Question

A stereotype can be defined as a preconceived notion, usually about a group of people. It is a widely held oversimplified image, behavior or idea of a group or people, a type of person, or a thing. Stereotypes and references to them can be seen in all aspects of society. Although the idea of stereotypes has been a part of history for many years, many of the stereotypical ideas have changed and adapted to modern times.

For your assignment, you will focus on modern stereotypes that you see in your culture and environment. You will first explain 2-3 different stereotypes that you feel are predominant, and look at them more in-depth. They might relate to technology, behaviors of your generation, or other new themes.

Then, in your 650-750 word essay, you will respond to the following questions:

• Why do you feel popularly mentioned and used stereotypes change over time?
• Throughout history, race and gender played a large role in stereotypical designations. Are those still a large issue in society today? Why or why not?
• As you learn more about stereotypes and gender/race relations, do you feel that stereotypes are positive or negative to an individual or group? What leads you to that conclusion?

Answer 1

##MODERN STEREOTYPE IN CULTURE AND ENVIRONMENT

Stereotyping in the workplace is making assumptions about people based on a person's gender or culture, or is based on religious or physical attributes. Although some stereotyping may be done innocently or in jest, the risk is hurting people's feeling and creating a work environment in which people feel discriminated against. Discrimination opens companies up to major productivity issues, legal problems and company PR struggles.

##2-3 DIFFERENT TYPES OF STEREOTYPES

•Racial Profiling

One of the more common stereotype examples is stereotypes surrounding race. For example, saying that all Blacks are good at sports is a stereotype, because it's grouping the race together to indicate that everyone of that race is a good athlete.

•Gender Profiling

There are also some common stereotypes of men and women

•Cultures

Stereotypes also exist about cultures an countries as a whole

•Groups of Individuals

A different type of stereotype also involves grouping of individuals. Skaters, Goths, Gangsters, and Preps are a few examples. Most of this stereotyping is taking place in schools.

##Stereotypes evolve in a similar way to language, according to research presented at the British Science Festival in Aberdeen.
These generalised perceptions of groups of individuals are an unintentional consequence of information sharing, the scientists claim.
And far from being fixed, they evolve and strengthen as they pass from person to person.
The work was carried out by a team at the University of Aberdeen.
Stereotyping represents a view of other people based on perceptions of a social group and the shared attributes that people within that group are considered to possess.

##Gender stereotyping remains entrenched in society in spite of the many legal, cultural and intellectual challenges that have called it into question, and this, argues Sophie Smith, is behind the failure of much legislative change
An outsider surveying British political life over the past 30 years – who the players are, what the legislative record shows – could pretty reasonably deduce that the equality of women to men has been an issue of some urgency in the UK, and that meaningful progress has been made. After all, women now make up 22 per cent of the House of Commons; until 1987, the figure had sat stubbornly at 5 per cent. Marital rape was recognised by law in 1991. The women of Ford had helped to secure equal pay legislation by 1970 and the Equality Act of 2010 would, we were told, close the remaining loopholes and address ongoing issues of discrimination. In the last two decades, legislation has been passed that better enables victims of domestic violence to seek protection and prosecution (1996); which recognises gender persecution as grounds for asylum (1999); and which provides legal recognition for transgender women (2004)

##Negative stereotypes can have harmful consequences for the quality of life of older adults and can also result in a major loss to society. With increases in life expectancy as well as reduced infirmity, many adults are aging well, but negative stereotypes of aging may put society at risk for losing the contributions of these vital and knowledgeable people. The potential individual and social effects underscore the need to understand the content of aging stereotypes in terms of their accuracy and applications. It is especially important to understand how negative stereotypes exacerbate poor performance in areas in which decline is real.