Identify a situation where stereotypes (as a schemata used in organizing perceptions) are useful and helpful in a communication situation. Next, identify a situation where that same stereotype becomes unproductive and perhaps damaging.
Look for both the useful and necessary aspects of stereotyping, as well as the negative connotations this term often carries. That is, stereotypes allow humans to make predictions about situations and people, and that this is a necessary process so we are not constantly overwhelmed with new information. However, this can be unproductive if we do not continually seek to engage in person-centeredness to distinguish people from the social groups in which categorize them.
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I starting reading a magazine article about girls comparing other girls. I don't like when people compare people to others because it makes the people feel they are not good enough or not popular enough. Each person is it's own in different ways. People are rude and mean sometimes when comparing people. Each person is unique and different and that what makes us who we are today.
I believe stereotypes can be good for jobs. If you act and look professional and that's how they stereotype you, than that can be a good thing. I know I get stereotyped as being a rebel and maybe not such a good person, because I have tattoo's. These stereotypes are just the opposite of who I really am.
Ashley I really liked your comments about comparing eachother. I agree with you that everyone should be themselves and that comparing is rude, but sometimes it can help you change the way you are in a good way.
When I was in High School, my English teacher asked for the class to find a partner and write down what we think about them without conversing. After that, we were told to share our notes with the other person. The girl that I partnered with was wearing all black and pink clothing with chains, she had a lot of jewelery on and wore some heavy eye liner. I wrote that she might like punk bands and THOUGHT that she was the kind of person who may have had some trouble in the past. This is what I percieved her to be. But in all reality, she was not even close. She enjoyed pop music and attended church on a weekly basis. I was very surprised and aplogized if any of the negative steryotypes were offensive to her. This lesson tought us not to "judge a book by their cover". It was a positive experience for me because I learned a lot about her, and found that I shouldn't judge someone the way I judged her that day.
When I was in High school, I saw this girl, who had a funny accent. She was new of course to the school and waltzed around like she owned the place. I refused to talk to her, because I thought she was a skank for dressing innapropriately and I thought she was a stuck up snob. Come to find out we were lab partneres. I didn't want to be her lab partner, but did anyway. Come to find out, she was a virgin (not a skank) and she was the sweetest girl That I probably have ever met. I felt so bad. Now she and I are best of friends.
hello class
I work at McDonald's were alot of the managers play favotites. Our GM trys to stop the favoritism but he himself does it. A lot of times people don't know that they are doing something so negatively. Playing favorites can hurt others around you by not talking to them as much or by, putting them in a position they wish to not be in. People at my work the crew in general, play favorites on the managers as well, I dont' have a big deal with this because I get alone with all my managers but still like some more than others. I can also see others points of views becuase they sometimes feel they are not as of important as another crew member. Playing favorites can get very out of hand but, yet be ok with some things. Playing favorites is a sterotype at my work, and problems need to get fix soon.
When I was in High School the janators would come into the study halls in the spring and ask for volunteers to help set up the track equipment. Almost everybody would want to go help but the janators would always only take the people they tought were strong enough. They stereotyped us by how big our muscles were. They judged us by what they thought was a well muscled.
Stereotypes are good in a number of ways such as jobs or even in school like if you are dressed professional or if you have great posture or poise they will look at you as being professional or reliable. But in the same instance if you are 15min late and are dressed like a bum they will see you as unreliable or unable to perform in that environment.
After working at an animal shelter, I’ve noticed that not only people get stereotyped, but animals do as well. Pit Bulls and other members of the bully breed are often stereotyped as mean and aggressive. Snakes are stereotyped as scary and gross.
The plus side to stereotyping in this case is not petting a dog that looks like a pit bull, because you think you might get bit. Because of the breed stereotype, many places, such as the city of Cadott, have banned pit bulls, Rottweilers, Doberman Pinchers, and other “vicious breeds.” Snakes are widely feared, probably because of the movie Snakes on a Plane, and there is the occasional story about people getting bit and not having the cure for the venom.
But the positive side is that not all Pit Bulls are bad. There are some very sweet and cuddly ones out there. I would personally work with a pit bull over a Chihuahua any day. Because of them being stereotyped as dangerous dogs, many to get euthanized, mostly to irresponsible ownership, but please don’t get me started on that topic.
Snakes also can make very cool pets. I know one who likes to sit on your shoulders and snuggle with you. They are in no way as needy as a cat and dog. And they eat less also.
