stereotype threat

Examples of stereotype threat in the following topics:

• The Psychological Perspective

  • This study thus demonstrated that stereotype threats can be created on the spot.
  • Stereotype Threat is the experience of anxiety or concern in a situation where a person has the potential to confirm a negative stereotype about their social group.
  • Stereotype Threat is a potential contributing factor to long-standing racial and gender gaps in academic performance.
  • Since most people have at least one social identity which is negatively stereotyped, most people are vulnerable to Stereotype Threat if they encounter a situation in which the stereotype is relevant.
  • Individuals show higher degrees of Stereotype Threat on tasks they wish to perform well on and when they identify strongly with the stereotyped group.

• Cultural and Societal Influences on Child Development

  • Children are taught the stereotypes that go along with their particular race(s), as well as the races of others, and these stereotypes can have a strong influence on their development.
  • Stereotypes and racialized expectations often contribute to stereotype threat, in which a child experiences anxiety or concern in a situation that has the potential to confirm a negative stereotype about his or her social group.
  • For example, if an African-American child is given the message that black people are not as "smart" as white people, she may worry if she is not doing well in school because it will, she fears, confirm the negative stereotype.
  • Importantly, stereotype threat has been shown to be something of a self-fulfilling prophecy—not because the negative stereotype is accurate, but because fear of fulfilling that stereotype can lead to additional anxiety, which in turn can reduce performance.
  • For example, stereotype threat can lower the intellectual performance of black students taking the SAT, due to the stereotype that they are less intelligent than other groups, which may cause them to feel additional pressure and anxiety.

• Gender Discrimination

  • Gender discrimination refers to prejudice or discrimination based on gender, as well as conditions that foster stereotypes of gender roles.
  • Sexist mindsets are frequently based on beliefs in traditional stereotypes of gender roles, and is thus built into many societal institutions.
  • Gender stereotypes are widely held beliefs about the characteristics and behavior of women and men.
  • They can also facilitate or impede intellectual performance, such as the stereotype threat that lower women's performance on mathematics tests, due to the stereotype that women have inferior quantitative skills compared to men's, or when the same stereotype leads men to assess their own task ability higher than women performing at the same level.
  • A poster depicting gender stereotypes about women drivers from the 1950s

• Group Differences in Intelligence

  • Potential causes include socioeconomics, test bias, and stereotype threat.
  • Stereotype threat is the fear that a person's behavior will naturally and unconsciously conform to the stereotypes that define that person's group.
  • Testing situations that highlight the fact that intelligence is being calculated have been shown to lower scores in groups of people that associate themselves with the stereotype of a lower IQ group.
  • Review the state of research examining the causes of group differences in intelligence and the effect of stereotype threat on performance

• Teachers' Expectations

  • Gender stereotyping within classrooms can also lead to differences in academic achievement and representation for female and male students.
  • Gender stereotyping within classrooms can also lead to differences in academic achievement and representation for female and male students.
  • Research on the stereotype threat has shown that gender stereotypes decrease the mathematical self-esteem of many female students, and that this lack of academic confidence leads to anxiety and poorer performance on math exams.
  • Therefore, these stereotypes can influence student achievement in these areas.
  • Discuss how a teacher's perception influences student performance, in terms of expectations and gender stereotypes

• Diversity Bias

  • Examples include the false-consensus bias, status quo bias, in-group favoritism, and stereotyping.
  • As this can include the allocation of resources, promotions and other critical organizational attributes, it poses a serious threat to inclusion (and the benefits of inclusion).
  • Stereotyping is categorizing—in ways that may or may not accurately reflect reality—specific types of individuals or certain ways of doing things.
  • While stereotypes do not necessarily lead to prejudice and/or discrimination, expectations and beliefs about the characteristics of members of groups perceived as different from one's own can lead to misunderstandings, inflexibility, stifled innovation, and potentially damaging group behaviors.

• The Inclusive Workplace

  • The primary threats to an inclusive culture are groupthink, discrimination, stereotyping, and defensiveness.

• Gender and Sociology

  • The attitudes and expectations surrounding gender roles are not typically based on any inherent or natural gender differences, but on gender stereotypes, or oversimplified notions about the attitudes, traits, and behavior patterns of males and females.
  • Gender stereotypes form the basis of sexism, or the prejudiced beliefs that value males over females.
  • This threat of punishment for stepping outside of gender norms is especially true for those who do not identify as male or female.
  • Every time we see someone riding a motorcycle and assume, without looking closely, that they are male, we are engaging in gender stereotyping.
  • This particular gender stereotype assumes that women are too timid or weak to ride a motorcycle.

• Stereotypes in Everyday Life

  • Stereotypes are usually inaccurate in their universal application.
  • In applying a stereotype, one is able to quickly "know" something about an individual.
  • For example, it is a common stereotype that people who wear glasses are smart.
  • Stereotyping can lead to prejudice, or negative perceived judgements about a group of people.
  • Police officers buying donuts and coffee is a popular stereotype of officers in the United States.

• Managing Organizational Diversity

  • This means that management will carefully control diversity, minimizing the negative elements (stereotyping, discrimination, inequity, groupthink, etc.) while empowering the positive elements (innovative thinking, health conflict, inclusive culture, etc.).
  • Outline the way in which the HR framework approaches diversity in the workplace, capturing opportunity and avoiding threats.