematics Achievement Gap: Stereotype or Reality? The purpose of this research is to find whether there is the evidence of the math performance gap between Black and White students and, if we find that it exists, to throw ling upon its […]
• Sex, Lies, and Stereotypes: Being Prejudiced Because of Inequalities Is Not Always Correct The exhibition under consideration, Sex, Lies and Stereotypes, is aimed to prove how unfair but still constant discrimination of people is; and several illustrative posters like Women Are Not Chicks or Oh, So That Explains […]
• Canadian Stereotypes On the cover of the novel Canadian stereotypes, there will be the image of the maple leaf bag. The image of the maple leaf bag will represent both the flag and the history of the […]
• Learning to Stereotype: The Lifelong Romance One of the most enchanting novels in the American literature, the piece by Cahan offers a plunge into the world of the usual.
• Stereotypes of American Citizens McAndrew and Akande lament that in the United States, African Americans are the most stereotyped due to racial discrimination and the dark history of slavery.
• Gender Stereotypes on Television Gender stereotyping in television commercials is a topic that has generated a huge debate and it is an important topic to explore to find out how gender roles in voice-overs TV commercials and the type […]
• The Stereotype Of A Smart High Achieving Asian American
• Racial Stereotyping : A Stereotype, As Defined By The Merriam
• Prejudice, Stereotype, Discrimination, and In-Group Vs. Outgroup
• The Sports Media and the Marketing Advertisers a Hypermasculine Stereotype
• Think like a Monkey: Borrowing from Animal Social Dynamics to Reduce Stereotype Threat
• The Metamorphosis Of The Schemer Stereotype
• How Stereotype Threat May Cause Poor Performance In Women
• Women Are Worse Drivers than Men Stereotype
• What Is The Function Of Racist Stereotype In Blackface Minstrelsy
• How Race And Stereotype Can Affect Justice Being Served
• The Imposition of Gender Stereotype by Society Today
• Women’s Oppression In Hurston’s “Sweat”: The Stereotype Of Women’s Role In Society
• Understanding the Gender Stereotype of the Macho-Man Myth
• Use Of A Stereotype Cue On The Perceived Level Of Mathematics
• The Stereotype of Women in a Patriarchal Society
• The Stereotype of Female Taming in Shakespeare’s Time in the Taming of the Shrew
• The Stereotype of the Dumb Blonde in Legally Blonde, a Movie by Robert Luketic
• Americanization : The Creation Of The Indian Stereotype
• The Impact of Stereotype Threat on Age Differences in Memory Performance
• Sexually Driven Media Advertisements Objectify And Stereotype
• Advantage and Disadvantage of Fitting Into the Stereotype
• An Analysis of the Stereotype of Masculinity in the Early 1800s
• Analyzing How a Conventional or Stereotype Character Functions to Achieve Authors Purposes
• Perspective and Stereotype in Western Detective Novels
• The Stereotype Of Criminally Disposed People In Poverty
• Women ‘s Portrayal Of Women Essay – Brand, Marketing, Stereotype, Gen
• Feminine Autonomy and Erasing the Male Stereotype in Juno and the Paycoc
• The History of Chief Illiniwek as a University of Illinois Mascot and Racist Stereotype
• Women ‘s Role For Society ‘s Stereotype Towards Women
• Why Stereotype Based on Blood Type Genotype or Body Type?
• Do Television Advertisements Stereotype the Roles of Men and Women in the Society
• An Analysis of Stereotype Italian American in Sopranos the Cable Show in United States
• Women: Does Stereotype Threat Affect Their Ability?
• American Cheerleader: The Icon, The Stereotype, And The Truth
• Alice Sebold And The Stranger Stereotype
• An Analysis of the Negative Stereotype of the Jewish Race in Jewbird and The Last Mohican
• The Stereotype African Characters in Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
• The Impact Of The Violent African American Stereotype In Rap Music
• The Teenage Driver Stereotype in Society
• Breaking the Stereotype: Why Urban Aboriginals Score Highly on Happiness Measures
• An Analysis of the Macho-Men Stereotype Plaguing Today’s Man
• The Problems of the Aboriginal People and the Average Media Stereotype
• How Racialized Stereotypes Determine a Community’s Value?
• What Is a Cultural Stereotype?
• How Advertising Reinforces Gender Stereotypes?
• How Stereotypes for Women Came to Be?
• How Do Contemporary Toys Enforce Gender Stereotypes?
• What Are Social Stereotypes?
• Are Continuum Beliefs About Psychotic Symptoms Associated With Stereotypes About Schizophrenia?
• How Do Hispanic Bilinguals’ Cultural Stereotypes Shape Advertising Persuasiveness?
• How Do Racialized Stereotypes Determine a Community’s Value?
• How Does Drag Affect Stereotypes About Gay Men?
• How Refugee’s Stereotypes Toward Host Society Members Predict Acculturation Orientations?
• Why Are Female Stereotypes in Advertising Still Effective?
• Can Gender Quotas Break Down Negative Stereotypes?
• Does Mainstream Media Have a Duty to Challenge Gender Stereotypes?
• How Have Gender Stereotypes Always Been a Part of Society?
• How Do Attitudes and Stereotypes Develop?
• Are Sexist Attitudes and Gender Stereotypes Linked?
• Are Gender Stereotypes Perpetuated in Children’s Magazines?
• What Are Gender Stereotypes?
• How Gender Stereotypes Warp Our View of Depression?
• How Are Class Stereotypes Maintained in the Press?
• How Can Bob Dylan and Wolf Biermann Be Employed to Make Students Aware of Stereotypes and Prejudice?
• How Do Racial Stereotypes Affect Society?
• How Did Photography Reflect the Values and Stereotypes That Underlay European Colonialism?
• How Can Stereotypes Contribute to Inequality?
• What Makes People Have Certain Stereotypes?
• How Can Stereotypes Negatively Affect Listening?
• Why Are Stereotypes Dangerous and What Can Be Done to Reduce Them?
• How Are Stereotypes Used to Racially Profile People?
• How American Minorities Are Stereotypes in American Drama Series?
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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Essay on Stereotypes

Stereotypes are the biggest problem in our society. They criticize people and puts label on them about how they must act accordingly to their religion, personality, gender, dressing sense, race and many others. People encounter stereotypes at least once in their life, it depends on a person’s perspective as sometimes people end up stereotyping other people unconsciously. Stereotyping is not always negative, sometime there is a positive perspective to it, for example, Black people are stereotyped in a positive perspective as they are super athletic with beautiful features and great body structures.

Stereotyping is so common these days that people do it without even knowing it, people always have ideas about how a particular race is in certain ways. Black people are stereotyped as great athletes, Pakistani people as terrorists and Hispanics as drug dealers, crazy or loud. We also see stereotyping in schools through gender, either that girls are good at reading and writing and boys are good at sports or boys do not end up as nurses but girls do. Students stick to these stereotyping, even if someone tries to be different he/she ends up getting bullied by their fellows.

The most common stereotype to this day is that women can never be as strong as men or can never be equal to them. These stereotypes affect every person immensely. People should never judge a person based on what they think that person should act like or be like rather they should encourage people or motivate them to be what they want to be, women can also be good at sports, they can also be stronger than men, and they can be good drivers too. Stereotyping can do some serious damage to a person’s self-esteem and that may affect their social lives, emotions, interaction with people and dreams.

People get so criticized for everything they do, that they do not want to meet new people, or want to go outside that they may get criticized for the way they walk, dress or talk. People even gets criticized for their music taste, this is what our society has become. People are afraid to show their true selves to the world now, worrying that they won’t be accepted for who they really are and tries to act as other people want them to be.

They should just leave these types of people behind and be what they want themselves to be. There once was a black boy who was criticized everyday for his color, this should have created some psychological pressure on a kid but he was so proud of his color and race that he never let them get to him, therefore, people should be proud of who they are, ignore what people think of them and be unique in their own way.

Instead of focusing on other people’s faults and mistakes, we should motivate them for being unique from other people. Remove the stereotypes from our lives and start to notice good things about every individual person.

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152 Stereotypes Essay Topics: Impressive Ideas List

Many students struggle to choose stereotypes essay topics. That’s because teachers and professors expect them to write about unique titles. However, stereotype covers many aspects of human life because it’s oversimplified, fixed, and widely held idea or image of a person or thing.

Since humans are different, living without assumptions becomes difficult. While some expectations are harmless, others lead to discrimination. Overall, stereotyping plays an influential role in people’s interactions. Some individuals impose specific behaviors on others without sufficient evidence.

Therefore, choosing stereotype topics for essays requires a careful understanding of this concept. Also, you must learn to recognize stereotypes in society-wide thinking patterns and everyday life to know what the educator expects you to write about in your paper. This article explains what stereotype is while listing 150-plus topics for stereotype essays. It’s a helpful article because it provides knowledge and ideas to students struggling to pick stereotype topics for their papers.

What Is a Stereotype?

A stereotype is a fixed idea several people have about a group or a thing that is partly true or untrue. Social psychologists define stereotype as an over-generalized, fixed belief about a specific class or group of people. When people stereotype others, they infer that people have a wide range of abilities and characteristics that others assume every member of that particular group possesses.

