Probabilistic National Stereotypes

A stereotype of a group can be expressed by the estimated percentage of members that possess certain personality attributes (Brigham, 1971). In a multi-group design, the properties of the percentage measure were examined, and three common assumptions about stereotypes were supported. First, there was high consensus among American and Italian raters regarding the attributes of Americans, Italians, English, and Germans. Second, the perceived typicality of a trait depended largely on contrasts with other traits attributed to the same target group. Contrasts between attributions of the same trait to different groups were largely irrelevant. Third, most stereotype judgments revealed consistency biases. Compared with a Bayesian model of probability estimation, raters exaggerated the similarities between trait attributions (the percentage measure), social categorizations (percentage of people that belong to a group given they possess the trait), and Likert-scaled typicality ratings. Raters underestimated the effects of the traits' global base rates on the typicality ratings.     

The Assessment of National Stereotypes: A Methodological Study

Abstract

The effect of instructions on judgments of German students concerning national stereotypes was assessed. Focus of stereotype (typical individual/whole group), nature of judgment (extent/percentage/probability), and nationality were manipulated in a 2 × 3 × 5 design, with repeated measures on the third factor. Instructions had no effect on ratings of content, certainty, or uniformity of stereotypes, but percentage-based stereotypes were significantly less intense (p<.01). All three levels of the second instructions factor were highly correlated with liking for the national groups, but not so clearly with similarity and contact. Overall, the subjects viewed the stereotyping task negatively, especially in the probability condition (p<.025).     

Stereotypes

Summary

This study investigated relations between Fiddler's esteem for the least preferred co-worker (LPC) measure, leader behavior, and group performance among 53 first-line supervisors of life insurance agents. The overall findings indicated that the relative amount of consideration given to subordinates increased with increased group performance. However, this general trend was particularly marked with respect to low LPC supervisors. It was concluded that LPC measures a triggered behavioral disposition reflecting the degree to which leaders are responsive to task-related feedback.     

Perceptions of Americans and the Iraq Invasion: Implications for Understanding National Character Stereotypes

This study examines perceptions of the "typical American" from 49 cultures around the world. Contrary to the ethnocentric bias hypothesis, we found strong agreement between in-group and out-group ratings on the American profile (assertive, open-minded, but antagonistic); Americans in fact had a somewhat less desirable view of Americans than did others. Within cultures, in-group ratings were not systematically more favorable than out-group ratings. The Iraq invasion had a slight negative effect on perceptions of the typical American, but people around the world seem to draw a clear distinction between U.S. foreign policy and the character of the American people. National character stereotypes appear to have a variety of sources and to be perpetuated by both cognitive mechanisms and socio-cultural forces.     

Stereotypes as Pseudocontingencies

We introduce a heuristic called pseudocontingencies (PCs) as an alternative account of various stereotyping phenomena. PCs give rise to the expectation that attributes are correlated based solely on asymmetries in attribute base rates. Attributes that are encountered frequently and attributes that are encountered rarely are perceived to be correlated with each other. Such differences in information densities are typical of many stereotyped targets, including the self vs. others, the in-group vs. out-groups and majority vs. minority groups. Evidence is reviewed for PCs underlying illusory correlations, confirmation biases, gender stereotypes, Simpson’s paradox, and in procedures used for implicit stereotype measurement. PCs are shown to predict specific patterns of self-enhancement and self-depreciation, the effects of intergroup contact on in-group biases and the readiness to infer stereotypes from aggregated “big-data”. Although PCs can lead to seriously flawed stereotypic expectations, they afford an efficient and possibly adaptive inference strategy.     

交叉分类群体的理科性别刻板印象

为探讨以性别与专业构成的交叉分类群体的理科性别刻板印象,研究采用了内隐联想测验和自我报告两种方式,分别从内隐和外显两个加工层面对其予以考察.结果发现,内隐层面上四类交叉分类群体都存在理科性别刻板印象,但外显层面上只有理科男性、 文科男性和文科女性存在该刻板印象,而理科女性不存在.该结果表明理科性别刻板印象非常顽固,即使...     

从刻板印象到类属性思维

本文介绍了类属性思维准确性的定义和研究历史,着重阐述了与类属性思维准确性有关的理论模型：Allpon的分类学说,McCauley的或然性模型以及EPA模型。不可否认类属性思维中有偏见成分的存在,但准确性也是其构成中不可忽视的一部分,因此,任何理由的厚此薄彼都是不应该的。     

Sex-Role Stereotypes in Medicine

I argue for compatibility between feminism and medicine by developing a model of the physician-other relationship which is essentially egalitarian. This entails rejection of (a) a paternalistic model which reinforces sex-role stereotypes, (b) a maternalistic model which exclusively emphasizes patient autonomy, and (c) a model which focuses on the physician's conscience. The model I propose (parentalism) captures the complexity and dynamism of the physician-other relationship, by stressing mutuality in respect for autonomy and regard for each other's interests.     

Researching Ethnic Family Stereotypes

Ethnic stereotypes in the family therapy literature make intuitive sense, but are based on surprisingly little empirical data. In a questionnaire survey of the family experiences of 220 mental health professionals representing eight American ethnic groups, most items differentiated the groups as predicted. A smaller, partial replication study comparing samples from Holland, Ireland, and North America found fewer discriminating items, but the differences that did appear were again as predicted. Implications for therapy and research with ethnic families are discussed.     

