Stereotypes

By:Dane Bell

Jamie MillerAlicia Shiue

Lizzy Yesakov

Guiding Question:How do stereotypes affect the mental health of teens,

and how can students at the IA cope with these barriers?

What is a Stereotype?

A fixed idea of a thing or a group Prejudice and false assumptions of

a group of people.– including the members of different

ethnic groups, social classes, religious orders, opposite sex, etc.

What Kinds of Stereotypes Are There?

Gender Age Religion Culture (Ethnicity) Location Sexual Orientation Appearance In General

Gender

Female– Supposed to stay home and clean, take care of kids,

cook, and do laundry– Weak– Gossipy– Gold diggers– Not as smart as males

Males– Money-maker of household– Tough– Loud– Insensitive– Players

Age Teens

– Often stereotyped by older generation– Ex. When a teenager walks into a store, he is more

likely to be watched by the clerk than a mother and her five year old.

Stereotyped as:– Ungrateful– Rude– Annoying– Dangerous– Lazy– Careless

Age [cont.]

Old(er) people [senior citizens] often classified as:– Smelly– Slow– Helpless– Boring– Grouchy

Culture/Ethnicity

Some common cultural/ethnic stereotypes:– Arabic, Middle Eastern = terrorists– Asian = smart/nerdy, terrible vision– Hispanic, Latino = lazy, play songs like “La

Cucaracha” on guitar– Eastern European = primitive, drink strong

liquor

Location

Some are classified by where they live or are from (similar to cultural/ethnic stereotypes)– Detroit = ghetto, a lot of crime– Orange County = preppy, rich

Religion

Some religious stereotypes:– Jews control the world’s wealth– Muslims are terrorists– Christians are hypocritical– Buddhists spend all their time studying

and meditating

Sexual Orientation

Feminine men and masculine women

Being gay is a “phase” Gay men will die of AIDS Stereotypical “gay jobs” include

fashion designing

Appearance In General Someone’s personality is

characterized only by what they wear/how they look– Ex. Glasses & braces = nerdy/geeky

Some try to live up to stereotypes by changing appearance– Some only wear certain brands because

they think it will make them “cooler”

Here are some common high school stereotypes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsPvRtQIKG0&feature=related

How Do Stereotypes Affect Us? “Stereotype threat” – Dr. Michael Miller of

Harvard University explains that this “stereotype threat” is distracting, anxiety-provoking, and may get in the way of the achievement of goals

A study performed by researches from UCL (University College London) showed students of a certain ethnicity underperformed on tests because they were too worried about living up to the negative stereotypes the ability of their ethnic group

How Do Stereotypes Affect Us? [cont.]

Can get in the way of one’s achievements – distracting, anxiety-provoking

Can make one closed-minded toward meeting new/different people

One’s self-image and self esteem can change for better or for worse

Time to Break Negative Stereotypes!

Always keep in mind: breaking negative stereotypes is mainly up to the individual

Individual awareness that the problem is not one’s self

Counseling can help one break out of any generalizations and establish a status as an individual

Show respect to those who are different, even if you disagree with their views

Time to Break Negative Stereotypes! [cont.]

Take a stand against people who use stereotypes to degrade others

Getting to know people personally can break down negative stereotypes

You don’t have to deny that stereotypes exist, but remember that there’s nothing wrong with being different

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9MXJ1uE10s

Going Beyond…

The four of us set out into the world and talked to/interviewed people about stereotypes…

Works Cited

"Arab Culture And Muslim Stereotypes." 17 June 2008. <http://www.metimes.com/opinion/2008/06/17/arab_culture_and_muslim_stereotypes/ 5948/>.

"Mental Health - Stereotyping - Stereotype Threat." Harvard Health Publications. <http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/mental_health_stereotyping.htm>.

"Peaceful turmoil: Buddhism in Stereo (-type)." 3 Jan. 2007. <http://peacefulturmoil.blogspot.com/2007/01/h.html>.

Stereotype. Digital image. <http://www.adamsacks.com/images/illustration/stereotype.gif>.

"Stereotype." <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/stereotype>.

"'Stereotype threat' could affect exam performance of ethnic minority medical students." E! Science News. 18 Aug. 2008. <http://esciencenews.com/articles/2008/08/18/stereotype.threat.could.affect.exam.performance.ethnic.minority.medical.students>.

"Students Discuss Religious Stereotypes." The Occidental Weekly. 19 Nov. 2008. <http://media.www.oxyweekly.com/media/storage/paper1200/news/2008/11/19/news/students.discuss.religious.stereotypes-3550930.shtml>.