Cultural Stereotypes

Americans

All white Americans are obese, lazy, and dim-witted. Homer Simpson of the TV series The Simpsons is the personification of this stereotype

Mexican

Mexican stereotypes suggest that all Mexicans are lazy and came into America illegally

Arabs and Muslims

All Arabs and Muslims are terrorists

English people

All people who live in England have bad teeth

Italian or French people

Italian or French people are the best lovers

Blacks

All Blacks outside of the United States are poor

Jews

All Jews are greedy

Asians

All Asians are good at math. All Asians like to eat rice and drive slow

Irish people

All Irish people are drunks and eat potatoes

All Americans

All Americans are generally considered to be friendly, generous, and tolerant, but also arrogant, impatient, and domineering

Why Is it Bad to Stereotype

Stereotyping is not only hurtful, it is also wrong. Even if the stereotype is correct in some cases, constantly putting someone down based on your preconceived pereptions will not encourage them to succeed.

Bad Stereotypes

Stereotyping can also lead people to live lives driven by hate, and can cause the victims of those stereotypes to be driven by fear. For example, many gays and lesbians are afraid to admit their sexuality in fear of being judged

Pros of Stereotyping

The purpose of stereotypes is to help us know how to interact with others. Each classification has associations, scripts and so on that we use to interpret what they are saying, decide if they are good or bad, and choose how to respond to them (or not).

Groups of Individuals - Goths

Goths wear black clothes, black makeup, are depressed and hated by society

librarians

All librarians are women who are old, wear glasses, tie a high bun, and have a perpetual frown on their face

teenagers

All teenagers are rebels

children

All children don't enjoy healthy food

anorexic women

Only anorexic women can become models