Educators ask students to write about stereotypes because it’s a prolific issue in society. Apart from being a preconceived idea about a specific group, a stereotype is a degree of people’s expectations for individuals in that class. And these expectations are centered on a particular belief, attitude, and personality.

Stereotypes are often inaccurate, and they create misconceptions about a community. While they sometimes help people understand a group, its heritage, and culture, stereotypes are over-generalized. And this over-generalization can harm some individuals in a group because people aren’t entirely identical to those preconceived ideas.

How To Write Good Essay On Stereotypes

Has your college or university lecturer assigned you a stereotype essay? If so, you want to write a good essay and score the top grade in your class. These steps will help you write a winning essay about stereotypes.

Choose an interesting topic : Selecting a topic for a stereotype essay might seem easy for some learners. However, it requires a careful understanding of stereotypes and what the educator expects to read in your paper. Outline your essay : Use the essay prompt to outline your paper. Your outline should highlight where your thesis statement will go and the content to include in your stereotype essay introduction, body, and conclusion. Brainstorm for ideas : Once you have an outline, brainstorm for the issues to write about in your paper. That way, you will save the time you spend rewriting and reorganizing some parts of your paper. Read stereotype essay samples : If you have the time, read good samples of stereotype essays before writing. That way, you will know how the educator expects you to organize and present information. Research : Take your time researching and gathering information for your essay. Your research should gather relevant examples and evidence to support your arguments. Write the essay : Follow your outline to write the paper using the information you gathered in your research. Present your argument with supporting evidence for every point you make in the body section. Conclude your essay : Wrap up your piece, summarizing your main points with unique words. Don’t introduce anything new in the conclusion. Write the bibliography : Include a reference for all the information sources, including journal articles and books that you used to research your topic. Proofread your essay : Read through the paper, eliminating all typos, spelling, and factual errors.

Some stereotypes are highly controversial. Therefore, present information that won’t offend your readers if you opt to write about such topics. If you don’t want to face those doubts alone, english essay writers from our team will be glad to solve this problem for you.

The Best Stereotype Essay Topics

Once you’ve known how to write a stereotype essay, you may want the best topics for your paper. This list has the best ideas to consider for a stereotype essay.

• A formal critique for the men bashing stereotype
• How society has traditionally stereotyped female characters
• Racism issues- Stereotypes and looks
• The trap music and women- Is it succumbing to this stereotype or empowering females?
• How video games depict stereotypes for boys
• Alcohol in Canada and aboriginals stereotype
• How movies reflect the Chinese stereotypes
• How the media propagate white women stereotypes
• Reviewing stereotypes- Arousal and treat
• The female’s math performance stereotype- What are the effects?
• How the media presents different stereotypes
• Do the media promote stereotyping?
• How activating gender stereotypes influence females
• Stereotype threat- How does it affect a person’s education?
• How television perpetuates gender stereotypes
• The American citizens’ stereotypes
• Is learning to stereotype others a lifelong process?
• Describe the Canadian stereotypes
• Stereotypes, lies, and sex- Is being prejudiced due to inequalities correct?
• Is the mathematics achievement gap a reality or stereotype for African American students?
• Stereotype image and rhetoric aspects
• Stereotypes and culture- What’s the correlation?
• Superheroes and gender stereotypes
• Are gender stereotypes relevant in gender studies?
• The stereotype and hoodies- Is it good or bad?
• What is a stereotype threat?
• Do modern toys perpetuate gender stereotypes?
• Are stereotypes significant in communication?
• What stereotypes do people have towards the Chinese?
• Evaluating culture and gender stereotypes- What’s the relationship?
• Using anthropology to evaluate stereotypes
• Stereotypes of Muslims and Islam in the west

Pick any of these topics if you want to research and write about something your teacher will find interesting to read.

Hot Topic Ideas For An Essay On Stereotype

Maybe you’re looking for a hot topic to research and write about in your stereotype essay. In that case, consider these ideas.

• Evaluating workplace gender stereotypes
• Prejudices and stereotypes within the human resource sector
• Racial stereotypes, intersectionality, and identity
• Family gender stereotypes- Do they exist?
• Gender stereotypes and race in literature
• Sociology- The influence of stereotypes
• Stereotypes and rhetoric
• African-Americans prejudices and stereotypes
• Fighting gender stereotypes- Which methods are the best?
• Misunderstanding and gender stereotypes- What’s the difference?
• Do the media develop stereotypes about minorities in society?
• Cultural perspectives and aging stereotypes
• Gender roles distribution and women stereotypes
• How women perceive the long-existing gender stereotypes
• How Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight film presents stereotypes
• How gender stereotypes affect mental health and career
• How families perpetuate gender stereotypes
• Illness and health in the community- What’s the role of stereotypes?
• How families develop gender stereotypes
• How children develop gender stereotypes
• Evaluating gender stereotypes in eastern and western cultures
• How the media perpetuate Arab stereotypes
• Relationship development and dating stereotypes

Choose and write about any of these ideas if looking for a hot topic. However, consult some information sources to write an informative essay.

Interesting Stereotype Paper Topics

Do you want to write an essay on an exciting stereotype topic? If so, consider the following exciting ideas.

• Stereotype and objectivity in sexual media advertisements
• How stereotype threat affects age differences in terms of memory performance
• Americanization- The Indian stereotype creation
• Investigating stereotype in Robert Luketic’s Dumb Blonde in Legally Blonde film
• The Female Taming stereotype in time in The Taming of the Shew by Shakespeare
• Women stereotype in a Patriarchal society
• Using stereotype cues in the perceived mathematics level
• Understanding the Macho-Man Myth’s gender stereotype
• Hurston’s Sweat- How stereotypes influence women’s role
• Gender stereotype imposition by modern society
• How stereotype and race affect justice
• Racist stereotype- What is its function in Blackface Minstrelsy?
• Females are worse drivers than males- Is it a stereotype?
• Can Stereotype threat affect women’s performance?
• The schemer stereotype- Understanding its metamorphosis
• Thinking like a monkey- Analysis of the Animal Social Dynamics in reducing stereotype threat
• Marketing advertisers and sports media- A Hyper masculine stereotype
• Stereotype, discrimination, prejudice and Out-group vs. in-group
• Racial stereotyping- How Merriam define a stereotype
• A high-achieving Asian-American stereotype

Choose and develop any of such ideas as your essay topic idea. However, take your time investigating various sources to write a winning paper.

Good Topics For Essays About Stereotyping

A good topic is easy to research and write about without compromising your grade. Consider these ideas for a good essay topic.

• The average media stereotype and the aboriginal people’s problems
• Macho-Men stereotype plaguing in modern men- A detailed analysis
• Ending the stereotype- Aboriginals in urban areas have the highest happiness score
• How does society perpetuate the teenage driver stereotype?
• How does the violent African-American stereotype affect rap music?
• Joseph Conrad’s African Characters in the Heart of Darkness- Analyzing stereotype
• The adverse stereotype of the Jewbird’s Jewish race and the Last Mohican
• The stranger stereotype and Alice Sebold
• Pros and cons of fitting into a stereotype
• Analyzing the masculinity stereotype in the early 1800s
• Analysis of stereotype and conventional character roles in achieving the author’s purposes
• Stereotype and perspective in detective novels
• Criminality stereotype and its impact on poverty
• Women’s depiction of Women Essay- Marketing, brand stereotype, and Gen
• Erasing male stereotype and feminine autonomy in the Paycoc and Juno
• The Chief Illiniwek history- A Racist stereotype and university of Illinois Mascot
• Women’s role and society’s stereotypes
• Body type or blood type genotype- Are they the basis of stereotypes?
• Are television ads stereotyping men and women’s roles in society?
• Stereotype Italian-American in the Cable Show, Sopranos, in the United States
• How stereotype threat impacts women’s ability
• American cheerleader- The stereotype, the icon, and the truth

Choose and work on any of these ideas to write an excellent essay about stereotypes. However, some of these ideas require extensive research and analysis before writing.

Social And Gender Stereotype Essay Topics

Do you want to write a paper about gender and stereotype? If so, consider these ideas for your stereotype essay.

• Investigating the correlation between employment and gender stereotypes
• Gender stereotypes in academic and family settings
• Dominant male stereotypes
• Reasons to research gender stereotypes
• Gender stereotypes- Data analysis
• Gender stereotypes and data presentation
• The U.S. women and gender stereotypes
• How the U.S. media presents Latinos gender stereotypes, culture, and values
• Social psychology- Stereotypes and prejudice
• Stereotype threat among African-Americans
• Stereotypes and cultural differences in Jim Jarmusch’s Coffee and Cigarettes
• Is stereotype discrimination and bias?
• Adolescents workmates- Best practices and stereotypes
• Seeing Africa- How to destroy stereotypes
• What are the roots of African-American stereotypes?
• Stereotypes and ethnocentrism in Crash, the movie
• Ortiz Cofer’s Essay- Investigating stereotypes
• Mass media- How stereotypes affect people
• The racial and ethnic stereotypes in the American literature and media
• Stereotypes and rhetoric in modern society
• Subject-informal logic- Stereotypes and rhetoric
• Can music reinforce stereotypes?
• Cross-cultural stereotypes and competence

These ideas are suitable for an essay on gender and social stereotypes. However, research your topic extensively before writing.

