Saq: Explain the Formation of Stereotypes and Their Effect on Behaviour

SAQ:

Explain the formation of stereotypes and their effect on behaviour.

Rebekka Haley 12W

A stereotype is defined as the social perception of an individual based on their group memberships or physical attributes. It is a generalized assumption made about a group as a whole, which is then applied to individuals belonging to that group. These assumptions can be either positive or negative. For example, all Asians are smart or all Americans are stupid. This means that stereotyping is a cognitive process whereby people categorize others to better interpret the world around them – in other words a schema process. Therefore the behavior of those who hold or are labeled by a stereotype can be adversely affected by this (stereotyping) form of social categorization. Ways in which stereotypes form include concepts such as: the grain of truth hypothesis, illusory correlation, conformation bias, and social representations of out-groups.

According to Campbell (1967), there are two key sources of stereotypes: personal experience with individuals and groups; and experiences with gatekeepers – the media, parents, and other members of our culture. He then goes on to argue that there is some truth to our stereotypes because we generalize an experience with one in-group member but then apply it to the entire group. This is what is also known as Campbell's grain of truth hypothesis. However, this theory has been criticized due to errors in attribution being fairly common.

On the other hand, Hamliton and Gilfford (1976) argue that stereotypes are the result of an illusory correlation – which is, individuals see a relationship between two variables even when there is none or very weak evidence of one. An example of this is when individuals form false associations between the membership of a group and a behavior, such as a women's inferior