I, myself have often stereotyped people only to find out that I am completely wrong!! People often stereotype others on how they are dressed, how they look or carry themselves, what they are doing, basically people can make a stereotype out of anything. Some can be used in a positive way, such as if you’re going to a job interview. You would want to look professional, and arrive on time. If you do that your interviewer could make an assumption about you that you will be reliable, arrive on time to work, and look professional. However, stereotypes can also be negative. Such as, I was at my friend’s birthday party about a year ago and since we were all friends I knew just about everyone there. There was one girl in particular, whom I had never met before, and one of my male friends had invited her. I thought “oh here we go again another one of Alex’s ‘stuck-up hot girls.’” One of my other friends and I were standing in a corner kind of just staring at her and talking about her, making assumptions, and then we finally met her. My friend and I found out that our assumptions were completely wrong and this girl was actually really cool and not at all stuck up. Now this girl and I are best friends and I couldn’t imagine life without her because we have become so close. However, I’m not quite sure if I’ve learned my lesson not to stereotype because I still do it, but I guess it’s human nature, so that is a negative aspect of it. People are always going to stereotype other people.
Whether we want to admit it or not, we all make stereotypes, even subconsciously at times. Some positive aspects of stereotyping may be things such as the way a person articulates themselves. Someone who is able to articulate and use a larger vocabulary may be stereotyped as intelligent and cultivated.
First impressions can and do make a difference (as noted as in dressing well for a job interview), but first impressions can also create negative stereotypes also. However, that doesn’t mean one should not take a second look as some of us have found out in finding a new friend or even taking a new job etc.
Stereotypes can prove to be negative since it may prohibits us from thinking freely for ourselves and letting us make our own decisions. For example, I breed and train a certain breed of horse that are “stereotyped” as being flighty, hard to handle, and at times hard to train. For years I have been showing others that one “bad apple” in a bunch can make people stereotype a whole group, or as in my example breed of horse. Due to this stereotype some people could have passed up some nice horses and are thankful they took a chance and found out for themselves that it all depends on the horse, not the breed. The same context could go for a group of people as well.
In my former position as a manager, it was my job to interview all the applicants. On many occasions I would stereotype them based on there attire or personal hygeine. If they came into my office looking like they just rolled out of bed and not really into what I am saying, I would make a note not to call them back. However, when someone came in dressed nice but still not really saying what I want to hear I would make the note to grant them a second interview.
I guess it comes down to stereotyping people based on how they look. In a business setting I have the mindset that if people can't take the time to prepare enough for an interview than why should I consider them for a position. This may be a bad thing considering that some people may not have the means to dress properly. But in my opinion, I think all of us stereotype in one way or another. I have taken steps to be more open to all types of people from all walks of life so I can get to know someone for who they are instead of writing them off solely based on looks or backround.
During high school I stereotyped I admit, not saying I’m proud of this fact, but when you move several times from school to school you tend to look for friendly faces. The most common way is to look for people you believe would accept you into their group. For example in the several schools I went to there were similar groups no matter where I was. You had Jocks, preps, geeks, dopers, gothic, just to name a few. Where ever you would see yourself fitting in, was the group you would try to be a part of. Not saying that is right but that’s what I seem to do today.
One major down fall is that you never get to know the person you have just stereotyped; you just place them into a category and forget about them. Before you place any one in a category first get their name and an idea of what they are about; what drives that person then I believe you have an idea of where that person belongs, it might be with you if you gave them a real chance. Sometimes it’s harder to make friends than enemies I have noticed.
I think a stereotype can be a good thing if you do it positively. I don't really know how to describe it properly, but it's like when you want to do something for someone you don't know real well, you try to stereotype them to predict if they will like the gesture or not.
Otherwise, I've only ever thought of stereotyping as a negative thing. I think most of the time, stereotypes are negative and they push people apart.
In High School and Middle School for that matter, I had a few run ins with the Native American students that attended my school. After the first run in that I had which I feel bad saying got physical, I put this sterotype in my head that all Native American's were mean and thought that they were better then you. Later on in my High School career I realized that most of the Native American students in my school, which I hadn't even bothered to get to know, were the complete opposite of what I thought that they were. They turned out to be just like me, equal, friendly, and caring. Because I had put this stereotype on them it prevented me from becoming friends with most of them earlier in life. I learned that stereotyping people in a negetive way can work against you in the long run.
Another example of stereotyping somebody in a good way would be, if you put them in a catagory for the way that they dress and present themselves in a business like setting. If somebody comes into an interview or meeting dressed neatly and has all of their belongings organized you could assume that they are prepared and ready for anything.
I have experienced several stereotypes in my life and have used many also. But one that sticks with me is the one that I know nothing about kids because I don’t have any of my own. Just recently I have experienced this one again! I have had this happen way too many times, by people who know me very well to ones who don’t know me at all. But what some don’t know is that my mom did daycare while I was growing up and since the age ten I have babysitting. At ten I was babysitting for at least two kids at a time. So since I was a newborn I have been surrounding by children. It doesn’t take being a mom to know that a baby has a stomach ache, is hungry or to know when they need their diaper changed. I run into something similar also when it comes to my friends who are married or in a relationship. If I were to give some input about the relationships, they right out say well how would you know, you’re single! I like to say that I am single, because I do know! But that’s another whole story! I know I can’t relate specifically to moms or people who are in relationships or married. But I know more than one would think considering I am single and have no children. This does hurt in a way, because taking care of kids is something that I have prided myself on. Now the majority of the kids that I have babysat are graduating high school, it is great to know that I had a little part in raising them. The way that this stereotype could help is where if one does have children, one may be stereotyped automatically as a good parent. Which then I guess could also be damaging if they are not a good parent.
