A Critical Discussion of the Psychological Explanations of Prejudice
Gordon Allport described prejudice as “aversive or hostile attitude
toward a person who belongs to a group, simply because he belongs to
that group, and is therefore presumed to have the objectionable
qualities ascribed to that group”. Prejudice is assuming things about
a person putting them into a group. The aim of this essay is discuss
the attempts to reduce prejudice and explain how successful they have
been. In this essay, it is prejudice in the form of racism and
prejudice against homosexuals that I will use
It is important that we know what discrimination means. Discrimination
is very similar to prejudice, rather than just being a thought or
opinion on something, discrimination is the thoughts from being
prejudice influencing a person’s behaviour in a negative way.
There are many explanations of prejudice given by psychologists and I
will write about these in my essay. One psychological theory by
Stephan and Stephen called Integrated Threat Theory of Prejudice
describes how fear can cause prejudice. This fear has a few sources,
one being that a person has the belief that the other person will do
them harm, another is the other persons attitude will challenge their
own and the belief that any contact with the other person will cause
embarrassment, rejection or ridicule (2000 Clayton Tucker-Ladd).
Another theory by psychologists to explain prejudice is that we learn
prejudiced attitudes. An example of this is it can pay to be
prejudiced, such as the boss who pays his female worker 20% less than
males. Another example in which people learn prejudiced ...
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... from each other’s differences.
Prejudices will always be around; if people took an interest in each
other then this would decrease. It is important that studies on the
subject continue to help our future society.
Bibliography
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Eddie Baker
(2004) Internet,
http://www.stonewall.org.uk/stonewall/?CFID=251547&CFTOKEN=82061104
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http://www.c21project.org.uk/citizenship_21/?CFID=251547&CFTOKEN=82061104
Gleitman, (1981) Psychology, Fourth Edition published by Norton pp565
Internet, http://www.beyondprejudice.com Jim Cole
(2000) Internet,
http://www.biography.com/search/article.jsp?aid=9340144&page=8&search
Biography Resource Centre, Gale Group
(2000) Internet, http://mentalhelp.net/psyhelp/ Clayton Tucker-Ladd
There are many examples throughout “The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street” that show that prejudice is a human flaw. According to Les Goodman, “You were so quick to kill, Charlie, and you were so quick to tell us who we had to be careful off. Well maybe you had to kill. Maybe Peter there was trying to tell us something. Maybe he’d found out something
Prejudice is an issue that cannot be easily avoided in today's society. It has and always will have a huge impact on the discrimination that some people face based on religion, appearance, background, mental/physical disabilities and etc.
“The psychological approach to prejudice is to examine individual behavior.” (pg. 505) the author reveals the argument he is trying to make through the article by using the psychology of prejudices to research individual behavior and then explains how to reach this conclusion. “We can understand more about prejudice among individuals by focusing on four areas of study…” (pg. 505) the author organizes the article in this fashion to first reveal the point the author wants to express to the reader then illustrate step by step how he will persuade the reader into believing the author. Throughout the article the author separates his argument into four sections the levels of prejudice, self-justification, personality, and frustration. Each category helps the author dive the reader in depth of how the psychology of prejudices works. The author then continues onto his article of describing and defining each area of study “cognitive level of prejudice encompasses a person’s beliefs and of a group as threatening or non-threatening etc., emotional level of prejudice encompasses the feeling that a minority group arouses in an individual…action-orientation level of prejudice is the positive or negative predisposition to engage in discriminatory behavior.” (pg.
Family, friends, work environment or media can be a factor in promoting prejudice against others. A certain individual can learn discrimination, plus prejudice, in the factors I illustrated. In the ...
Jr., Bernard E. Whitley and Mary E. Kite. The Psychology of Prejudice and Discrimination. Belmont: Cengage Learning, 2010. Web.
Brown's (1995) definition of stereotyping through prejudice is the 'holding of derogatory social attitudes or cognitive beliefs, the expression of negative affect, or the display of hostile or discriminatory behaviour towards members of a group on account of their membership to that group'. This definition implies that stereotyping is primarily a group process, through the individuals psyche's within that group. A further idea of stereotyping, defined by Allport (1954) as 'thinking ill of others without warrant', is that people 'make their mind up' without any personal experience. This pre judgement about a whole group is then transferred to the stigmatisation of any individuals in that group. It is these ideas that the essay aims to evaluate, through the cognitive process of categorisation and the above definitions that bring about three distinct features of stereotyping, that our cognition can be demonstrated through.
