SOCIAL RELATIONS:STEREOTYPES, PREJUDICE AND DISCRIMINATIONChapter 18

PREJUDICE & DISCRIMINATION

Prejudice – an unjustifiable attitude toward a group of people (prejudgement)

What kinds of prejudice are there?

DISCRIMINATION

Discrimination – when one acts on one’s prejudices (behavior)

Ex. If I disliked female students, I am prejudice. If I refuse to call on female students or answer their questions… I am discriminatory.

Ex. Jim Crow Segregation Laws 1877-1964

INSTITUTIONAL DISCRIMINATION

PREJUDICE/DISCRIMINATION AND JANE ELLIOTT’S “A CLASS DIVIDED”

Watch The Program | A Class Divided | FRONTLINE | PBS

1968 Riceville, Iowa

3:06- 7:50 8:20- 10:00 Part 2- beginning till 7:00

SOCIAL ROOTS OF PREJUDICE

Scapegoat theory – prejudice offers an outlet for anger by providing someone to blame. Aggression is displaced to another group that often cannot fight back. Ex. Bullies target the small, introverted

kids Ex. Coaches are blamed for losing a game.Citizens often use government as a

scapegoatWho is a scapegoat in our society today?Evidence: members of hate groups have

lower self esteem than the general population

SOCIAL ROOTS OF PREJUDICE

Economic Inequalities• Positive Correlation exists between

economic inequality and prejudice. Ex. Sweden, Norway, Finland vs. US.

Pie Charts of Wealth/Distribution - which chart is the USA?

Wealth Quiz: How Does the U.S. Slice the Pie? | PBS

NewsHour

Ex. Desegregation of CMS and Myers Park HS

SOCIAL ROOTS OF PREJUDICE

In-group – “Us,” people who share a common identity. Q. What are some examples of???

Out-group – “Them,” those perceived as different from one’s group

Shoe exercise

IN GROUP BIAS, ETHNOCENTRISM, OUT GROUP HOMOGENEITY In-group bias- tendency to favor ones in-group. Ex. Monkeys wipe spots that monkeys from out

group were just sitting. Ex. Chapel Hill vs. Appalachian State (or Duke)

students.

"The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.”

SOCIAL ROOTS OF PREJUDICE

Out-group homogeneity – judging members of the in-group as more diverse than those of the out-groups. Why? We lack familiarity with the out-group. Ex. Thinking that people in your own racial group

look very different but other racial groups all look alike.

Ethnocentrism- tendency to believe that one’s culture or nation is superior. Leads to prejudice vs. foreigners.

COGNITIVE ROOTS OF PREJUDICE

 Stereotypes – an over-generalized belief about a group of people Can be negative or positive A byproduct of how we simplify our world

Categorization – we categorize people by stereotyping them. (people categorize their worlds in many ways… food groups, states/counties/cities, a botanist categorizes plants)

COGNITIVE ROOTS OF PREJUDICE

STUDIES ON STEREOTYPING Re: 5th line p. 718. Basketball study ABC 20/20- Race and Sex John Stossell Unconscious Bias- Activity –Allport Picture Implicit Bias Test-

www.implicit.harvard.edu Hidden Motives – YouTube (SAF- starting at

10 mins.) Reading: Testing your unconscious bias-

Teaching Tolerance modern family asian stereotype stereotypes of blacks, mexicans, asians

, gays, and blondes

COGNITIVE ROOTS OF PREJUDICE

Vivid cases- how quickly and clearly an actual example comes to your mind.

Ex. Blue collar vs. white collar crimes. Univ. of Oregon study showed info on 50. Group A had 10 committed violent crimes other 10 non violent crimes.

People are much more interested in news about a guy committing crime at convenient store, than the wall street guy embezzling life savings from charities. Therefore, mainstream media is more likely to show this. White collar crime costs society 10 times more

Ex. Fig. 18.9 Terrorism and Islam. P. 748

COMBATING PREJUDICE

Contact Theory- The more contact one has with a prejudiced group usually results in lowering prejudice toward that group. Partially because stereotypes become lessened.

Ex. students in Newark Valley, NY and racism.

Ex. Your generation vs. your grandparents generation and racial prejudice.

COMBATING PREJUDICE

Superordinate goals – shared goals that override differences. (cooperation becomes required).

Ex. Robber’s Cave Experiment - Sherif study (1966) with boy scouts.

Ex. 9/11 survivors who needed/received or gave help say their prejudice diminished

Ex. CMS during integration. Cooperative learning

Ex. Integrated team sports and prejudice.