Stereotypes focus defensive projection

Defensive projection is the process of perceiving one's undesirable qualities in others. The present research shows how stereotypes guide and justify the projection of specific traits onto specific group members. In four studies, the authors demonstrated that people who experienced a threat to a specific dimension of their self-concept selectively activated this dimension in a stereotype and derogated stereotyped others on this dimension. They further showed that stereotyped individuals are more likely to serve as targets of projection than are nonstereotyped individuals. These results demonstrate the functional role of stereotypes in guiding and constraining motivated self-enhancement.     

Nicknames as Sex-Role Stereotypes

Nicknames are powerful indicators of attitudes towards gender categories and because of their transient and optional nature, it has been argued that they are more likely to show a closer relationship to ongoing trends in the culture and society than other more fixed parts of the language E. B. Phillips (1990) [“Nicknames and Sex Role Stereotypes,” Sex Roles, Vol. 23, pp. 281–289]. This study reports on a survey of nickname usage among a group of South African adolescents from mixed socioeconomic backgrounds (approximately 25% other than white) in an attempt to explicate gender-linked trends in frequency of occurrence, usage and attitudes to such special names. It reveals that conventions regarding nickname coinage and usage are intimately connected to the gender of bearers and users, and that more males have nicknames and coin them than females; it also shows significant sex-linked differences in the linguistic sources and users of nicknames, and reveals a greater tendency for female nicknames to function as indicators of affection rather than for humorous or critical effect. It could be argued that these trends could be linked to the nurturing and nurtured role of females in society, and to the differences in social power generally between males and females.     

Studies of Stereotypes: I. The Directionality and Uniformity of Responses to Stereotypes

Abstract

Cattell, R. B. Personality and Motivation: Structure and Measurement. New York: World Book, 1957. Reviewed by J. A. Radcliffe.     

How Stereotypes Stifle Performance Potential

In academic and organizational domains, performance measures are often used to assess achievement or aptitude. When certain groups of people systematically underperform on such measures, a common interpretation is that the groups differ in inherent ability. However, social psychological research over the past 15 years has documented a phenomenon called stereotype threat whereby subtle situational reminders of negative stereotypes can stifle the performance of those who are targeted by them. In this article, we review research aimed at understanding the sequence of cognitive and affective processes that underlie these situationally‐induced performance impairments. We review evidence that being the target of negative stereotypes cues self‐uncertainty and a physiological stress response, engages more explicit monitoring of one’s performance, and efforts to regulate unwanted negative thoughts and feelings. Alone or in concert, these extra‐task processes hijack cognitive resources needed for successful performance. Armed with the knowledge of these mediating mechanisms, we then review evidence from both field and laboratory based research demonstrating that gender and racial gaps in achievement can be alleviated if not eliminated through creative and often subtle interventions that diffuse the pernicious effects that stereotypes can have.     

Stereotypes as justifications of prejudice

Three experiments investigate how stereotypes form as justifications for prejudice. The authors created novel content-free prejudices toward unfamiliar social groups using either subliminal (Experiment 1, N = 79) or supraliminal (Experiment 2, N = 105; Experiment 3, N = 130) affective conditioning and measured the consequent endorsement of stereotypes about the groups. Following the stereotype content model, analyses focused on the extent to which stereotypes connoted warmth or competence. Results from all three experiments revealed effects on the warmth dimension but not on the competence dimension: Groups associated with negative affect were stereotyped as comparatively cold (but not comparatively incompetent). These results provide the first evidence that-in the absence of information, interaction, or history of behavioral discrimination-stereotypes develop to justify prejudice.     

Gender-Emotion Stereotypes Are Context Specific

Previous research has documented that specificemotions are differentially associated with women andmen. For example, sadness and happiness arestereotypically associated with girls and women, whereas anger and pride are stereotypically associatedwith men. The present research qualifies these previousfindings by establishing that gender-emotion stereotypesare context specific. Twenty-four scenarios were developed that depicted a target personover-or underreacting to happy, sad, or angry events ineither an interpersonal or an achievement context.Thirty-three female and 44 male Caucasian undergraduates judged how characteristic these reactions werefor women and men. The results demonstrated thatoverreactions to happyand sad events were morecharacteristic of women in the interpersonal context,but were more characteristic of men in the achievementcontext. Overreactions to angry scenarios, however, weremore characteristic of men, regardless of context. Theimplications of the context-dependent nature of gender-emotion stereotypes for men and womenare discussed.     

Measuring Stereotypes of Female Politicians

One explanation for the dearth of women in elected office is that voters stereotype candidates based on their gender. Research in this vein often assumes that female candidates will be stereotyped similarly to women (e.g., as compassionate) and measures stereotypes as such. We question this assumption, proposing instead that female politicians constitute a subtype—a new stereotypical category with its own qualities—of the broader group of women. We compare the content of female politician stereotypes to other relevant comparison groups including politicians, male politicians, and female professionals. Using a classic methodology to determine stereotype content (Katz & Braly, 1933), we find that female politicians do not share the qualities that are ascribed to women (e.g., warm, empathetic). Our results show that female politicians seem to be “losing” on male stereotypical qualities while also not having any advantage on qualities typical of women. The content of female politician stereotypes is nebulous and lacks clarity in comparison to all other groups examined. We discuss implications for the future measurement of politician stereotypes.