Segregation has and still affects perceptions of Blackness inside and outside the Black community by making Black people see themselves as White people see them. Many of Black people have accepted the fallacy that they were inferior to White people at a young age, and Whites learned that Blacks were lower then Whites at a young age as well.
Many often justify discrimination through the means of statistical evidence, claiming that groups that are stigmatized deserve their treatment by citing negative attributes about them. However, this paradox is frequently unresolved to even those who realize the fallacy in discrimination. Several researchers in social psychology, including Galen V. Bodenhausen and Jennifer A. Richeson, have offered potential reasons behind this happening; “It should come as no surprise that individuals’ attitudes and stereotypical beliefs affect the way intergroup interactions unfold. Indeed, individuals who harbor negative stereotypes about the group membership of their interaction partners often display behavior that conforms to their stereotypical beliefs”(Bodenhausen & Richeson, 361). This shows how those discriminated against are likely to adapt to their societal status, and thus often behave according to their respective stereotypes. From this, one can begin to infer that this paradox is a reinforcing cycle, and that prejudice forms as a result of discrimination. Building upon this trend, in the final chapters of the text, a Peters reflects on the trends and results derived from Jane’s exercises, and how it related to the act of discrimination itself; “But even more pernicious, [the exercise] also illustrates how the results of discrimination tend
Prejudice is an unjustified opinion for another human being that can be sparked for the simplest reasons. Throughout history, prejudice has plagued the world- in fact, in the eighteenth hundreds, it was detrimental to have a darker skin color. In literature, the idea of prejudice is incessant especially in the famous story of Frankenstein, by Mary Shelly. Victor fashions together unused decayed body parts to create his creature. Nearly everyone assumes he is horrible dangerous based off his appearance. At first appearance, the creature is terrifying, but eventually we learn he is warm-hearted. From start to finish, he is hit with endless amounts of prejudice and as a result of the author’s work, Shelly was able to show the world the psychological
Prejudice can be caused because of various reasons. Religion, ethnic race and social status are examples of causes of prejudice. Sometimes prejudice is caused by how we are raised. Many times parents pass on prejudice beliefs to their children. A lot people raised in the southern part of the country are prejudice against blacks. In the early to mid 1960’s, prejudice was alive and well in the south. Blacks had their own bathrooms and were forced to ride in the back of city busses. It’s hard to believe that was doing on only 40 years ago. A lot of Middle Eastern countries are very prejudice against women.
To estimate means to estimate (something) to be smaller or less important than it actually is. Underestimate can lead to people doubting themselves because other people are underestimating them making them feel worthless. When people feel worthless they tend to not talk to anyone and just want to be alone just being lonely all because people underestimated them and now they hate their life. When people start to hate their life they might commit suicide killing themselves and never coming back to life. People shouldn’t underestimate people because sometimes they can take it personal.
Social Psychologists can help resolve this issue by studying the reasons why some people practice prejudice and then teaching people how to reach within themselves and alter negative perceptions of others. Once we learn some of the ways discrimination is conceived, we may find ways that avoid the creation of them and decrease the likelihood of it occurring. To alter this harsh behavior, one must surround himself with the type of environment that encourages the positive characteristics of living with individuals who are different from him. “Confidence is knowing who you are and not changing it a bit because of someone’s version of reality is not your reality”
Darcy jumped awake at the sound of pounding on the door. With slow, deliberate care, he ejected himself away from Amanda so not to wake her, and slipped out from under the covers, catching the time on the nightstand as he moved. Who would disturb them at half past four in the morning? It must be Wickham.
Prejudice is another obstacle that clients are faced with because of an assumption made about them. Being prejudice can negatively impact emotional well-being and one's sense of self. Actions of others may stop a client from getting the help or assistance they may need because of the fear of being judged. Prejudice often stems from stereotypes about groups of people. “Fear, uncertainty, stubbornness, denial, lack of confidence or a lack of hope, or even the inability to envision the future can be significant obstacles to change” (Summers, 2014, p. 240).
Everyone has some prejudices or biases that guide how they treat others throughout the day. Sometimes, those prejudices are so intense that others are harmed or treated badly in the workplace where everyone should be treated with respect. Common prejudices are based on race, ethnicity, and cultural backgrounds. This paper will look at when a party is treated differently because of ethnicity even if they are of the same race as the person prejudicial to them.