Types of Identification and Intergroup Differentiation in the Russian Federation

The fall of the Soviet Union affected the established identity patterns and intergroup relations in the Russian Federation. A survey investigates the effect of Russians' and titulars' identifications with their ethnic group, their republic, and the Russian Federation on intergroup stereotypes. We hypothesized that identification at various inclusiveness levels is differently reflected in the positive/negative stereotypes about in-group and out-groups. While in-group stereotypes would be positively affected by all types of identification, out-group stereotypes would turn more negative by ethnic identification and more positive by republican and federal identification. Further, we expected that republican identification would improve titulars' in-group stereotypes and Russians' out-group stereotypes, while federal identification would enhance Russians' in-group stereotypes and titular's out-group stereotypes. Russians favored their in-group mostly in positive terms. Titular minorities favored their in-group mostly on negative stereotypes. A model of intergroup differentiation is proposed that takes into account social identification at different inclusiveness levels. This model makes clear the potential threat posed by republican identifications to the stability of intergroup relations in Russia.     

Modeling stereotypes and negative self‐stereotypes as a function of interactions among groups with power asymmetries

Stereotypes is one of the most researched topics in social psychology. Within this context, negative self‐stereotypes pose a particular challenge for theories. In the current work, we propose a model that suggests that negative self‐stereotypes can theoretically be accounted for by the need to communicate in a social system made up by groups with unequal power. Because our theory is dynamic, probabilistic, and interactionist, we use a computational simulation technique to show that the proposed model is able to reproduce the phenomenon of interest, to provide novel accounts of related phenomena, and to suggest novel empirical predictions. We describe our computational model, our variables' dynamic behavior and interactions, and link our analyses to the literature on stereotypes and self‐stereotypes, the stability of stereotypes (in particular, gender and racial stereotypes), the effects of power asymmetries, and the effects of intergroup contact.     

Social Status as a Predictor of Race and Gender Stereotypes in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence

We examined race and gender stereotypes in fourth‐, sixth‐ and eighth‐grade White and Black children. The participants reported their perceptions of the competence of Black, White, female and male children in academic domains, sports and music. In general, low‐status groups (girls and Black children) did not endorse stereotypes that reflected negatively on their own group but were likely to report stereotypes that favored their social group. High‐status groups (boys and Whites) endorsed most traditional stereotypes, whether negative or positive, for their social group. Where age differences appeared, older children were more likely than younger children to report traditional stereotypes and status effects were more pronounced. The results are discussed in terms of group enhancement and relationships between social stereotypes and self‐views.     

Gender Issues in Social Group Work

This introductory essay outlines some of the reasons why a knowledge of gender is important for social group workers. We identify key concepts that are often confounded in our understanding of gender and discuss gender stereotypes and status differences between men and women and their implications for group work; we further discuss how disordered behaviors and social problems are related to these gender role stereotypes and status differences. Finally, we assert that many of the theories underlying social work practice reflect gender stereotypes, and that group work research and theory have largely ignored gender as a variable.     

传统固有观念的心理暗示与中国学生的测试表现

在美国,研究已经多次证明关于智力的否定性固有观念会妨碍受这些固有观念影响的个体的成绩表现。在中国,认为女性在数学上弱于男性的观念已经持续了很长时间。本文通过一项程度颇深的数学和英语测试,对中国大学生进行了关于传统固有观念暗示理论的研究。在数学测试中,研究的假设是：同美国测试者的表现相似,受“性别数学”固有差异观念影响的女性测试者的成绩要比不受固有观念影响的人差;而在英语测试中,研究则假设受“性别语言”固有差异观念影响的男性会比不受此种观念影响的人得分低。然而测试的结果并没有证实这两个假设。研究结果对当今中国现存的社会和教育因素进行了讨论。     

Sex Role Stereotypes and Middle and Old Age

Previous research focused on elderly as a generalized target group, with little differentiation between stereotypes of elderly men and elderly women. Similarly, research literature on sex-role stereotypes rarely makes reference to age of targets. To join the areas of attitude research in gerontology and sex-role stereotype research, 534 university students rated middle-aged or old man, woman, or person on a stereotype scale. A difference between male and female targets was found on only 3 adjective pairs, and age/sex interactions were found on 3. The few differences fit traditional sex-role stereotypes. Explanations for sparse sex differences and age/sex interactions are suggested.     

Nice to Know You? Testing Contact,Cultural, and Group Threat Theories of Anti‐Black and Anti‐Hispanic Stereotypes*

Objective. Many racial/ethnic policies in the United States—from desegregation to affirmative action policies—presume that contact improves racial/ethnic relations. Most research, however, tests related theories in isolation from one another and focuses on black‐white contact. This article tests contact, cultural, and group threat theories to learn how contact in different interactive settings affects whites' stereotypes of blacks and Hispanics, now the largest minority group in the country. Method. We use multi‐level modeling on 2000 General Social Survey data linked to Census 2000 metropolitan statistical area/county‐level data. Results. Net of the mixed effects of regional culture and racial/ethnic composition, contact in certain interactive settings ameliorates anti‐black and anti‐Hispanic stereotypes. Conclusions. Cultural and group threat theories better explain anti‐black stereotypes than anti‐Hispanic stereotypes, but as contact theory suggests, stereotypes can be overcome with relatively superficial contact under the right conditions. Results provide qualified justification for the preservation of desegregation and affirmative action policies.     

