Exaggerated stereotypic difference arises from either mean overestimation or dispersion underestimation.

Evidence

To understand where the specific contents of stereotypes come from, a social, cultural analysis is needed to supplement our cognitive analysis of categorization. Hamilton and Gifford (1976) confirmed Allport’s claim that “It is possible for a stereotype to grow in defiance of all evidence” (1954/1979, p. 189). They demonstrated that people could develop false stereotypes through a process of “illusory correlation” (by mistakenly forming a mental association between two or more relatively infrequent events) without there being even a “kernel” of truth. These cognitive biases are shaped and exacerbated by actual inequalities of opportunity in society (which prevent group memberships and achieved outcomes from varying freely) as well as by selective reporting in the mass media (e.g., Iyengar & Kinder, 1987). Members of US society, for example, are disproportionately exposed to associations between “Black” and “criminal” and between “White man” and “politician” or “celebrity” (Banaji & Bhaskar, 2000). As Allport observed, stereotypes are “socially supported, continually revived and hammered in, by our media of mass communication” (p. 200). — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 1391 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Suppose one were to ask perceivers about racial disparities in high-school dropout rates. And these estimates were then compared with actual rates. It may well be the case that perceivers (particularly white majority participants) would overestimate the differences between racial groups. Yet this stereotypic exaggeration might be only part of the story. To aptly characterize the intergroup dynamics operating, it would be important to know not only how accurate perceptions are, but what attributions are made for perceived differences. Two perceivers may be inaccurate to exactly the same extent but one may believe the group differences are caused by poverty and an unsupportive social environment, whereas the other may believe the group differences reflect an underlying difference in intellectual ability. — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 893 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Stereotypic inaccuracy means overestimating real group mean differences — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 856; Stereotype exaggeration works through the same mean-variability ratio as statistical significance; Stereotypes exaggerate a genuine kernel of actual group difference — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice: Fifty Years…, 835 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• Stereotypes can form by false association between rare events without any kernel of truth #complicates (0.75) — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 1391
• Equally inaccurate perceivers differ in the attributions they make for group differences #complicates (0.72) — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 893