SCLOA - Explain the formation of stereotypes and their effect on behaviour

Question 1

stereotype

Answer 1

• social perception of an individual in terms of their group membership or physical features
• generalization made about a group and then attributed to members of that group
• developed through personal (experience) and shared (conversations, media, etc) knowledge
• to some extent, they are based on individual experiences but sociocultural factors also come into play: they can be shared by large sociocultural groups as social representations
• may be either positive or negative

Question 2

theories on formation of stereotypes

Answer 2

• SIT theory

- stereotypes = schemas theory

Question 3

formation of stereotypes: SIT theory

Answer 3

Sherman et al. (2009):

• we pay the most attention to in-group and out-group members that maximise positive distinctiveness
• our ethnocentrism (group ver of SSB) affects the way we interpret similar behaviour between in-group and out-group members
• so we register negative behaviour of in-group as due to situational factors but attribute the same behaviour in out-groups to dispositional (hence forming part of one’s social stereotype)

Question 4

formation of stereotypes: stereotypes = schemas theory

Answer 4

• social world is complex and provides too much info to process
• due to our limited ability to process info, we simplify our social world with stereotypes
• stereotypes explain things quickly
• stable and resistant to change
• thus allowing our behaviour to be consistent

Question 5

formation of stereotypes: stereotypes = schemas explanation

Answer 5

Fiske and Dyer (1985):

• developing stereotypes begins with learning basic schema elements
  e. g. for formation of female stereotype, it begins with ‘girls dress in pink’ and ‘girls play with dolls’
• more elements are added over time
  e. g. ‘girls can cry in public but not boys’
• strong associations between elements emerge over time to form a single schema
• after formation, it can be integrated to the point that its activation becomes unconscious/automatic

Question 6

comparison between SIT theory and stereotypes = schemas theory

Answer 6

• both are based on social categorization, but schema theorists believe categorization simplifies social perception while SIT theorists believe it enriches social perception
• schema theorists think categorization has a biasing effect, but SIT theorists generally believe perceiving people as individuals rather than members of a group doesn’t necessarily improve accuracy
• schema theory revolves around the concept of being stable and fixed, while SIT believes categorization is flexible and can be affected by situational factors

Question 7

effect of stereotypes on behaviour

Answer 7

• affects the behaviour of those who believe in the stereotype
• and those who are affected by the stereotype
• confirmation bias: once people are categorized as belonging to one group, similarities between them and other individuals in the group are exaggerated (thus stereotyping revolves around group identity)
• stereotype threat: stereotypes may be internalized by stereotyped groups, affecting their behaviour

Main studies:
Confirmation bias: Cohen (1981)
Stereotype threat: Bargh et al. (1996)

Question 8

Cohen (1981) - Process

Answer 8

1. showed participants a videotape showing a woman having dinner with her husband
2. 2 conditions:
   - waitress (participants were told she was a barmaid)
   - librarian (participants were told she was a librarian)
3. After the videotape, participants were asked to recall what they remembered about her

Question 9

Cohen (1981) - Findings and Conclusion

Answer 9

• Librarian condition: remembers that she wore glasses and was listening to classical music.
• Waitress condition: remembers she drank alcohol
• we are more likely to notice and remember info consistent w/ our stereotypes

Question 10

Bargh et al. (1996) - Process

Answer 10

1. Elderly participants were asked to form a grammatically correct sentence using (what they believed to be) random words
2. 2 conditions:
   - Test: words related to and intending to activate the elderly stereotype (e.g. grey, retired, wise)
   - Control: given words were unrelated to the elderly stereotype (e.g. thirsty, clean, private).
3. After completing the experimental tasks, participants were directed towards the elevator.

Question 11

Bargh et al. (1996) - Findings and Conclusion

Answer 11

• participants under test conditions activated walked significantly more slowly towards the elevator
• the words activated a stereotype of how elderly people behave
• this had affected the speed the elderly people walked