Breaking out of the circle: an analysis of the gendered communication behaviors of Hillary Clinton and Sarah Netanyahu

Among the many challenges first ladies face are a variety of sex-role stereotypes. These sex-role constraints impact the office from such sources as the press and public. This article assesses these stereotypes and the prevalence of other cultural expectations on the first ladyships of the United States and Israel by comparing the experiences of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sarah Netanyahu.     

Television and Prejudice Reduction: When Does Television as a Vicarious Experience Make a Difference?

Televised role portrayals and interracial interactions, as sources of vicarious experience, contribute to the development of stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination among children. The first section of this article reviews the amount and nature of racial/ethnic content on television, including limited portrayals of racial/ethnic groups and of interracial/ethnic interaction. The second section focuses on theoretical models that help explain television's role in the development, maintenance, and modification of stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination. The third section addresses research on the effects of television in altering stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination, with particular attention given to media intervention programs specifically designed to address these issues (Sesame Street and Different and the Same). This article concludes with a discussion of suggestions for future research.     

Allport's Legacy and the Situational Press of Stereotypes

This article focuses on two aspects of Allport's (1954) investigation of the psychology of being a target of prejudice. Whereas most researchers in this area view Allport as an expectancy theorist, we revisit another aspect of Allport's theory: the situational threat posed by negative stereotypes. First, we examine this issue, as it applies to the academic underachievement of negatively stereotyped groups, by contrasting the situational threat posed by stereotypes with traditional and current expectancy-oriented conceptions. Second, we show that stereotypes do not appear to affect self-expectations; instead, they appear to foster a climate of mistrust that results in depressed performance. Finally, we discuss how interventions that ameliorate the climate of mistrust, such as the presence of educators who are competent minority group members, tend to raise levels of performance.     

The Nature of Children's Stereotypes of Popularity

The present study investigated what types of attributions and expectations children have about peers who they believe are popular or unpopular with other children. Fourth and fifth grade children (N = 135) were presented with pictures of several unacquainted peers who were described as popular or unpopular (or neither). Children were then told about several hypothetical encounters between themselves and each of the peers and were asked to explain or rate what each peer's response would be to that situation. As hypothesized, children had negative stereotypes about children who they believed were unpopular, while stereotypes about children believed to be popular were a mixture of positive and negative elements. Results confirmed past research in suggesting that a distinction must be made between sociometric and perceived popularity. Gender differences were also discussed, because the stereotypes held by boys and girls differed in several respects.     

Stereotypes and Prejudice as Dynamic Constructs: Reminders about the Nature of Intergroup Bias from the Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts

Following Hurricane Katrina, hundreds of thousands of Gulf Coast residents, many of whom were African Americans, were relocated to communities around the U.S., including predominantly European American communities. The experiences of relocation community members are a potent reminder of the ever-changing and multiply-determined nature of stereotypes and prejudice. Prejudice and stereotyping are dynamic processes that evolve in response to numerous factors. Although several models of prejudice and stereotyping are dynamic and/or time-oriented, research on these topics predominantly has involved single-session laboratory experiments examining single mechanisms. To illustrate the importance of dynamic research, we outline a longitudinal model describing the potential independent and interactive effects of intergroup contact, individuating information, and perceived group threat from Katrina evacuees on prejudice and stereotypes about African Americans. The "natural experiment" created by the Katrina relocation reminds psychologists that naturalistic and longitudinal research on prejudice and stereotypes is an important complement to laboratory experiments.     

Identity Adaptiveness: Affect Across Multiple Identities

Most empirical work that examines the effects of stereotypes on targets considers only one of a target's many social identities. This study examined how individuals implicitly affectively orient themselves toward their social identities in situations in which one or another of these identities is relatively adaptive. An adaptive identity is one associated with stereotypes that predict desirable performance in a given context. One hundred and twenty-one Asian American females generated ethnicity- and gender-related memories in contexts in which their gender identity was relatively adaptive, their ethnic identity was relatively adaptive, or neither identity was relatively adaptive. Self-reported affect expressed in these memories was analyzed. In a context in which their ethnic identity was adaptive, participants generated more positive ethnicity-related memories than gender-related memories. In contrast, in a context in which their gender identity was adaptive, participants generated more positive gender-related memories than ethnicity-related memories. When neither identity was adaptive participants expressed similar affect toward both. Similar results were found when blind raters coded memory affect. Findings suggest that stereotypes and different social contexts do not simply result in targets' "identification" or "disidentification" along a single dimension of identity, but rather prompt a reorientation of implicit affect across their multiple identities.     