Easy Stereotype Essay Ideas

Maybe you need an easy topic for your stereotype paper. If so, pick any of these ideas for your essay on stereotypes.

• How cultural diversity affects stereotypes
• Positive and negative impacts of ethnic and racial stereotypes
• How the women’s rights movement changed stereotypes and gender roles
• How gender stereotypes affect children
• Stereotypes that Americans hold before visiting the third world
• How gender stereotypes affect society
• Classroom gender stereotypes
• Gender stereotypes and gender labeling
• Can children grow without gender stereotypes?
• How stereotypes affect community colleges
• Revealing stereotypes among immigrants in schools
• How stereotypes affect Haitians in the U.S.
• The Roman empire and racial stereotypes
• How racial stereotype impacts everyday life
• Gender and sexism stereotypes in the P.R. sector
• Stereotypes about the American culture
• Common stereotypes and misconceptions about lesbians and gays
• Stereotypes and stigma of mental illness
• What causes persistent ethnic and racial stereotypes?
• Stereotypes that Black-American teenagers face
• How television commercials perpetuate gender stereotypes
• The role of native Americans’ stereotypes and Native people’s dominance
• Are stereotypes dangerous- How can society reduce them?
• Menstruation stereotypes- Why society should abandon them
• Clothing and stereotypes
• The negative stereotype that the community has towards a bisexual lifestyle
• How stereotypes differ from prejudices
• How stereotypes relate to groups’ dynamics
• The superhero impact- Stereotypes and idealism in comic books
• Stereotyping students- How to improve academic performance via stereotypes
• How socialization relates to gender stereotypes
• Social stereotypes- Are they detrimental, beneficial, or neutral?

Whether you choose cliché essay topics or the latest stereotypes, research your topic extensively to write a winning paper.

Professional Essay Help For Your Rescue

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11.3: Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination

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The terms stereotype, prejudice, discrimination, and racism are often used interchangeably in everyday conversation. Let us explore the differences between these concepts. Stereotypes are oversimplified generalizations about groups of people. Stereotypes can be based on race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation—almost any characteristic. They may be positive (usually about one’s own group, such as when women suggest they are less likely to complain about physical pain) but are often negative (usually toward other groups, such as when members of a dominant racial group suggest that a subordinate racial group is stupid or lazy). In either case, the stereotype is a generalization that doesn’t take individual differences into account.

Where do stereotypes come from? In fact new stereotypes are rarely created; rather, they are recycled from subordinate groups that have assimilated into society and are reused to describe newly subordinate groups. For example, many stereotypes that are currently used to characterize black people were used earlier in American history to characterize Irish and Eastern European immigrants.

Prejudice and Racism

Prejudice refers to the beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and attitudes someone holds about a group. A prejudice is not based on experience; instead, it is a prejudgment, originating outside actual experience. A 1970 documentary called Eye of the Storm illustrates the way in which prejudice develops, by showing how defining one category of people as superior (children with blue eyes) results in prejudice against people who are not part of the favored category.

While prejudice is not necessarily specific to race, racism is a stronger type of prejudice used to justify the belief that one racial category is somehow superior or inferior to others; it is also a set of practices used by a racial majority to disadvantage a racial minority. The Ku Klux Klan is an example of a racist organization; its members' belief in white supremacy has encouraged over a century of hate crime and hate speech.

Institutional racism refers to the way in which racism is embedded in the fabric of society. For example, the disproportionate number of black men arrested, charged, and convicted of crimes may reflect racial profiling, a form of institutional racism.

Colorism is another kind of prejudice, in which someone believes one type of skin tone is superior or inferior to another within a racial group. Studies suggest that darker skinned African Americans experience more discrimination than lighter skinned African Americans (Herring, Keith, and Horton 2004; Klonoff and Landrine 2000). For example, if a white employer believes a black employee with a darker skin tone is less capable than a black employer with lighter skin tone, that is colorism. At least one study suggested the colorism affected racial socialization, with darker-skinned black male adolescents receiving more warnings about the danger of interacting with members of other racial groups than did lighter-skinned black male adolescents (Landor et al. 2013).

Discrimination

While prejudice refers to biased thinking, discrimination consists of actions against a group of people. Discrimination can be based on age, religion, health, and other indicators; race-based laws against discrimination strive to address this set of social problems.

Discrimination based on race or ethnicity can take many forms, from unfair housing practices to biased hiring systems. Overt discrimination has long been part of U.S. history. In the late nineteenth century, it was not uncommon for business owners to hang signs that read, "Help Wanted: No Irish Need Apply." And southern Jim Crow laws, with their "Whites Only" signs, exemplified overt discrimination that is not tolerated today.

However, we cannot erase discrimination from our culture just by enacting laws to abolish it. Even if a magic pill managed to eradicate racism from each individual's psyche, society itself would maintain it. Sociologist Émile Durkheim calls racism a social fact, meaning that it does not require the action of individuals to continue. The reasons for this are complex and relate to the educational, criminal, economic, and political systems that exist in our society.

For example, when a newspaper identifies by race individuals accused of a crime, it may enhance stereotypes of a certain minority. Another example of racist practices is racial steering, in which real estate agents direct prospective homeowners toward or away from certain neighborhoods based on their race. Racist attitudes and beliefs are often more insidious and harder to pin down than specific racist practices.

Prejudice and discrimination can overlap and intersect in many ways. To illustrate, here are four examples of how prejudice and discrimination can occur. Unprejudiced nondiscriminators are open-minded, tolerant, and accepting individuals. Unprejudiced discriminators might be those who unthinkingly practice sexism in their workplace by not considering females for certain positions that have traditionally been held by men. Prejudiced nondiscriminators are those who hold racist beliefs but don't act on them, such as a racist store owner who serves minority customers. Prejudiced discriminators include those who actively make disparaging remarks about others or who perpetuate hate crimes.

Discrimination also manifests in different ways. The scenarios above are examples of individual discrimination, but other types exist. Institutional discrimination occurs when a societal system has developed with embedded disenfranchisement of a group, such as the U.S. military's historical nonacceptance of minority sexualities (the "don't ask, don't tell" policy reflected this norm).

Institutional discrimination can also include the promotion of a group's status, such in the case of white privilege, which is the benefits people receive simply by being part of the dominant group.

While most white people are willing to admit that nonwhite people live with a set of disadvantages due to the color of their skin, very few are willing to acknowledge the benefits they receive.

Racial Tensions in the United States

The death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO on August 9, 2014 illustrates racial tensions in the United States as well as the overlap between prejudice, discrimination, and institutional racism. On that day, Brown, a young unarmed black man, was killed by a white police officer named Darren Wilson. During the incident, Wilson directed Brown and his friend to walk on the sidewalk instead of in the street. While eyewitness accounts vary, they agree that an altercation occurred between Wilson and Brown. Wilson’s version has him shooting Brown in self-defense after Brown assaulted him, while Dorian Johnson, a friend of Brown also present at the time, claimed that Brown first ran away, then turned with his hands in the air to surrender, after which Johnson shot him repeatedly (Nobles and Bosman 2014). Three autopsies independently confirmed that Brown was shot six times (Lowery and Fears 2014).

The shooting focused attention on a number of race-related tensions in the United States. First, members of the predominantly black community viewed Brown’s death as the result of a white police officer racially profiling a black man (Nobles and Bosman 2014). In the days after, it was revealed that only three members of the town’s fifty-three-member police force were black (Nobles and Bosman 2014). The national dialogue shifted during the next few weeks, with some commentators pointing to a nationwidesedimentation of racial inequality and identifying redlining in Ferguson as a cause of the unbalanced racial composition in the community, in local political establishments, and in the police force (Bouie 2014). Redlining is the practice of routinely refusing mortgages for households and businesses located in predominately minority communities, while sedimentation of racial inequality describes the intergenerational impact of both practical and legalized racism that limits the abilities of black people to accumulate wealth.

Ferguson’s racial imbalance may explain in part why, even though in 2010 only about 63 percent of its population was black, in 2013 blacks were detained in 86 percent of stops, 92 percent of searches, and 93 percent of arrests (Missouri Attorney General’s Office 2014). In addition, de facto segregation in Ferguson’s schools, a race-based wealth gap, urban sprawl, and a black unemployment rate three times that of the white unemployment rate worsened existing racial tensions in Ferguson while also reflecting nationwide racial inequalities (Bouie 2014).

Multiple Identities

Golfer Tiger Woods has Chinese, Thai, African American, Native American, and Dutch heritage. Individuals with multiple ethnic backgrounds are becoming more common. (Photo courtesy of familymwr/flickr)

Prior to the twentieth century, racial intermarriage (referred to as miscegenation) was extremely rare, and in many places, illegal. In the later part of the twentieth century and in the twenty-first century, as Figure shows, attitudes have changed for the better. While the sexual subordination of slaves did result in children of mixed race, these children were usually considered black, and therefore, property. There was no concept of multiple racial identities with the possible exception of the Creole. Creole society developed in the port city of New Orleans, where a mixed-race culture grew from French and African inhabitants. Unlike in other parts of the country, “Creoles of color” had greater social, economic, and educational opportunities than most African Americans.

