Prejudice Summary Study Notes: Overview of the nature of prejudice (its cognitive, affective and behavioural aspects) and 2 theories of prejudice (The Authoritarian Personality Theory and The Social Identity Theory).
THE NATURE OF PREJUDICE
Prejudice is an evaluative, usually negative (although in rare cases positive) attitude towards
an individual based on their appearance and/or the social group(s) they belong to.
It has 3 main elements/components:
• COGNITIVE
• AFFECTIVE
• BEHAVIOURAL
The COGNITIVE ASPECT of prejudice is the knowledge, beliefs and thoughts held about
members of out-groups. Prejudiced beliefs include STEREOTYPES which are fixed, usually fairly
simplistic generalizations about a particular group. Although they may contain a grain of truth,
they are rather exaggerated and distorted.
For instance, negative stereotypic views about people with psychiatric illnesses such as that
they are violent and incompetent has been shown to be widely endorsed by members of the
general public as well as health professionals (Lauber et al., 2006; Marques, Figueiras &
Queiros, 2012; Nordt, Rossler & Lauder, 2006; Parcesepe & Cabassa, 2013).
Social psychologists argue that stereotypes are learned through the socialization process.
Cognitive psychologists claim that humans are cognitive misers, who use cognitive shortcuts to
make sense of the world much quicker and more effectively. These explanations are not
mutually exclusive! Stereotypes can result from the combination of these 2 factors.
Schemas are still developing in childhood which is why changing them is much easier at that
stage. Once schemas have become fixed and people have stereotypes, they are more likely to
remember information, which is consistent with them. Cohen (1981) investigated the
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, confirmatory bias. The stereotypical features of waitresses and librarians were identified.
Participants-a small sample of undergraduate students- then were shown a video containing
some information, which was consistent with the stereotypes and some which was
inconsistent. Recall was approx. 10 % higher for information, which was consistent with the
stereotypes, suggesting that the stereotypes people have affect their perception of the world.
Stereotyping can have many harmful effects. Individuals may internalise negative traits as part
of their self-concept simply because they are widely held to be true of their group, resulting in
harmful self-fulfilling effects. Grace Kao (2000) conducted interviews with 63 students in
Chicago and documented the importance of racial and ethnic stereotypes in the development
of a student’s sense of self. White students were seen as studious; Asian Americans as hard-
working and high-achievers; African Americans as less studious and Latin Americans were
viewed as being destined to manual jobs. Kao concluded that most students took these
stereotypes rather personally, assuming these beliefs to be true and so performed in school
more or less as the stereotype predicted. Students also tended to measure success only in
relation to their own category. To African Americans, success meant doing as well as other
black students.
The AFFECTIVE ASPECT of prejudice is the feelings about members of an out-group. Fiske et al.
(2002) investigated ageism and found that older people are victims of emotional prejudice.
College students were most likely to feel pity towards older adults- an emotion which is
generally reserved for those of a low status.
The BEHAVIOURAL COMPONENT of prejudice refers to the tendency to act in a particular way
towards the object of prejudice, usually arising from beliefs and feelings. Aggression, violence,
name-calling are all examples. The behavioural component is essentially discrimination: racism,
ageism, heterosexism, sexism – (overt, covert or subtle).
Racism means discriminating against a person on the basis of their perceived racial group.
Fontaine (1998) identified 3 types of racism:
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