Are most Stereotypes GENERALLY True?

[Bulgarian]

In this example inaccurate assumptions about a group of people based on their membership of that group and not on their actual, factual characteristics.

 

You can't refer to any group of people at all then, so you'll have to stop refereing to the "working class" and start refereing to individual people.

[Rowan22]

You can't refer to any group of people at all then, so you'll have to stop refereing to the "working class" and start refereing to individual people.

 

The term "working class" is a none pejorative general term. There is a big difference between a stereotype which is not critical and one which employs discriminative terms.

 

 

Different disciplines give different accounts of how stereotypes develop: Psychologists may focus on an individual's experience with groups, patterns of communication about those groups, and intergroup conflict. Pioneering psychologist William James cautioned psychologists themselves to be wary of their own stereotyping, in what he called the psychologist's fallacy. Sociologists focus on the relations among groups and the of different groups in a social structure. Psychoanalytically-oriented humanists have argued (e.g., Sander Gilman) that stereotypes, by definition, are representations that are not accurate, but a projection of one to another.

 

A number of theories have been derived from sociological studies of stereotyping and prejudicial thinking. In early studies it was believed that stereotypes were only used by rigid, repressed, and authoritarian people. Sociologists concluded that this was a result of conflict, poor parenting, and inadequate mental and emotional development. This idea has been overturned; more recent studies have concluded that stereotypes are commonplace.

 

One theory as to why people stereotype is that it is too difficult to take in all of the complexities of other people as individuals. Even though stereotyping is inexact, it is an efficient way to mentally organize large blocks of information. Categorization is an essential human capability because it enables us to simplify, predict, and organize our world. Once one has sorted and organized everyone into tidy categories, there is a human tendency to avoid processing new or unexpected information about each individual. Assigning general group characteristics to members of that group saves time and satisfies the need to predict the social world in a general sense.

 

Another theory is that people stereotype because of the need to feel good about oneself. Stereotypes protect one from anxiety and enhance self-esteem. By designating one's own group as the standard or normal group and assigning others to groups considered inferior or abnormal, it provides one with a sense of worth.

 

Some[who?] believe that childhood influences are some of the most complex and influential factors in developing stereotypes. Though they can be absorbed at any age, stereotypes are usually acquired in early childhood under the influence of parents, teachers, peers, and the media. Once a stereotype is learned, it often becomes self-perpetuating.

[Bulgarian]

There is a big difference between a stereotype which is not critical and one which employs discriminative terms.

 

No there isn't, a stereotype is a stereotype.

 

"English people are friendly" is a stereotype just as much as "Irish people are drunks"

 

p.s. It's quicker to just put the Wiki reference rather than cutting/pasting the entire article.

[Rowan22]

No there isn't, a stereotype is a stereotype.

 

"English people are friendly" is a stereotype just as much as "Irish people are drunks"

 

"Stereotype" is generally accepted as a pejorative term. We have been over this already.

[Bulgarian]

"Stereotype" is a pejorative term.

 

Says wikipedia

 

So is "French people are classy dressers" a perojative stereotype ?

[Rowan22]

What is a perojative term (without looking on Wikipedia) ?

 

One which implies a negative or demeaning connotation.

[discodown]

"Stereotype" is generally accepted as a pejorative term. We have been over this already.

I disagree. Stereotypes can be positive. Saying that Japanese people are industrious and hard working isn't a negative but is roughly accurate

[Rowan22]

Says wikipedia

 

Would it mean something different if I quoted Stamford. Elitism doesn't make the meaning any more real does it?

 

And as I have said to someone else today who adds very little but demands top shelf citation. When your argument requires it, my sources will reflect that. For the moment you are on Wiki time.

[Rowan22]

I disagree. Stereotypes can be positive. Saying that Japanese people are industrious and hard working isn't a negative but is roughly accurate

 

Hence the word "generally".

[Bulgarian]

And as I have said to someone else today who adds very little but demands top shelf citation. When your argument requires it, my sources will reflect that. For the moment you are on Wiki time.

 

I did ask you to define who you think the working class are but you never did, you just went back to wikipedia (again)

 

searching wiki is very lazy.