Increasingly during the modern era, the removal of miscegenation laws and a trend toward equal rights and legal protection against racism have steadily reduced the social stigma attached to racial exogamy (exogamy refers to marriage outside a person’s core social unit). It is now common for the children of racially mixed parents to acknowledge and celebrate their various ethnic identities. Golfer Tiger Woods, for instance, has Chinese, Thai, African American, Native American, and Dutch heritage; he jokingly refers to his ethnicity as “Cablinasian,” a term he coined to combine several of his ethnic backgrounds. While this is the trend, it is not yet evident in all aspects of our society. For example, the U.S. Census only recently added additional categories for people to identify themselves, such as non-white Hispanic. A growing number of people chose multiple races to describe themselves on the 2010 Census, paving the way for the 2020 Census to provide yet more choices.

THE CONFEDERATE FLAG VS. THE FIRST AMENDMENT

To some, the Confederate flag is a symbol of pride in Southern history. To others, it is a grim reminder of a degrading period of the United States’ past. (Photo courtesy of Eyeliam/flickr)

In January 2006, two girls walked into Burleson High School in Texas carrying purses that displayed large images of Confederate flags. School administrators told the girls that they were in violation of the dress code, which prohibited apparel with inappropriate symbolism or clothing that discriminated based on race. To stay in school, they’d have to have someone pick up their purses or leave them in the office. The girls chose to go home for the day but then challenged the school’s decision, appealing first to the principal, then to the district superintendent, then to the U.S. District Court, and finally to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Why did the school ban the purses, and why did it stand behind that ban, even when being sued? Why did the girls, identified anonymously in court documents as A.M. and A.T., pursue such strong legal measures for their right to carry the purses? The issue, of course, is not the purses: it is the Confederate flag that adorns them. The parties in this case join a long line of people and institutions that have fought for their right to display it, saying such a display is covered by the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech. In the end, the court sided with the district and noted that the Confederate flag carried symbolism significant enough to disrupt normal school activities.

While many young people in the United States like to believe that racism is mostly in the country’s past, this case illustrates how racism and discrimination are quite alive today. If the Confederate flag is synonymous with slavery, is there any place for its display in modern society? Those who fight for their right to display the flag say such a display should be covered by the First Amendment: the right to free speech. But others say the flag is equivalent to hate speech. Do you think that displaying the Confederate flag should considered free speech or hate speech?

Stereotypes are oversimplified ideas about groups of people. Prejudice refers to thoughts and feelings, while discrimination refers to actions. Racism refers to the belief that one race is inherently superior or inferior to other races.

Section Quiz

• all of the above
• Biased thoughts against an individual or group
• Biased actions against an individual or group
• Belief that a race different from yours is inferior
• Another word for stereotyping
• It needs to be eradicated by laws.
• It is like a magic pill.
• It does not need the actions of individuals to continue.
• None of the above

Short Answer

• How do redlining and racial steering contribute to institutionalized racism?
• Give an example of stereotyping that you see in everyday life. Explain what would need to happen for this to be eliminated.

Further Research

How far should First Amendment rights extend? Read more about the subject at the First Amendment Center:openstaxcollege.org/l/first_amendment_center

Learn more about institutional racism at www.splcenter.org

Learn more about how prejudice develops by watching the short documentary “Eye of the Storm”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjSHOaugO-0

Bouie, Jamelle. (August 19, 2014). "Why the Fires in Ferguson Won't End Soon." Slate.com. N.p., Retrieved October 9, 2014 (www.slate.com/articles/news_a...mmunity.2.html)

Herring, C., V. M. Keith, and H.D. Horton. 2004. Skin Deep: How Race and Complexion Matter in the “Color-Blind” Era (Ed.), Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press.

Hudson, David L. 2009. “Students Lose Confederate-Flag Purse Case in 5th Circuit.” Retrieved December 7, 2011 (www.firstamendmentcenter.org/...in-5th-circuit).

Klonoff, E., and H. Landrine. 2000. “Is Skin Color a Marker for Racial Discrimination? Explaining the Skin Color-Hypertension Relationship.” Journal of Behavioral Medicine . 23: 329–338.

Landor, Antoinette M., Leslie Gordon Simons, Ronald L. Simons, Gene H. Brody, Chalandra M. Bryant, Frederick X. Gibbons, Ellen M. Granberg, and Janet N. Melby. 2013. "Exploring the impact of skin tone on family dynamics and race-related outcomes." Journal Of Family Psychology . 27 (5): 817-826.

Lowery, Wesley and Darryl Fears. (August 31, 2014). "Michael Brown and Dorian Johnson, the friend who witnessed his shooting". The Washington Post . Retrieved October 9 , 2014. (www.washingtonpost.com/politi...093_story.html)

McIntosh, Peggy. 1988. “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.” White Privilege and Male Privilege: A Personal Account of Coming to See Correspondences Through Work in Women’s Studies . Wellesley, MA: Wellesley College Center for Research on Women.

Missouri Attorney General’s Office. (n.d.) "Racial Profiling Report." N.p. Retrieved October 9, 2014 (ago.mo.gov/VehicleStops/2013/reports/161.pdf).

Nobles, Frances, and Julie Bosman. (August 17, 2014). "Autopsy Shows Michael Brown Was Struck at Least Six Times." The New York Times . Retrieved October 9, 2014 (www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us...t-6-times.html)

Yerevanci. 2013. "Public Opinion of Interracial Marriage in the United States." Wikimedia Commons . Retrieved December 23, 2014 (commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...ted_States.png).

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By Heidi Burgess

Originally published October 2003.  "Current Implications" added in June, 2017.

For shorter summaries of the key ideas, see our Things YOU Can Do To Help Post   Break Down Negative Stereotypes  and the Infographic  Infographic: Give People a Chance to Surprise You .

Current Implications

Stereotypes, particularly negative characterizations are extremely prevalent and problematic in U.S. politics and culture these days.  The left still sees the right as  corrupt, stupid, selfish, racist, sexist, homophobes.  The right likewise paints the left as corrupt, stupid, selfish, elitist, intolerant "takers" (as opposed to "makers.")  More...

What Stereotypes Are

Stereotypes (or "characterizations") are generalizations or assumptions that people make about the characteristics of all members of a group, based on an image (often wrong) about what people in that group are like. For example, one study of stereotypes revealed that Americans are generally considered to be friendly, generous, and tolerant, but also arrogant, impatient, and domineering. Asians, on the other hand, are expected to be shrewd and alert, but reserved. Clearly, not all Americans are friendly and generous; and not all Asians are reserved. But according to this study, others commonly perceive them this way.[1]

Why Stereotypes Matter

Stereotyping is especially prevalent -- and problematic -- in conflicts. Groups tend to define themselves according to who they are and who they are not . And "others," especially "enemies" or "opponents" are often viewed in very negative ways. The opponent is expected to be aggressive, self-serving, and deceitful, for example, while people in one's own group are seen in generally positive ways. Similarly, if problems occur, blame is often placed on "the enemy," while one's own contribution to the problem is ignored. For example, problems may be attributed to the opponent's lack of cooperativeness, not one's own; or the enemy's aggressiveness, not their fear of one's own aggressive stance. Even similarities between parties can be viewed differently: one's own competitiveness may be seen in a positive light as "tough, effective negotiating," while the opponent's competitive actions are seen as "hostile and deceptive."

Such stereotypes tend to be self-perpetuating. If one side assumes the other side is deceitful and aggressive, they will tend to respond deceitfully and aggressively themselves. The opponent will then develop a similar image of the first party and respond deceptively, thus confirming the initial stereotype. The stereotypes may even grow worse, as communication shuts down and escalation heightens emotions and tension.

The Positive Side of Stereotypes

Although stereotypes generally have negative implications, they aren't necessarily negative. Stereotypes are basically generalizations that are made about groups. Such generalizations are necessary: in order to be able to interact effectively, we must have some idea of what people are likely to be like, which behaviors will be considered acceptable, and which not.

For example, elsewhere in this system there is an essay about high-context and low-context cultures. People in low-context cultures are said to be more individualistic, their communication more overt, depending less on context and shared understandings. High-context cultures are more group-oriented. Their communication is more contextually based, depending more on shared understandings and inferences.

Such generalizations are, in essence, stereotypes. They allow us to put people into a category, according to the group they belong to, and make inferences about how they will behave based on that grouping. There will still be differences between individuals from one culture, and with the same individual in different situations. But the stereotype is reasonably accurate, so it is useful. Stereotypes are only a problem when they are inaccurate, especially when those inaccuracies are negative and hostile.

What Can Be Done to Deal with Negative Stereotypes:

The key to reversing negative stereotypes is to contradict them, in direct interactions between people, in the media, and through education.

Between Individuals . Once people get to know a person from "the other side," they often will determine that the other is not nearly as bad as they originally had assumed. (Though sometimes they might find out they are just as bad -- or even worse!)

More often, however, people really are much more reasonable than their stereotypes would suggest. In that case, getting to know people personally helps to break down negative images. This is especially true when people determine that they actually have things in common with people from the other side. Such things can range from enjoying the same music, hobbies, or sports, to having the same worries about children or aging parents.

Even when people learn that they share fear or sadness, they can begin to understand each other more. When they come to understand that the other is afraid of being hurt, or losing a loved one in war, just as they are, that brings people together. Such shared emotions make people seem human, while stereotypes typically " dehumanize " people. Likewise, shared emotions make empathy possible, which opens the door to new forms of interaction and trust building , at least among the individuals involved.