Cultural Stereotypes and Positioning Theory

This paper addresses the application of positioning theory , a new emerging theoretical scheme on the issue of cultural stereotyping. First, a critical conceptual analysis of the words'cultural stereotype'is presented. Secondly, the basic tenets of positioning theory are outlined. Finally, it will be demonstrated how the framework of positioning theory can be used to analytically refine the concept of cultural stereotype. The main upshot of the article is that within social psychology, the concept of cultural stereotype is used in a conceptually vague and blurred way and that, with the necessary conceptual refinements, other research-agendas on stereotypes will have to be tackled if social psychologists want to contribute anything to the societal efforts of changing stereotypes.     

Gender Stereotypes and the Evaluation of Men and Women in Military Training

The present study investigated perceptions of men and women in the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets. For both stereotypes and evaluations of individual cadets enrolled in the training program, men more than women were believed to possess the motivation and leadership qualities necessary for effective military performance, whereas women were believed to possess more feminine attributes that impair effective military performance. Because men and women did not differ on objective measures of military performance, the sex-differentiated evaluations of cadets enrolled in training most plausibly reflect the influence of gender stereotypes rather than performance differences between the sexes. Furthermore, integration of women into the corps was associated with more favorable stereotypic judgments of women and did not reveal a backlash against women in this strongly male- dominated setting.     

Shifting Standards and the Evaluation of Competence: Complexity in Gender-Based Judgment and Decision Making

Gender stereotypes regarding task competence may lead perceivers to set different standards for diagnosing competence in women versus men. Specifically, stereotypes may prompt lower minimum standards (or initial screening criteria) but higher confirmatory standards for women than men (Biernat & Kobrynowicz, 1997). In two studies simulating hiring decisions, predictions were that women would be (1) more likely than men to make a short list for a job but (2) less likely than men to be hired for the same job. Results were generally consistent with predictions only among female participants (Studies 1 and 2), among those exposed to a female experimenter (Study 1), and among those held accountable for their decisions (Study 2). The role of motivational factors in the setting of standards is discussed.     

Depictions of Public Service in Children's Literature: Revisiting an Understudied Aspect of Political Socialization

Objective . Scholars who have investigated depictions of public service in children's literature have come to a mix of conclusions regarding the portrayal of public figures in children's literature. We revisit these studies, attempting to answer the question of how public servants are portrayed in children's literature. Methods . We perform content analysis of 93 books and examine 868 characters for benevolence and competence. Results . We find that public servants are portrayed as no more incompetent or malevolent than other adults in children's literature. On a few dimensions, we find just the opposite. Furthermore, we find that women in general are portrayed as more benevolent than men, although the same patterns are not found between sexes when examining only those in the public service. Conclusions . If children are developing negative stereotypes of government officials and institutions, these stereotypes do not appear to be formed through their reading of children's literature.     

The role of gender stereotypes in the social acceptability of the expression of intimacy

This study explores the proposition that similar to the way that it is more acceptable for women than men to express traits that suggest vulnerability, such as loneliness or depression, it is also more acceptable for women to express emotional intimacy. Participants view an interaction between two men, two women, or a man and a woman, and evaluate the interpersonal attraction of the person expressing emotional intimacy. In Study 1, men gave the most negative evaluations to the man being intimate. In Study 2, thematic analysis of interview content suggests that participants hold gender stereotypes about intimacy and also that men frequently risk social rejection and may be perceived as gay when they engage in intimate expression, particularly when with other men. Overall, findings suggest that gender and related stereotypes have an observable role in the perceptions of an individual who is expressing intimacy.     

Voting for Catholic Candidates: The Evolution of a Stereotype*

Objectives. This article looks at the effects of candidate Catholicism on individual voters, turning the traditional inquiry into voters' religion on its head. Specifically, it hypothesizes that individuals stereotype Catholic candidates based on the voting behavior of Catholics in general, and that these stereotypes help voters make a decision in elections with Catholic candidates. Methods. Using data from the American National Election Studies (ANES), this article argues that citizens hold stereotypes of Catholics based on actual Catholic political behavior—solidly Democratic from the 1950s to the 1970s, but trending Republican starting in the 1980s. It also tests these stereotypes with Gallup data on hypothetical Catholic candidates and analyzes, through election‐day exit polls, the impact on voters of the Catholic conversion of a sitting U.S. Senator. Results. The data analyses strongly support the article's hypothesis, demonstrating that partisan attitudes toward hypothetical Catholic candidates shifted direction as the Catholic electorate shifted. In addition, Senator Sam Brownback's (R‐KS) conversion to Catholicism increased partisan polarization in his support—indicating a conservative shift in perceptions. Conclusions. Candidate religion plays a role in elections. Specifically, voters stereotype candidates based on candidate religion and use this stereotyped information to help them make an electoral decision. This article demonstrates this effect for Catholicism, but other religions should evidence similar impacts.