OTHER IMPORTANT SOCIAL PSYCH CONCEPTS:Concluding Ch. 18

AGGRESSION Aggression – any physical or verbal

behavior intended to hurt or destroy. Aggression is a combination of biological

and social factors. (nature vs. nurture) Biological Factors of aggression

Genetic influences - Identical twins have individually professed to be aggressive.

Neural (Brain) influences – neural systems facilitate aggression. No one part of the brain is solely responsible for aggression. Frontal lobe is one part of the brain that, if damaged, aggression is more likely.

Biochemical – levels of testosterone can affect aggressiveness, (Roid rage) alcohol can affect aggressiveness, (75% of spousal abuse, 40% of violent crimes involve alcohol)

SOCIAL FACTORS AND AGGRESSION

Frustration-aggression principle – frustration, the blocking of an attempt to achieve some goal, creates anger, which generates aggression. Ex. The US culture of materialism/consumerism and

those in poverty vs. non-violence of poor Africans. Ex. Correlation between economic inequality and

aggression Ex. Study showing social rejection/aggression

correlation. (Virginia Tech and Columbine shootings)

Cultural Factors- White Scotch-Irish small town southerners. Culture of

“manly honor” have 3 times homicide rates, supportive of physically punishing children, uncontrolled gun ownership, and going to war than New Englanders settled from traditionally peaceful Puritan culture.

SOCIAL FACTORS AND AGGRESSION

Learning to be aggressive – we are more likely to act aggressively in situations that aggression has paid off in the past. Ex. Child throws a fit in a toy store to get a new

toy. Social Scripts- learning from the media (movies,

video games) how to act in certain situations.Re: Do video games teach or release (catharsis)

violence? pg.754Video- video games/violence- Learning on disc 1 Study: kids who play a lot of violent video games

see the world as more hostile, get into arguments /fights more and lower grades

CONFLICT

Conflict - A perceived incompatibility of actions, goals or ideas. Social Traps – a situation in which the

conflicting parties, each pursuing their own self-interests, become caught in mutually destructive behavior.These challenge us to reconcile our self-interests with the well-being of all.

RE: article on this Assignment: List 3 examples of consequencs of social traps from the reading.

CONSEQUENCES OF SOCIAL TRAPS

Traffic Jams Overfishing Environmental Pollution Pesticides Nuclear Stockpiles

ATTRACTION Proximity – geographic nearness

This is the best predictor of who our friends are – we are friends with people we live close to.

Mere exposure effect – familiarity breeds fondness, repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases the liking of them.

Physical Attraction First impressions – how much does attraction play a part? Myers says that we perceive attractive people are healthier,

happier, more successful, more socially skilled though not more honest or compassionate. Studies show that attractive people are more likely to experience occupational success.

Similarity In reality, opposites do not usually attract. Friends and couples are

more likely to share common interests and beliefs. What trouble could arise if a couple has conflicting moral beliefs?

Reciprocal Liking (not in Myers, In Barron’s) You are more likely to be attracted to someone who likes you

 

ATTRACTION

Attraction Studies - “we perceive attractive people to be healthier, happier, more sensitive, more successful, and more socially skilled though NOT more honest or compassionate.

Ex. JFK (D) vs. Nixon (R) (1960) Ex. Bush vs. Kerry (2004)

Better looking people (both facially and body types) have an easier time getting jobs.

ATTRACTION STUDIES- VIDEOS

The Halo Effect - Science of Attraction Dating Techniques - Science of Attraction

ALTRUISM

Altruism – unselfish regard for the welfare of others. Ex. Firefighters during 9/11Ex. Read “The Giving Tree”

Social Exchange Theory – our social behavior is an exchange process, the aim of which is to maximize benefits and minimize costs. We decide how to give and take.

How do social expectations play into our behavior of helping?

YOUTUBE– Social exchange Theory

BYSTANDER EFFECT (AKA BYSTANDER INTERVENTION)

Bystander Effect – the tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present Ex. Kitty Genovese Murder in Queens, NY Diffusion of responsibility – people feel

less responsible to act with more people present.

What does the bystander effect say about altruism?

Pluralistic ignorance - People define appropriate behavior by observing others

Ex. Smoke under the door, watch confederates that do nothing…. you are more likely to do the same.

YouTube - The Human Behavior Experiments 2006 THE BYSTANDER EFFECT – YouTube Bystander Effect - people watch girl being abducted - YouTube

SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY

Self-fulfilling prophecy - The expectations we have of others can influence how they behave. “Pygmalion in the Classroom” Jane Elliott’s Blue Eye Brown Eye

Study“Those who are seen as inferior act inferior”