Depending on the context and other interactions, the image of the group as a whole may become more positive as well. (At other times, people rationalize that their one new acquaintance is "not like the others.") But even learning that one person can deviate from the stereotype is a start. The challenge then is to expand such transformative experiences beyond the individuals involved to larger groups, communities, and eventually whole societies.

Developing such mutual understanding is the goal of many intervention efforts in war-torn areas, and in places rocked by social unrest. Dialogue groups and problem-solving workshops are two common ways of doing this. So are joint projects such as war-reconstruction efforts, children's programs, recreational programs, medical programs -- any kind of program that brings individuals from opposing groups together in a cooperative venture. Although they have additional goals beyond the breaking of stereotypes, working together cooperatively can do much to break down negative images people hold of the "enemy."

In the Media. The media also plays an important role in both perpetuating and in breaking down stereotypes. If they characterize particular groups of people in certain ways, their viewers (or readers) are likely to do the same. So if a movie -- or the motion picture industry in general -- characterizes a group of people negatively, they are likely to be perpetuating negative stereotypes and making conflicts worse. If they emphasize the positive aspects of groups that contradict prevalent stereotypes, they can have a significant role in building mutual understanding.

In Education. Educational institutions and teaching materials also have the opportunity to affect stereotypes, and hence influence inter-group relations. Efforts to teach about different cultures, and the history of different racial or ethnic groups can help build inter-group understanding if it is done in an effective and sympathetic way.

However, the opposite is also true. If textbooks teach about the treachery and villainous actions of the enemy, this, obviously, will only perpetuate stereotypes from one generation to the next, entrenching the conflict for many years to come. This does not mean that history should be ignored. The holocaust, for example, did occur and must be acknowledged. But it can be acknowledged as a grave mistake that is now recognized as a mistake, rather than painted as "typical" or "acceptable" behavior.

What Individuals Can Do to Breakdown Negative Stereotypes

Changing stereotypes is largely the job of individuals. Each of us should examine the assumptions that we make about others and ask ourselves where those assumptions come from. Upon what information are they based? Are they based on personal experiences with others? In what context? Might "the other" be different in different situations? Are your assumptions based on things you have heard from others? Learned from the TV or movies? Learned in school? Is it possible that some of your negative images are wrong -- at least for some people?

In most cases, the answer to that last question is likely to be "yes." Even in the most escalated conflicts, not all of the "enemy" is as vicious and immutable as they are often assumed to be. Most groups have moderates and extremists , people who are willing to listen and work with the other side, and those who are not. Rather than assuming all of "the enemy" are evil and unwilling to hear your concerns, try to get to know people as individuals. Just as that will reduce the stereotypes you hold of others, it is also likely to reduce the stereotypes others hold of you.

What the Media Can Do

Steps the media can take to reduce stereotypes are dealt with elsewhere in this system, but fundamentally, it is important that the media paint as accurate a picture of both sides of a conflict as is possible. This generally means painting a complex picture. While extremists tend to make the most noise and hence the most news, the media can do much to lessen conflict by focusing attention on moderates and peacebuilders as well. Heartwarming stories of reconciliation can replace or at least stand side-by-side with heart-wrenching stories of violence and loss. Showing that there is hope -- helping people visualize a better life in a better world -- is a service the media can do better than any other institution, at least on a large scale.

What the Educational System Can Do

This, too, is dealt with elsewhere in this system, but the educational system (teachers, schools, textbooks) needs to also try to paint a fair and accurate picture of the conflict and the different people involved, being aware that different sides of a conflict will view ( frame ) what is happening very differently. Through stories, discussions, and exercises, teachers can help students (of all ages and levels) understand the complexity of the conflicts that surround them, and develop age- and situation-appropriate responses to the current conflicts in their homes, communities, and nations. To the extent that classrooms contain students from both sides of the conflict, teachers can help students learn to understand and appreciate each other better, while protecting the safety (physical and emotional) of those on both sides. If the classroom only contains one group, reaching such intergroup understandings is harder, but still worth the effort through books and articles, discussions, TV and movies, and when available, online exercises (such as those provided in the links below).

Stereotypes, particularly negative characterizations are extremely prevalent and problematic in U.S. politics and culture these days.  The left still sees the right as  corrupt, stupid, selfish, racist, sexist, homophobes.  The right likewise paints the left as corrupt, stupid, selfish, elitist, intolerant "takers" (as opposed to "makers.") These stereotypes make it practically impossible to befriend, relate to, or understand the other side enough to work with them or live in harmony with them. 

The same dynamics appears in almost all escalated conflicts, and if allowed to go to far, results in catastrophe.  Before and during the Rwandan genocide, Tutsi's were referred to as "cockroaches" "rats," and "enemies."  Jews, similarly, were seen as non-human or less than human "enemies" by the perpetrators of the Holocaust, so too were the Blacks who were captured in Africa and brought to the Americas as slaves seen as less than human.  (Even the U.S. Constitution validated such beliefs by counting slaves as 3/5 people!) 

One hopes that the U.S. has not and would not go to such extremes again  But we are currently seeing it happen with respect to Muslims who are, apparently, not deserving of the same rights as other people according to Trump and some of his followers.  We saw it with respect to Mexicans during Trump's campaign, where he accused them of being criminals and rapists.  Both groups now are under siege, Mexicans and other undocumented immigrants fearing deportation daily, and Muslims increasingly being attacked and even killed for their religious beliefs.  

It's time to turn this pathology around.  Both this article and the linked article on Enemy Images  have suggestions about ways such negative stereotypes can be combated.  It is incumbent upon everyone who wants a safe, secure America to enact such measures wherever possible.

--Heidi Burgess, June, 2017.

Back to Essay Top

[1] Breslin, J. William. 1991. "Breaking Away from Subtle Biases" in Negotiation Theory and Practice, eds. J. William Breslin and Jeffrey Rubin (Cambridge, Mass., U.S.: Program on Negotiation Books, 1991), 247-250.

Use the following to cite this article: Burgess, Heidi. "Stereotypes / Characterization Frames." Beyond Intractability . Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: October 2003 < http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/stereotypes >.

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Essay on Stereotypes

Stereotypes, a term that often carries a negative connotation, are oversimplified generalizations about groups of people. They can be based on race, gender, ethnicity, age, nationality, or any other characteristic. While stereotypes may seem like harmless assumptions, they have profound implications for how we perceive and interact with each other. This essay delves into the nature of stereotypes, their origins, impacts, and the importance of overcoming them.

Stereotypes

Stereotypes are fixed, preconceived notions that attribute specific characteristics to all members of a group, disregarding the individual differences among them. These beliefs can be both positive and negative, though the negative implications are more commonly recognized due to their harmful effects. Stereotypes are a form of social categorization that our brains use to simplify the complex social world around us.

Origins of Stereotypes

The roots of stereotypes lie in human psychology and the natural tendency to categorize information to understand the world better. Social, cultural, and media influences also play a significant role in the development and perpetuation of stereotypes. Historical events, literature, and representation in media further embed these notions into the collective consciousness.

The Impact of Stereotypes

Stereotypes can lead to prejudgments that result in discrimination and social stigma. They affect individuals’ perceptions of themselves and others, influencing behavior in various settings, including workplaces, schools, and interpersonal relationships. Stereotypes can limit the opportunities available to individuals and can cause psychological harm, contributing to phenomena such as stereotype threat, where individuals underperform in situations where they fear confirming stereotypes about their social group.

• Perpetuation of Prejudice: Stereotypes reinforce and perpetuate prejudices and biases, often leading to the marginalization and discrimination of certain groups based on race, gender, ethnicity, or social status.
• Influence on Individual Behavior: Stereotypes can shape the behavior of individuals who are stereotyped, leading them to conform to expected behaviors, a phenomenon known as stereotype threat. This can negatively impact performance, particularly in academic and professional settings.
• Impact on Mental Health: The stress and anxiety caused by being subjected to stereotypes can have detrimental effects on mental health, contributing to feelings of inadequacy, low self-esteem, and depression.
• Hindrance to Social Integration: Stereotypes can hinder social integration and cohesion by creating divisions and misunderstandings between different social, ethnic, or cultural groups, thereby weakening the social fabric.
• Barrier to Employment and Career Advancement: Stereotypes can influence hiring decisions and career advancement opportunities, often leading to a lack of diversity in certain professions and reinforcing the glass ceiling effect for women and minorities.
• Influence on Media Representation: Stereotypes shape how groups are represented in the media, which can perpetuate misconceptions and biased perspectives, influencing public opinion and attitudes towards these groups.
• Educational Impact: Stereotypical beliefs about intellectual abilities based on race, gender, or social background can affect educational opportunities and outcomes for students, influencing teacher expectations and student performance.
• Effects on Interpersonal Relationships: Stereotypes can affect the quality of interpersonal relationships by fostering prejudice and inhibiting genuine understanding and connections between individuals from different backgrounds.
• Contribution to Cultural Misunderstandings: Stereotypes can lead to cultural misunderstandings and conflicts, as they oversimplify the complex realities and diversity of cultures and peoples, leading to oversimplified and often incorrect perceptions.

