prejudice and intergroup relations Flashcards
describe categorization? what do categories do? how do they help?
categorization - shortcuts that reduce the complexity of the social world, conserves cognitive resources (as all would be stored in a separate location)
basis of PREJUDGMENT - simplify our lives, help us make quick decisions
help guide our behaviour, we know what is good and bad based on our past behaviour (learn what to approach and ignore)
what about social categorization? what are the types of categorization?
SOCIAL - based on perceived groups in society
can create attitudes which influence us to react to a situation in the same way they did previously (STEREOTYPES)
major ways to categorize - visual
- RACE GENDER AGE (usually most immediate and obvious) - yield to us information
ingroup vs. outgroup - implications - why do we use these social categories ? - what is the problem with this ? what does this lead to ?
ingroup -we belong
outgroup - we don’t belong
implications: outgroup homogeneity - perceived to share same features (characteristics,motives) - ingroup bias - perceived to all be unique people, that share some common features
using these categories satisfies two major goals: simplify our social environment, enhance our selfconcept (wow we’re all great - we attribute positive traits to our group members)
problem - categories form automatically, and we over apply,wrongly apply, or misinterpret categories
can lead to BIASED BELIEFS - in a complex situation, we fall back on these heuristics, which can be wrong
stereotypes versus prejudice versus discrimination - which is the precursor to which ?
stereotypes - the beliefs or association that links a whole group of people with specific traits
activated automatically, everyone has knowledge of these stereotypes (cultural norms)
prejudice - exists on a continuum, these are the EMOTIONAL RESPONSES that are associated with stereotypes (why they resist rational arguments)
- COGNITIVE (stereotypes) and EMOTIONAL (prejudice) are precursors to DISCRIMINATION - iased behaviour
- discrimination is the BEHAVIOURAL COMPONENT (unjustified treatment of people based solely on their group membership)
what about cultural institutions and discrimination ?
discrimination is built into many societal institutions - transmit bias through social reproduction (creating and transmitting social norms - matching what other people are doing)
this is called institutional bias (discriminatory practices and policies in large institutions)
what about sexism and gender stereotypes ? prescriptive versus descriptive stereotypes ? ambivalent sexism ? hostile sexism ? benevolent sexism ? modern sexism ?
sexism - establishes the superiority of one sex over the other based on gender stereotypes - PRESCRIPTIVE STEREOTYPES states HOW women or men should act - assume that all people fit into these groups - they exaggerate differences between the two groups, and overlook the the differences that exist WITHIN the groups - double standards as hallmarks
prescriptive - widespread beliefs ab how women should act, compared w other types of prejudiced beliefs (gay men are artistic vs. women are emotional) - deviation from these stereotypes are usually punished
ambivalent sexism - stereotypes ab women are more positive than men but relate to less valued traits in important domains (ex. women should be protected, but men don’t have to be because they are strong and resistant)
hostile sexism - negative beliefs ab a woman’s ability that might CHALLENGE MEN’S POWER
benevolent sexism - patronizing beliefs (chivalrous) - protection
both related to gender inequality
modern sexism - old-fashioned displays of sexism are finally less socially accepted (metoo)
what are the forms of racial and ethic discrimination we see in society ? how does this translate (drug use, social norms - and expression of prejudice?)
forms - racism, islamophobia, indigenous bias
more likely than white to be arrested and convicted of crimes.
