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Essay on stigmatization
Essay on stigmatization
gordon allport views on prejudice
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When Gordon Allport published The Nature of Prejudice in 1954, he provided the basis for further empirical studies on the nature of human interrelationships of in-group and intergroup nature. To understand stereotypes in relation to in/intergroup, we first need to provide a general background of the terms. According to Allport (1979), what usually defines an in-group is that all of its members "use the term we with the same essential significance." (p. 31) For example, members can be brought together by affiliations in relation to profession, education (i.e. particular schools, colleges), church, etc. The attachment in such cases is variable and flexible, meaning one can change profession or school and thus become member of a different in-group. By in-groups, we therefore understand a particular affiliation to smaller groups or groups which belong to certain constructions. Ethnic groups and race groups are also considered part of the category; however, these are understood as much larger assemblies. Secondly, "intergroup" refers to the relations occurring between two or more social groups. Stereotyping occurs both in-group and intergroup. This assumes that, within an in-group, although individuals share similar visions in relation to the nature of the group, stereotyping may still occur. Because any group is of social nature, different organizational structures and ranks will exist. As such, within an in-group, higher-status and dominant units exert influence upon most of the in-group. When high – ranked groups criticize those under their subordination, the latter may come to assimilate those negative perceptions, the discriminatory behavior leading thus to feelings of low self-esteem or dissociation. This can r... ... middle of paper ... ...h Psychology, 41, 365 – 385. Retrieved from http://www.psor.ucl.ac.be/personal/yzerbyt/Castano%20et%20al.%20BJSP%202002.pdf Dollard, J., Doob, L.W. Miller, N. E., Mowrer, O. H., & Sears, R. R. (1939). Frustration and aggression. New Haven: Yale University Press. Gordon, Allport. (1979). The Nature of Prejudice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. Sherif, M. (1966). Group conflict and cooperation: Their social psychology. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Tajfel, H. (Ed.). (1978). Differentiation between social groups. London: Academic Press. Tajfel, H. (1981). Human groups and social categories. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In W. G. Austin & S. Worchel (Eds.), The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33-47). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Sherif argued that intergroup conflict occurs when two groups are in competition for limited resources. This theory is supported by evidence from a famous study investigating group conflict: The Robbers Cave (Sherif, 1954, 1958, 1961). Sherif (1954) conducted an experiment with young boys in a summer camp. The participants were 24 schoolboys, came from the similar,
A stereotype can have multiple meanings, but one of the most prevailing definitions is that it assumes that groups are representable through a consolidated
In many circles of the world, various groups of people distinguish themselves from one another through religion, language, culture, and sometimes gender. People also develop stereotypes about a particular group of people in order to identify them. However, most of the time, these stereotypes hold true for only some members of a group. Sometimes, these stereotypes are just plain misconceptions that do not even apply to the group it claims to. Stereotypes are placed on people because it is a way to easily identify what type of person or ethnicity an individual is. At one point in time, these stereotypes may have been true; however, in today’s modern society, most of these stereotypes are outdated and false, which leads them to turn into misconceptions. Usually, stereotypes are utilized to humiliate and degrade the person or group; they also do not provide any beneficial outcomes. Stereotypes focus on how a particular group acts because of the radical ideas and actions of the few, how a particular group looks, or how that group is physically lacking in some way. These stereotypes often lead to conflicts because the group does not appreciate the way it is being perceived. Seldom are the stereotypes placed on a group of people truthful and accurate. Some hardly even apply to the particular group people it claims to. It is true that how people are perceived has a big impact on how other individuals interact with them; however, people are not perceiving these groups correctly.
Levine, S. (1998) Getting to resolution turning conflict into collaboration. San Francisco, CA, Berrett-Koehler, (p.125)
Tajifel, H. a. (1986). The social identity theory of inter-group behavior. Psychology of Intergroup Relations. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/258189
Hocker & Wilmot, 2007, Poole, & Stutman, 2005 Folger and 2007 Cahn& Abigail. "Interpersonal Conflict and Conflict Management." Devito, Joseph A. The Interpersonal Communication Book. Boston: Pearson, Allyn & Bacon, 2009. 276.