Stereotypes and Prejudice

Prejudice, a byproduct of stereotypes, is an unjustified or incorrect attitude (usually negative) towards an individual based solely on the individual’s membership of a social group. This can escalate to discrimination, where individuals are treated unfairly because of those prejudices. Understanding the link between stereotypes and prejudice is crucial in addressing the root causes of discrimination.

Gender Stereotypes

Gender stereotypes are among the most pervasive stereotypes, with deep-seated beliefs about the roles, behaviors, and attributes of men and women. Such stereotypes can limit personal and professional growth, enforcing a societal structure that discriminates and marginalizes based on gender.

Racial and Ethnic Stereotypes

Racial and ethnic stereotypes contribute to systemic racism and social inequalities. They are often rooted in a lack of understanding and fear of the ‘other.’ These stereotypes can influence public policy, law enforcement practices, hiring decisions, and social interactions, perpetuating cycles of inequality and exclusion.

The Role of Media in Perpetuating Stereotypes

Media plays a significant role in shaping and reinforcing stereotypes. Through movies, television, news outlets, and social media, certain images and narratives about social groups are perpetuated, often focusing on sensational, negative, or simplistic aspects that do not reflect the group’s complex reality.

Challenging and Overcoming Stereotypes

Overcoming stereotypes requires active effort and awareness. It involves challenging our own assumptions, seeking out diverse perspectives, and engaging in open dialogues. Education plays a key role in dismantling stereotypes, as it can provide accurate information and foster empathy among individuals from different backgrounds.

The Power of Individual Stories

Personal narratives and stories have the power to break down stereotypes by highlighting the unique experiences and complexities of individuals within a group. Encountering personal stories can challenge preconceived notions and foster a more nuanced understanding of others.

The Importance of Representation

Diverse representation in media, politics, education, and all sectors of society is crucial in combating stereotypes. When individuals see themselves reflected in various roles and positions, it challenges limiting beliefs about what they can achieve and contributes to a more inclusive and equitable society.

In conclusion, Stereotypes, while a natural part of human cognition, can lead to prejudice, discrimination, and a myriad of social injustices if left unchallenged. They simplify the rich diversity of human experiences into narrow categories, often leading to misunderstanding and conflict. By recognizing the origins and impacts of stereotypes, individuals and societies can take steps towards more inclusive and empathetic interactions. Overcoming stereotypes requires a conscious effort to acknowledge and appreciate the individuality and complexity of all people. It is a crucial step towards building a more equitable and harmonious world. For students participating in essay writing competitions, exploring the topic of stereotypes offers an opportunity to reflect on the ways in which these generalized beliefs shape our perceptions and interactions, and to consider the steps we can take to move beyond them.

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Editorial: The psychological process of stereotyping: Content, forming, internalizing, mechanisms, effects, and interventions

Baoshan zhang.

1 School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China

Fengqing Zhao

2 School of Education, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China

Fangfang Wen

3 School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China

Junhua Dang

4 Department of Surgical Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden

Magdalena Zawisza

5 Department of Psychology, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom

Stereotype is a pervasive and persistent human tendency that stems from a basic cognitive need to categorize, simplify, and process the complex world. This tendency is a precondition for social bias, prejudice, and discrimination. Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, the discrimination, exclusion, and even hostility caused by stereotypes have increasingly become an important social issue that concerns political and social stability. Therefore, the current issue focuses on a broad spectrum of research addressing four main themes: (1) the psychological processes involved in forming and internalizing social stereotypes, (2) the negative consequences of stereotypes, (3) the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying stereotypes, and (4) the interventions addressing the consequences of negative stereotypes in this era with changes and challenges. Specifically, the Research Topic consists of 13 papers by 54 scholars that target stereotypes among different social groups, including males and females, older people and young generation, minority races, people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), people with mental health problems, juvenile transgressors, refugees, and Asian-Americans during COVID-19 outbreak. These studies are conducted in culturally diverse countries including Brazil, China, Germany, Hungary, and the USA, contributing to a more holistic picture of contemporary stereotypes.

1. The forming of social stereotypes

Negative stereotypes from the public may be influenced by our knowledge about and psychological distance to the target group, beliefs of group malleability, beliefs in the implicit change of traits, and moral values. For instance, Caldas et al. tested whether people's knowledge and proximity to the circumstances associated with juvenile transgression would influence their opinions about the proposal for reducing the age of criminal majority in Brazil. They investigated the passers-by in a public square and workers from the juvenile justice courts and found that people were more likely to hold negative stereotypes of juvenile delinquents if they were far from them. Paskuj and Orosz focused on the refugees as the most typically vulnerable group in turbulent international times, and they found that group malleability beliefs were negatively linked to dehumanization tendencies and threats perceived from migrants in Hungary. Protzko and Schooler examined a more general negative stereotype of youth also known as the “kids these days effect” (KTD effect). In two studies with American adults, belief in whether a trait changes over the lifespan was associated with such prejudices. In addition, Lai et al. focused on three cues linked to women's perceived high long-term mating value and reported that Chinese women displaying “sexually attractive” cues were perceived to have lower moral values. Moreover, they were stereotyped as having lower levels of humanness than women displaying “beautiful” facial cues or “virtuous” behavioral cues, which in turn led to lower mating opportunity.

Culture also plays an essential role in stereotype formation. Li M. et al. targeted stereotypes toward high-power individuals and revealed that people influenced by Confucianism held positive stereotypes of competence and warmth for senior high-power individuals. This finding is inconsistent with the traditional proposition that high-power individuals tend to be stereotyped as having high competence and low warmth. This might be because high-power individuals under Confucian culture are expected to have great social responsibility and concern for the wellbeing of others. Furthermore, new stereotypes emerged as a result of COVID-19 in the global context. COVID-19 is a threat to physical health, and mental health, and various reports have indicated that COVID-19 is closely related to stigma and discrimination. Two studies examined the stereotypes related to COVID-19. Zhao et al. found that the prevalence of COVID-19-related negative stereotypes was low in China. Besides, the more people know about COVID-19, the fewer negative stereotypes associated with COVID-19 they reported. Daley et al. on the other hand reported that Asian-Americans were facing increasing challenges from different ethnic groups on social issues related to COVID-19 in the United States, and the increasing tendency to blame China for the pandemic was associated with stereotyping Asian people as more foreign.

2. The consequences of negative stereotypes

People's negative stereotypes will influence their behavioral inclinations toward the target groups, and even the law-making at a general level. For instance, Wen et al. tested space-related stereotypes associated with people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). They found that people who held negative stereotypes toward the spaces occupied by PLWHA were more resistant to visit such spaces, and people's threat perception and community evaluation mediated the effects of such space-related stereotypes on community-approaching willingness. In addition, Caldas et al. found that the more distant people were from juvenile transgressors, the more they held negative stereotypes toward juvenile transgressors and agreed with the law-making proposal for reducing the age of criminal conviction in Brazil.

Vulnerable groups may internalize the negative stereotypes and be influenced by them. Gärtner et al. tested the self-stereotyping of people with mental illness and found that negative stereotypes of their warmth and competence dimensions led them to develop negative emotions and thus exhibit higher levels of active or passive self-harm than mentally healthy people. In addition, Li J. et al. were interested in the gender self-stereotyping among college students and noted that gender self-stereotyping was positively correlated with relational and personal self-esteem and further correlated with higher life satisfaction only in the male sample. That is, gender self-stereotyping was associated with a higher level of self-esteem and life satisfaction among male students, while this effect did not hold for women.

3. The neurocognitive mechanisms of stereotypes

The neurocognitive mechanisms of stereotypes were explored by Wu and Zhao . They used RS-fMRI degree centrality (RSDC), a graph theory-based network analysis, to detect how negative stereotypes work in the brain. In a test of math-related stereotypes among female university students, they found that the RSDC of different brain regions was affected, reflecting that stereotypes are the result of the action of the brain network as a whole. For instance, a decrease in RSDC in the left hippocampus is a response to stereotype-related stress, and an increase in RSDC in the posterior parietal region (PPC) is a reflection of self-relevant processes induced by stereotypes.

4. The interventions addressing the consequences of negative stereotypes

Finally, two studies tested interventions against negative stereotypes via intergenerational contact and cognitive training. Long et al. found that simply intergenerational contact, or even just imagining it, reduced negative stereotypes of older people and increased perspective-taking toward older people among young adults. Chen et al. used the traditional IAT to compare the effect of multiple vs. single cognitive training on aging stereotypes in 12–13-year-olds. They found that multiple training tasks and additional intervention training sessions are recommended as they could significantly prolong the positive effects of the intervention.

Overall, these 13 papers discussed various aspects of stereotype formation, consequences, mechanisms, and interventions. We hope these papers will inspire future researchers in developing theories and conducting new interventions against negative effects of stereotypes. Since the current era of “black swan incidents” and related social challenges create perfect conditions for stereotypes to thrive and intensify, researchers should continue exploring the psychological mechanisms behind emerging social stigma and negative stereotypes. Especially, the development of neuroscience will provide further opportunities to study the brain mechanisms of stereotypes from a more microscopic perspective. This combined with macroscopic psychosocial mechanisms will provide new ways of addressing the severe dangers of negative stereotypes across contexts, countries and times and benefit targeted interventions and policy making.