If you are looking to communicate with someone you are likely to approach someone that seems friendly and willing to talk. This can be good because you may be able to get along with them if they are friendly and willing to share ideas. However a person you labeled as talkative really isn’t or they are over talkative then you won’t be able to get anything done.
I believe that stereotypes exist in all cultures. stereotypes can be both negative and positive. In a business setting if you are well dressed and on time for things such as interviews and business meetings you will probably be stereotyped as responsible and reliable. On the other hand such as in a school setting people tend to also judge you on your appearance instead of getting to know you personally. For example if you see someone that has multiple piercings and tattoos, some people will assume that you are an underachiever or that you are not intelligent when in reality they may know more than you do but because of their outword appearance no one gives them a second look.
A situation where having a stereotype would be good is; assmuing all teachers are nice caring people. This is true a good majority of the time however is not always the case, but if you had the stereotype that teachers are mean cruel people you would never pay attention or be willing to listen to them. A situation where having a stereotype would be bad is if you were interviewing someone for a position in sales but you didn't want to hire a person because he is black and you believe black people have bad selling skills; and he goes and gets a job with your competitor and they do twice the sales that you do in the next year.
Stereotypes is a very broad subject which can vary between people. Each person has their own perception of what is consider a good egg or a bad egg. In my family, the persons whom stereotypes alot were my parent. Throughout the years they have lived here, they judge everyone of my friend by their apperence and their family background. For example, if a friend of mine dye his or her hair they consider them as bad people and do not want me to be friend with them even though they are the friends whom ahs help me a lot. My parent has always judge the outside apperence but not the inside. We always argue back and forth that that is streotype and is their own perception they have on that particular person. My perception on people is a lot different from my parent. There will always be disagreement between us on what I think of others and what their opinion on others.
I think that stereotypes are both good and bad. There useful in the workplace, like giving the people who work hard better shifts and more hours. I think there unhealthy in a school setting, because it causes students not to interact with eachother because of the group their associated with.
The summer before my senior year in high school my best friend and I had a “falling out.” We were, in a sense, the core of our group of friends and after we split up everyone took her side. It was really tough beginning school after that, because everyone thought I was the bad guy. I used stereotypes to find another group to fall into. I looked for people that I thought were similar to me in the way they held themselves, dressed, and groups they were involved in at my school. After I made that first stereotype, it was easier to talk to them and find out what they were all about by asking if they liked the same things I did and see if my assumptions were correct.
When I think of an unproductive stereotype, I think of my high school hosting foreign exchange students. Last year I became good friends with Jesus, an exchange student from Venezuela. It was strange to see how other people stereotyped him and perceived him. When they would talk to him they would talk slower than normal, use smaller more direct words, and emphasize every question with gestures. The funny thing was, he knew perfect English! I think it put him off by the way people talked and treated him as if he didn’t know the language at all. This made others that talked to him look silly, because they stuck with their stereotype of him rather than getting to know him.
I was reading g an article from the New York Times, and they were talking about the business world is like in Wall Street. They’re are a lot of stereotypes in this job field, such as men are better than women, wrong that are equal because we both know what to do and how to fight for it. And also stereotyping each other in a group like she is not smarter than me, or he is not smarter than me. And I think that is very “dumb” the only thing that you should be judging/stereotyping is yourself not others, because everyone is different. It’s like the quote on my MySpace page “I’m not beautiful like you, I’m beautiful like me.” Which means don’t judge others, just worry about yourself and what you need to get done or accomplish.
Stereotypes can be useful when navigating in a foreign culture. They can help you understand how to act when in public or in a personal situation. In contrast, these can also obviously get you into trouble. Many people take offense to being stereo typed even in a positive way. So it is very important that you reflect on these possibilities before travelling to a foreign country.
I think a stereotype is useful in a communication situation when the speaker wants to be sure not to offend the person or people they are talking to. It can be good to stereotype on certain subjects like religion, political beliefs, sometimes even race or culture. In different situations, stereotyping can be very damaging and unproductive based on the same subjects. If a person is considering dating or hiring someone, the wrong stereotype can change the outcome drastically. This is when I think really taking the time to get to know people as much as possible before stereotyping or judging is so important. Like many others, I have made this mistake many times in my life. Because of that, now I try to put any stereotypes out of my head before really getting to know someone or at least keep as much of an open mind as possible when communicating with anyone.
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