ex. drug use - whites use drugs more often than minorities, but are arrested much less frequently
CRACK vs. cocaine - same drug but CRACK is in black communities, and carries much harsher fines
social norms - dictate which discrimination is acceptable in public settings (desire not to look deviant - wrong) will still be present in private settings, or be expressed indirectly
THERE IS A STRONG CORRELATION BETWEEN WHICH DISCRIMINATION IS ACCEPTABLE (old) and WHICH PARTICIPANTS ARE EXPRESSED TO HAVE
study ( 1 group rated how acceptable in society it is to have negative feelings toward each group - 2 group rated their own feelings towards the group )
describe internal, and external motivation - as drivers to lead us to respond without prejudice. described what we tend to see in the population (high internal vs. low internal in high/low external)
internal motivation - ‘i don’t want TO BE prejudiced’ - motivated by beliefs, related to self-concept
- i believe in the equality of all people - i want to be a just person
external motivation - ‘ i don’t want to LOOK prejudice ‘ - social pressure to be non-prejudice - people PRESSURE me not to be prejudiced - i don’t show prejudice because i WANT TO LOOK politically correct
we SEE:
people with HIGH INTERNAL MOTIVATION will be less likely to be prejudice in general
low external - low public, some private
high external - low private, some public
people with LOW INTERNAL
low external - HIGH PRIVATE LESS in public then (high internal)
high external - LOWEST levels in public, HIGHEST in private
Describe the IAT- how do they work? what do they measure?
measure strength of association between social category and valence (MIGHT NOT BE YOUR ATTITUDE, JUST COMMON IN SOCIETY)
fast sorting decisions
- congruent: WHITE GOOD
- incongruent: BLACK GOOD
which one is faster? (belief) which one is slower? (not an implicit belief) are they equal (no association either way)
How and why are stereotypes maintained? (4)
- hard to give up
- under conscious awareness
ACTIVATES DISSONANCE:
desire to be GOOD (fighting prejudice) vs the STEREOTYPE (feels correct)
idea - ‘i though that person was bad because they ARE’ (if they are not, then we were wrong and we were cruel)
how can illusory correlations contribute to stereotypes/prejudice?
TWO EVENTS HAPPEN (ONE IS RARE AND ONE IS DISTINCTIVE) - makes them A LOT MORE ATTENTION GRABBING
ex. a black murderer (black - minority - murderer - distinctive)
can lead to faulty impressions
how can economic and political competition lead to prejudice? what about realistic conflict theory?
competition and conflict breed prejudice
this can arise from economic (poverty) or political forces (donald trump)
PREJUDICED ATTITUDES CAN INCREASES WHEN THERE IS PERCEIVED CONFLICT OVER POLITICAL GOALS (ex JOBS - only one ‘person’ can get the job)
REALISTIC CONFLICT THEORY:
idea of a zero-sums fate - ONE GROUP WINS ONE LOSES (ex. abortion issue - can only be a RIGHT or TAKEN AWAY - no in between)
conflict LENGTH AND SEVERITY is determined by the perceived value (need a job for my livelihood) and SHORTAGE of a given resource (not too many job available)
what about displaced aggression contributing to prejudice ? describe the scapegoat theory, how do political leaders contribute ? what are DEMAGOGUES ? who do they appeal to ?
scapegoating - blaming innocent and powerless OUTGROUPS for our troubles
social norms can indicate if this ACCEPTABLE or ABHORRENT.
political leaders who seek power by exploiting people’s prejudices, fear and resentment and channel these feelings onto SCAPEGOATS are called DEMAGOGUES.
- usual happens during times of ANXIEY and UNCERTAINTY, and these leaders often appeal to those who feel like they are FALLING BEHIND or loosing status in the social order. ‘i liked the old days better, maybe because we were all WHITE back then - these immigrants must be the cause of the those days ending’
How can the maintenance of self-image and status lead to prejudice? What is the social identity theory?
our need to JUSTIFY our behaviour and sense of self can lead to prejudice
if a person feels that their social status is LOW or DECLINING - they are more likely to be prejudice
SOCIAL IDENTITY THEORY:
our self-concept is based in GROUP MEMBER SHIP - to feel good about ourself we need to feel good about our group - WE ARE MOTIVATED TO MAINTAIN A POSITIVE SELF-CONCEPT
- drive to compare in-group favourably to the out-group
how does CONFORMITY lead to PREJUDICE?
we act with prejudice to CONFORM TO SOCIAL NORMS
prejudiced beliefs are perpetuated through the law, society’s institutions - such casual exposure can impact our attitudes and behaviour
- ex. police arrest black people the most - they must be criminals