Author contributions

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct, and intellectual contribution to the work and approved it for publication.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher's note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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2.2: Sample Student Summary/Response Essay- Stereotype Threat

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• Gabriel Winer & Elizabeth Wadell
• Berkeley City College & Laney College via ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative (OERI)

What is a summary/response essay?

In this chapter, we will be exploring how to organize an essay and create strong connection between ideas. In order to do that, we will start by looking at a sample essay. This essay is a "summary/response" essay. In a summary response essay, you explain an article or book you have read and share your ideas about it. The sample essay will also introduce the idea of stereotypes that we will be discussing in this chapter.

Responding to a reading

In order to prepare to understand the sample essay, first read this article from a textbook on gender:

Read this article and take notes about how the authors explain the ideas and whether you are convinced by their points.

Note: Since this article is from a social sciences textbook, it uses APA citation style, which includes the year that the source was published, not a page number, in the in-text citations.

Reading from a gender studies textbook: Stereotype Threat

What if just before you went into a job interview, someone told you that you were not qualified and would never get the job? Do you think this would impact your performance during the interview? This is the idea of stereotype threat. Essentially, a stereotype threat is when (1) a person is a member of the group being stereotyped, (2) in a situation in which the stereotype is relevant, and (3) the person is engaging in an activity that can be judged/evaluated (Betz, Ramsey, & Sekaquaptewa, 2014). 

The first main researcher on stereotype threat was Claude Steele, who focused on how it impacted African American university students. He began to notice racial minorities and women sometimes performed lower than their abilities. He hypothesized that simply knowing about a stereotype (e.g., women aren’t as good at math, racial minorities are not high achieving, etc.) could hinder performance. In groundbreaking research, he revealed his hypothesis to be true (Steele & Aronson, 1995). In this study, Steel and Aronson (1995) conducted a series of tests in which they manipulated the presence of a stereotype threat, the context of testing, etc. For example, they had groups of Black and White college students take the GRE, a test for graduate admissions. In one condition, the participants were told it would be measure their intellectual capacities while other participants were told the test was simply a problem-solving task that did not directly relate to intellectual ability. When students were told that it measured intelligence, Black participants tended to be more aware of stereotypes, have increased concerns about their ability, show reluctance to have their racial identity somehow linked to performance, and even begin to make excuses for their performance. However, Black students who were not reminded of negative stereotypes, they did much better. Thus, this study provided significant support for stereotype threat (Steele & Aronson, 1995).

In other words, simply knowing that others had a negative stereotype about them made students perform less well (Betz, Ramsey, & Sekaquaptewa, 2014). Spencer, Steele and Quinn (1999) expanded this research from racial minorities to women, particularly as it relates to math performance. Similar to Steele and Aronson’s 1995 study, Spencer, Steele, and Quinn (1995) conducted several studies to measure stereotype threat. For example, in one of the studies, students took a GRE math test. In one condition, participants were told that gender differences had been found in the test whereas in the other condition, participants were told that there had not been a gender difference found in the test. The overall results of the study showed that when women experienced stereotype threat, their test scores were lower (Spencer, Steele, & Quinn, 1999).

Just because people are affected by stereotype threat, it does not mean that they believe the stereotype about their group or about their own abilities. Not believing the stereotype, but being aware that others believe it, is enough to create a stereotype threat outcome (Huguet & Regner, 2007; Wheeler & Petty, 2001).

As you may have gathered from the description of Spencer, Steele, and Quinn’s 1999 study, girls frequently experience stereotyped threats in school. It appears that around ages 7 to 8, both girls and boys become aware of the stereotype that girls are worse at math (Galdi, Cadinu, & Tomasetto, 2014). Research has shown that females preform worse in math when under stereotype threat, but perform equivalently to males when the threat is removed. Stereotype threats have been shown to reduce test performance, but these threats can also impact a female’s ability to incorporate and receive helpful feedback if they are overly focused on whether they are confirming negative stereotypes. For example, if a woman is overly worried about behavior or performing in such a way so as not to confirm a negative stereotype (e.g., women are bad in math), the student may not teacher feedback as a useful chance to learn. When overly worried about confirming negative stereotypes, individuals may also pull away and avoid class discussions at school, etc. (Betz, Ramsey, & Sekaquaptewa, 2014).

But why does the stereotype threat impact test performance? There are various theories, but one of the most commonly accepted is that by Toni Schmader. Schmader theorized that when one is overly worried about a stereotype threat (e.g., reminded that because she is a woman, she is likely to do poorly on the math test she is about to take), the worry distracts her attention from the test. As a result, she is unable to fully focus on the activity leading to lower performance.

However, some have argued against the actual validity of the idea of stereotype threats. Early on, a common argument was that most of these studies were conducted in labs and not natural settings, and thus, could not be generalized. Some researchers, such as Paul Sackett, believed that there would be a small effect in a natural setting. This began to spark an interest in conducting more natural setting studies. Naturalistic research has confirmed that stereotype threats indeed have negative impacts on academic experiences, performance, and career goals. Moreover, these negative impacts are accumulating.

With planning, educators can reduce the impacts of stereotype threats. For example, educators can be careful not to frame tests as measures of ability. Even more importantly, they should make sure that their classrooms do not trigger stereotypes by showing the accomplishments of only certain groups. Lastly, teaching students about stereotype thread can help the students to resist it.

Reading: Student essay on Stereotype Threat

Now let's look at one reader's essay responding to this article:

Did you know that what others assume about you can affect how well you perform on a test? This is just one of the findings reported by Kristy McRaney and her colleagues in “Stereotype Threat,” a chapter in the textbook The Psychology of Gender. In this chapter, McRaney and her colleagues discuss a number of studies that examine the phenomenon known as stereotype threat: a situation in which someone is stereotyped, is aware of the stereotype, and is taking part in an activity related to the stereotype (par. 1). According to research reported by McRaney et al., “Being aware that others believe [the stereotype], is enough to create a stereotype threat outcome” of poorer performance (par. 5). McRaney and her colleagues also look at research exploring why stereotype threat impacts test performance, including the commonly-accepted theory by Toni Schmader that preoccupation with a stereotype threat means that the test-taker “ties up valuable cognitive resources” which “impacts the capacity that one has to draw on their memory and to attend and focus on the task before them” (par. 8). Finally, their article acknowledges and responds to criticism of the idea of stereotype threat (McRaney et al. par 9). Overall, McRaney and her colleagues make an understandable and compelling argument for the existence of stereotype threat; the information they present is engaging, seems balanced, and helped me make sense of my own experiences.

While McRaney and her colleagues draw on many academic studies, they still manage to present the information in a way that is both interesting and understandable to readers without a specialized academic background. For example, they begin the chapter with a series of personal questions for readers to think about as a way to prepare them for the content (McRaney et al. par 1). They also use a fairly conversational tone throughout, which gives readers a sense that the authors are talking to them directly. One example of this is the use of second person, which can be seen in the following sentence: “As you may have gathered from the description of Spencer, Steele, and Quinn’s 1999 study, girls frequently experience stereotyped threats in school” (McRaney et al. par. 5). Another way the authors make the reading accessible is by paraphrasing and summarizing the studies they cite rather than directly quoting what would likely be information presented in a vocabulary specialized to the discipline of social science. In fact, while the authors cite many studies to illustrate the phenomenon of stereotype threat, there are no direct quotations used in the chapter at all.

The authors also address counterarguments and criticism of the research they present, which makes them seem balanced and increases the credibility of their ideas. For example, one early criticism of the idea of stereotype threat they cite has to do with the conditions of these studies. Critics pointed out “that most of these studies were conducted in labs and not natural settings, and thus, could not be generalized” (McRaney et al. par 9). McRaney and her colleagues report that in response to this critique, more naturalistic research was conducted which, in fact, confirmed earlier lab-based studies (par. 9). By including these criticisms, the authors provide a rounded view of the phenomenon of stereotype threat and strengthen the argument that stereotype threat not only exists but is detrimental to stereotyped groups.

Finally, in reading the chapter, I realized that stereotype threat has had an impact on me personally. At the beginning of the chapter, McRaney and her colleagues write that “[stereotype] threats can also impact a female’s ability to incorporate and receive helpful feedback if they are overly focused and worried about providing confirmation of negative stereotypes” (par. 5). When I was in high school, this was true in my freshman math class. My class was made up of mostly male students. I didn’t ask questions in class because I didn’t want the other students to think I was bad at math. Ironically, not asking questions led me to perform worse on my tests, and I never excelled in the subject in school. I never attributed my poor performance to stereotype threat before reading the chapter; I just thought I was bad at math. But I understand now that the dynamics described in the definition of stereotype were all present in my class.

In “Stereotype Threat,” McRaney and her colleagues clearly and evenhandedly explain the phenomenon of stereotype threat. Their choice of language makes the chapter interesting and accessible to students who may not have training in the social sciences, even as the authors cite many academic sources. The authors also spend time addressing and responding to some common criticisms of and doubts about the existence of stereotype threat, which makes the ideas they discuss more credible. Furthermore, the content is relatable: the examples provided in the text helped me identify an instance of stereotype threat in my own life and made me think about other situations where stereotype threat may have been at play. Their chapter highlights an important phenomenon and, with this knowledge, institutions and individuals can take steps to create environments in and out of the classroom that lessen the chance stereotype threat will negatively (and needlessly) affect performance.

