Frequently people will meet a stereotype at some point during their lives. Often times stereotypes are made accidentally. nevertheless they can still harm those who have been stereotyped. While I witness many different stereotypes each twenty-four hours. there are three stereotypes that occur in my life more than others. When traversing waies with others I will frequently be below the belt stereotyped due to my light-haired hair and my gender. I besides witness pigeonholing against my hubby for his seeable tattoos. The stating ‘don’t justice a book by its cover’ crosses my head frequently as I deal with the actions that occur due to pigeonholing.
Pigeonholing can sometimes harm the person and do many negative results. While all stereotypes are generalisations. non all generalisations are stereotypes. Stereotypes are simplisms of people groups widely circulated in certain societies ( About. com. 2013 ) . A stereotype may be positive or negative. However many negative stereotypes can be harmful to those who are negatively stereotyped. A stereotype menace refers to being at hazard of corroborating. as self-characteristic. a negative stereotype about one’s group ( reducingstereotypethreat. roentgenium. 2009 ) .
For illustration a individual who is stereotyped to be non as smart due to their race may get down believe they are really non smart and will so non execute every bit good on tests when their race is emphasized. while any other clip they may execute better. Mosser ( 2011 ) shows that frequently the false belief of headlong generalisation can take to damaging stereotypes made on the footing of merely a few illustrations. Stereotypes about adult females. spiritual groups. minorities. cultural groups. and so forth are frequently based on this type of logical thinking.
Pulling wide and really general decisions based on deficient grounds can therefore lead to harmful consequences. non merely for the victim of the stereotype but besides for the individual making the stereotyping ( Mosser. 2011 ) . One stereotype I have encountered since I was a small was the ‘dumb blonde’ stereotype. Why I have been thought of as dumb based on the colour of my hair has ne’er made sense to me. Often this stereotype has been brought up in a joking mode made to badger me about a cockamamie error I have made.
However even when said in the most loving and jesting mode. it is still hurtful. The statement for my ‘dumb blonde’ stereotype is frequently made one time I make a cockamamie error or make non cognize how to make something that most everyone else knows how to make. They argue that my error must hold been made due to the fact that I am a blonde. Some how I have ever felt that people regard me as a dense blonde before I may even hold a opportunity to talk. When I am about people who tease me about being a dense blonde I will seek so difficult to non do any cockamamie errors that I frequently end up doing more!
The mistake in concluding with the dense blonde statement is that my hair colour has perfectly no consequence on my IQ. A 2nd stereotype that I am continually combating is a gender related one. I have been thought of as weak physically. mentally. and emotionally. The train of idea that follows with this is that I am a adult female. my musculuss are non as large. and my emotions are rampant due to brainsick endocrines. There are many wrong premises with this statement. I may be a adult female. but I am strong mentally. emotionally and physically.
My gender has nil to make with my mental province or my physical strength. A 3rd stereotype that I have witnessed is one that happens to my hubby because he has some seeable tattoos on his weaponries. He has been thought of as unprofessional and even as a ‘rough’ adult male because of his tattoos. My hubby is one of the kindest. smartest and most difficult working. professional people I have of all time known. One clip he was fixing a work presentation when an HR lady told him that he needed to travel place and cover up his tattoos because he would frighten off the possible clients he was showing to.
She reasoned that people who get tattoos are unsmooth people who frequently have anger issues and can be chilling. She mentioned that a Hells Angel bike nine member she one time met had tattoos and was a truly unsmooth and chilling adult male with an unpleasant attitude. This statement is a headlong generalisation. She felt that because she met one unpleasant tattooed adult male that all were that manner. and that everyone else would experience the same. Many people have hasty generalisations when it comes to a stereotype. They meet one person who acted a manner and so they include everyone that might resemble that individual in a little manner into that group.
Stereotypes may non ever be negative. sometimes people may presume the best of person due to a stereotype. However pigeonholing can be hurtful and even endanger a person’s character. As the US News ( 2010 ) article provinces. people who felt they were discriminated against – whether based on gender. age. race or faith – all experient important impacts even after they were removed from the state of affairs ( Us News. 2010 ) . It is best to judge person for who they genuinely are. non based on past beliefs or beliefs of a group.
