Prejudice, Stereotyping, & Discrimination Flashcards
What is prejudice?
A generalized attitude
What we “feel”
Negative emotional responses
ex: why are you staring at me? I am only here to buy milk
Can be implicit and Explicit
What is a stereotype?
: a generalised belief
What we “think” (cognition)
ex:all cat people must be very dangerous
can be positive or negative
What is discrimination?
behavioural component of social attitudes
Actions
Study (Hebl et al.,2002)
In texas
Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation
Trained research assistants going into shops at the mall looking for jobs
The researchers had different hats (they didnt know which one they had). One said “texan and proud” and one said “gay and proud”
Potential employers where less helpful, spoke less and where less likely to higher them when the person had the “gay and proud” hat
what is Glass ceiling
(type of discrimination)
DEF: invisible barrier that prevents women from rising beyond a certain level in their profession
what is Tokenisms
(type of discrimination)
DEF: When a member of a marginalized group is admitted to a role based on their group identity (not because they earned it)
“thanks to oliver for ensuring we meet the broad’s quota of women”
What are the 2 costs of Prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination
- Marital costs
2.psychological costs
what are the Marital costs
Women and members of minority groups less likely to get hired for certain jobs
Women and members of minority groups are paid less
White men are offered best deals on car sales
Highly overweight white women paid less than thinner women
Worse healthcare for minority group members
What is the psychological costs
Stereotype threat
DEF: Fear of confirming negative stereotypes about your group
Makes it more difficult for people to perform up to their potential
Girls perform worse on math when gender is made noticeable
Latinos individuals perform worse on an IQ test when they believe the test was diagnostic of intellectual ability
Asian American women perform WORSE on a math test when gender is made noticeable, but BETTER if their Asian identity is made noticeable
Strategies to cope when stereotyping
- Self-handicapping
DEF: Create obstacles so that there is an excuse (outside self) for why we did poorly - Dis-identity
DEF: Make whatever the task we are working on less important to our self concept (convince ourselves it’s not that important)
3.Use humor
Cognitive mechanisms behind stereotyping
Stereotypes make it easier to process information though categorisation
Make sense of the world & reduce complexity (a mental shortcut)
Cognitive mechanisms behind prejudice
Prejudice leads to emotions that can be functional
Fear= danger
Anger= challenge to resources
Disgust = need to avoid
Implicated in emotions that function to respond to potential threats
What are the 4 Social Mechanisms behind (prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination) or goals
- Support and protect one’s group
- Provide social approval
- Bolster personal and social identities
- Efficiently navigate complex social environments
What are the 3 things one can do to Support and protect one’s group
(social mechanism)
- ingroup bias
People like to create and maintain an “ingroup” advantages - ingroup conflict
Intergroup conflict emerges when groups are competing for the same materials - outgroup threats
Prejudices becomes more prominent where people feel their group is threatened in some way:
Losing resources → anger
Physical violence → fear
Becoming infected with disease → disgust
Prejudice increases when: Vulnerable and primed with fear/danger
What are the 2 things one can do to Provide social approval
(social mechanism)
- Social rejection
people fear rejection - Social norms
some places have prejudice norms
What are the 3 things one can do to Bolster personal and social identities
(social mechanism)
- Maintain favourable identities (AKA Scapegoating)
DEF: Balming an outgroup (or less powerful group) for problems or negative outcomes experienced by the ingroup
(Usually directed toward easily identifiable groups)
2.Downward social comparison
DEF: positively differentiating yourself by seeing your group as better than “them”
Directly enhance your own group through positive stereotypes
Actively derogate other groups
3.Self-image threat
Cognitive dissonance
- DEF: person holds two or more conflicting beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors simultaneously
ex: indian’s smell but racism is bad
Case study Jane Doe
(self image threat / Bolster personal and social identities / social mechanism)
Jane gets to pick her group members for a school project. She tells her friend, Alex, that she’s going to choose their Asian classmate, Sara, because she thinks Sara could help with the math section of the project.
Self-Image Threat: Alex tells Jane that she may hold an unconscious racial bias which may be harmful as it flattens individual differences, applies pressure, and overlooks struggles or other interests. This threatens Jane’s Self-Image as open minded and empathic
Cognitive Dissonance: Jane feels anxious and uncomfortable thinking about the racial stereotypes and biases she holds
(Harmful) coping strategies:
Jane doubles down suggesting that every Asian person she knows is good at math.
Jane defends her comment by implying that positive stereotypes are not as harmful.
Jane criticizes Alex by implying that she wouldn’t need to outsource someone who is good at math if Alex didn’t get a C in Statistics
What are the 2 things one can do to Efficiently navigate complex social
environments
(social mechanism)
- Mental shortcuts
- Stereotypes help conserve mental effort - Cognitive Biases
- Perceived Outgroup Homogeneity
- Implicit Prejudices
DEF: people hold automatic negative biases against stigmatized groups that they don’t/can’t always self- report
-Shooter Bias
DEF: Greater tendency to “shoot” unarmed black men than unarmed white men
People are less able to quickly distinguish between guns and harmless objects when held by a black individual
Personal factors that increase stereotyping
People high in Need for Structure like things to be simple & expected
Positive moods make people less motivated to think carefully
Emotions that are arousing
Situational factors that increase stereotyping
Cognitive load (Complex situations, Stress from multitasking, Time pressure)
What are the two tactics to reduce PSD
- The Goal-Based Approach (four intervention strategies)
2.Intergroup Contact
What is the Goal-Based Approach (four intervention strategies)
- PSD serve important goals
- Specific features of the person & situation bring these goals into light
four intervention strategies
1. Change features of the person
Anxiety increases stereotyping so reduce anxiety prior
- Change features of the situation
Social norms that approve of prejudice so work to create norms that don’t - Give people alternative ways to satisfy goals
Derogation to boost self-esteem so use self-affirmation strategies
4.Activate goals incompatible with PS&D
Mental efficiency, Wanting to be fair & egalitarian, Taking the perspective of others
What is Intergroup Contact
Contact with outgroup reduces intergroup conflict when:
- Outgroup members possess traits & abilities that challenge the negative stereotypes of their group
- Groups are of equal status within the contact setting
- The groups work together toward a common goal