Licenses and Attributions

Cc licensed content: original.

Authored by Clara Zimmerman, Porterville College. License: CC BY NC.

CC Licensed Content: Previously Published

Reading on Stereotype Threat is adapted from " Gender Through a Cognitive Psychology Lens ", a chapter from The Psychology of Gender by Kristy McRaney, Alexis Bridley, and Lee Daffin. License: CC BY NC SA.

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Informative Speech About Stereotyping

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Beyoncé Is Boldly Defying Country’s Stereotypes

E very Black woman has been called a Jezebel. The term, which originates from the Bible, is one of the oldest examples of misogyny in the world. Instead of being heralded for her reign as Queen, the Phoenician princess (after whom the term was named) was slut-shamed and subjected to whorephobia. To this day, her name conjures up images of promiscuity. 

For those raised in the church, young women and girls are encouraged to not have a “jezebel spirit” because a church girl can never be a whore. But for many Black women and girls, there is not an option to cast out or distance oneself from the Jezebel spirit, because according to America, we’ve been whores since 1619 . Although the hypersexualization of Black women did not come from the Bible, the ideal of a modern, chaste woman did. When the Bible found itself stateside, those ideals and beliefs began to disseminate throughout the 13 original colonies; any woman who was not white and shapely was a Jezebel . A woman meant to be feared. A woman meant to be isolated. A woman not meant to be seen. Because if this woman was seen, perceived, and respected, it would certainly be a sign of hell on Earth.

Black women have been raising hell on Earth, particularly in the South, for generations. Rissi Palmer, Holly G of Black Opry, and Kamara Thomas of Country Soul Songbook have been leading the charge through their activism to create better conditions for Black women not just in the South, but in country music. And with the release of Cowboy Carter , the second album in the Renaissance trilogy, Beyoncé has become the latest artist to challenge these norms.

Read More: Beyoncé Has Always Been Country

When Beyoncé arrived at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards on February 4, a visible change had occurred. Although the general public did not know at the time that she was officially making her foray back into country, she was leading the charge with her fashion. No longer was she adorned in the glistening silver chrome looks of Renaissance , Beyoncé, in her white shirt, Stetson hat, and oversized Black leather jacket and skirt, had become an outlaw. And country music loves an outlaw . 

The problem is that country music only loves an outlaw when they are white. The outlaw movement , which started as a staunch rebuke against the red tape of Nashville, allowed white men in country music, such as Willie Nelson, to be seen as rebellious—but in a way that was not anti-Nashville. From Johnny Cash to George Jones to Merle Haggard , these hell raisers have not only been warmly embraced in country music but championed. And the way these artists would often display this defiant spirit was through their dress.

Historian and scholar Dr. Francesca Royster writes about country’s outlaw movement in Black Country Music : Listening for Revolutions : “As the Man in Black, Johnny Cash could stand up for injustices against incarcerated folks and other outsiders, his Black shirt, hat, and jeans trademarks for his heroically critical stance.” Royster continues, “Blackness’s association in mainstream white culture with danger, illegality, and outsiderhood was put to use in Cash’s career to lend an element of authenticity. These moments reveal how, for these white male outlaws, proximity to Blackness—particularly metaphorical Blackness—is the ultimate expression of outsiderhood.``

Yet it is Beyoncé’s Blackness that country took issue with in the first place. The most telling part of her Grammy outfit was not her choice to wear Pharrell Willliams’ Western-inspired menswear collection for Louis Vuttion, but the red manicure that accompanied it. The manicure, featured on the singer’s Instagram post from the night, was most noticeable when she gave her red nails a bite. Fashion and costume historian Shelby Ivey Christie equates Beyoncé’s red nails to setting off a flare, making everyone in Nashville aware about her re-entry into country music. 

“There’s a Shakespearean saying about biting your thumb at someone, and that's to make fun of them,’” says Christie. “I feel that imagery is kind of that. She's biting her thumb at you. She's teasing you.”

It’s a tease that continued when Beyonce appeared at Super Bowl LVIII with Dolly Parton-esque hair and a Texas bombshell-inspired outfit . Compared to the Grammys, where the singer donned a straightforward western look, this felt more sultry, more seductive—almost as if the singer was invoking the spirit of the Jezebel.

The Jezebel has been known by many names, one of them being Jolene. In the country music lexicon, Jolene was immortalized by Parton as a beautiful red-headed woman with emerald green eyes and ivory skin who has the ability to take Parton’s man away from her. Similar to how the Jezebel Root has been historically used in Hoodoo practices to attract men of wealth and high status, Jolene became known as the woman to avoid unless you want the destruction of your household. 

“Women in country can be seen as more bombshell glam,” says Christie. “I think [the Super Bowl] was kind of [Beyonce’s] moment to give us that and to show us that the country genre wasn’t something that was on her. It’s in her.” But compared to her first foray into country music where Beyoncé wore what culture journalist Victoria M. Massie noted was a “ voluminous Antebellum-style dress cut from African wax print ” in the visuals for “Daddy Lessons,” her second attempt into country is being done the Renaissance way. 

The visuals for Cowboy Carter tell a story between the two, seamless acts. In act i, Beyoncé slyly introduced the country outlaw aesthetic by donning herself in a black fringed leather jacket for the album’s teaser trailer . At this year’s Gold Party , Beyoncé and Jay Z’s annual Oscars party, she fronted a more masculine aesthetic in a black Givenchy structured blazer and flared trousers. Both outfits were accompanied by a black cowboy hat—a playful homage to her Texas roots, which then took center stage in her album cover for Cowboy Carter . In a red, white, and blue latex outfit, a nod to her American and Texas roots, the singer’s posture feels reminiscent of painter Kehinde Wiley’s majestic compositions. (Wiley’s approach to painting, similarly to Beyoncé’s approach to country, is to bridge the gap between the past and present through the creative arts.) From her usage of Americana aesthetics to her platinum blonde locks, Beyoncé is giving the public an insight into her “ un-American life .”

The one thing that stands out most in Beyoncé's country era is her bleach blonde hair. Taking note from Parton, to be a blonde in Southern culture, in particular, has always been regarded as tacky and not tasteful. But as Parton famously said: “It takes a lot of money to look this cheap,” and with her new locks, Beyoncé is turning that stereotype on its head, too.

In the South, the societal norms that police women’s bodies, especially Black women’s bodies, stem from Christianity . And in country music, women are expected to present themselves in a particular way that adheres to those rules, despite not receiving adequate resources from their record labels. Even more-so, the sexual violence inflicted onto  Black women’s bodies because they are curvier or more voluptuous are thought to be justified. As a result of these societal, cultural, and political forces, Black women are socialized to keep their distance from anything that could perceive them as Jezebel-like. 

“Instead of men controlling themselves, respecting women's bodies, and having boundaries, it is the woman's responsibility to do that, by covering herself, by contorting herself into whatever boundary or rules are created to make them more palatable around men and to make them more palatable to the women peers around them,” says Christie. “That extends to color.”

There is a reason why Beyoncé decided to use the color red for “ Can’t B Broken ,” her Super Bowl commercial with Verizon. She wanted to be seen. She wanted to be heard. She wanted to tell Nashville that she is doing country her way, all the while honoring the legion of Black women in country music who came before her. 

In the official visualizer for “ Texas Hold ‘Em ,” Beyoncé in a mixture of black and silver walks onto the screen in a beehive, side ponytail and bang, a clear homage to Linda Martell , the first Black female country star. The style, which was immortalized in the May 1970 issue of Ebony, shows Martell on a press tour at WSM Radio alongside fellow country music legend Jeannie C. Riley on the heels of Martell’s  first appearance at the Grand Ole Opry in 1969. With this performance, Martell made history as the first Black female artist to perform on the highly esteemed music show.

But despite Martell’s legendary career, she experienced intense mistreatment and harassment by the country music industry. While at Plantation Records, the record label that she was signed to, Martell expressed discomfort with the label’s name because of its racist history. In addition to racial discomfort, she fell victim to a predatory contract. When she left Plantation Records, Shelby Singleton, the label founder, blacklisted Martell from any opportunities in the country music industry.

Read More: How Beyoncé Fits Into the Storied Legacy of Black Country

When Beyonce sweeps up her hair into an illustrious beehive and side swept bangs, it is a homage to Martell. Without saying a word, she is honoring the pioneering efforts of Martell and the Black women country artists of that time, while also sounding an alarm to the country music genre:that she expects to be treated with respect. For the entire world has their eyes on Beyoncé as she enters the country music industry for the second time. But it is not Beyoncé who should be in fear—it is Nashville. 

In a celebratory dinner with her husband Jay Z to commemorate Valentine’s Day, Beyonce appeared in mourning dress . Her Black Southern Gothic look drew inspiration from the post-Civil war period where widows wore a mourning veil for an alloted period of time. The question is: whose death is she calling into existence? The death of the country genre? The death of the barriers that restrict Black women from achieving success in country? Or has she become death itself? An omen of what’s to come.  

If Jezebel has to be one to kill the country genre, so be it. It is time for the church girl and the Jezebel to be seen as one in the same. It is time for the structures that govern and police Black women’s bodies to die. And it’s time we bury the old ways country music has been governed by into the ground.

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