Stereotypes reproduce inequality by eliciting confirming behavior from targets

Evidence

The impact of stereotypes on social cognition is probably even more profound than Allport knew. The last two decades of research have demonstrated that stereotypes: (a) direct attention to certain aspects of the available information, (b) color the interpretation of that information, (c) influence the way in which the information is retained in memory, (d) shape judgments and subsequent actions, (e) serve as hypotheses that are tested and disproportionately favored in the interpretation of new information, and (f ) play an important role in eliciting from target persons the very same behavior that confirms the perceiver’s biased expectations (for reviews, see Fiske, 1998; Hamilton & Sherman, 1994; Macrae & Bodenhausen, 2000). The overwhelming effect of stereotypes, therefore, is to perpetuate prior beliefs and prejudices; the status quo is bolstered through information processors’ reliance upon stereotypes as a convenient way of organizing information about the social world. — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1374 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Understanding status mechanisms is a precondition for reducing inequality; Stereotypes elicit confirming behavior and perpetuate the status quo — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1374; Stereotypes shape perception, memory, judgment, and even elicit confirming behavior — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice: Fifty Years…, 1374 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Stereotypes elicit confirming behavior and perpetuate the status quo #corroborates (0.97) — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1374