Stereotyping

Stereotyping is exaggerated generalizations associated with a categorizing system, they go beyond the facts at hand and make claims that usually have no valid basis. It is also something that most people find difficult to avoid from doing. Roger and Steinfalt (1999) define a stereotype as “a generalization about some group of people that oversimplifies their culture.” Why do people stereotype? Bruno (1999) observes, “The tribal drum beats in all societies, warning members of the tribe, even those who are different tribal behavior, from religious warfare in Northern Ireland and the Middle East etc. Aliport (1958) originally observed that people are more likely to stereotype individuals and groups with whom they have little contact. For example, “you might have a whole set of beliefs about Middle Eastern Muslim women, many of whom cover their bodies and faces and walk well behind their husbands. Sometimes, stereotyping occurs because people have had a negative or positive experience with a person from another culture or co-culture. In one investigation people stereotyped black people after only one observation of a negative behavior.”