“Two dangers arise when in-group members have little exposure to out-groups members or knowledge of out-group history” (Ramirez-Berg pg. 18). One is that history can be replaced by other group’s experience. Two is the stereotypical image can be taken as normal or even natural. The five functions of stereotyping that are developed and passed on to others. The first two are focused on a personal level. One is cognitive function of the environment. Two is motivational function protecting values. “The remaining three are at group level, where stereotypes contribute to the creation and maintenance of group beliefs which are then used…” (Ramirez-Berg pg. 28). Three is explaining in a large-scale social event. Four is to justify action. Five is to differentiate in and out
The first characteristic of stereotyping is over-generalisation. A number of studies conducted found that different combinations of traits were associated with groups of different ethnic and national origin (Katz and Braly, 1933). However, stereotyping does not imply that all members of a group are judged in these ways, just that a typical member of a group can be categorised in such judgements, that they possess the characteristics of the group. Still, when we talk of a group, we do so by imagining a member of that group.
A persons' prejudices against a group of people are thought of or determined by their ideas about the group. These images and ideas about the group are called stereotypes. Stewart describes a stereotype as, "... a mental picture we carry around with us to help us deal with people on a day-to-day basis." (13) Stereotypes dealing with minorities are usually negative. The stereotypes of the group help strengthen the majorities' beliefs that they are superior and the minority is inferior.
In all aspects of their lives we associate with various groups, for example demographic, cultural or peer groups. Social Identity theory developed by Henri Tajfel in 1979 explains how people develop a sense of belonging and membership in particular groups. This theory explains behaviors in terms of social groups, we form social groups and create perceptions of others and ourselves that are influenced by the various groups to which we belong. A social group is a set of individuals who hold a common social identification or view themselves as members of the same social category (Chen & Li, 2009). Individuals can have multiple, co-occurring identities which could vary. This paper aims to explain how the Social Identity theory is used to explain violence and prejudice behavior and it also looks at the advantages and disadvantages of this theory compared to other theories in explaining the same behavior.
Thomas, K. W. (1992). Conflict and conflict management: Reflections and update. . Journal Of Organizational Behavior, 13(3), 265-274.
Pruitt, Dean G, and Sung Hee Kim. Social Conflict: Escalation, Stalemate, and Settlement. 3rd ed. 2004. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2004.
Prejudice, discrimination, and stereotyping are important topics at the cause of debating within social psychology. A stereotype is a generalization about a group of people, in which certain traits cling to all members, regardless of actual individual variation (Akert, Aronson, & Wilson, 2010). As humans, people assign objects and individuals into categories to organize the environment. Individuals do this for not only organization, but also survival. Is stereotyping inevitable? That is the question; according to Devine (2007), it is, but Lepore and Brown (2007) have to disagree. Devine believes that “stereotyping is automatic, which makes it inevitable.” On the other hand, Lepore and Brown are not convinced that stereotyping is automatic, and have claimed, after observation, that it depends on the individual.
People have been put into categorizes all their lives by individuals and society based on features or aspects. As people are grouped into different categories, ideals of their character and personality based on just those categories. This is called stereotyping, Stereotypes has affected people of different races, and ethnicities. The overall issue with racial stereotyping is over generalization and discrimination which comes from implicit biases and stereotype threat. This can be seen throughout history such as slavery to today in media and academics.
Human beings are predisposed to group themselves into communities often on arbitrary basis’ (such as sports teams) to foster a sense of belonging. This is a beneficial trait that allows for a sense of self within a community, which is integral to the mental wellbeing of humans. Since “Ingroups” are created by groups of people who hold a shared belief or characteristic (ethnicity, gender, religious affiliation etc.), there is typically a group who holds an alternate, if not completely opposite belief. Strict adherence to “Ingroup” and “Outgroup” distinctions can lead to the dehumanization of the perceived “Outgroup” and cause serious rifts if the two groups reside in a single society. This is evidently seen in the conversation between communities