Tag: stereotypes

Divided By Gender – Stereotypes Dissuade Girls From Careers In Computer Science
EDUCATION

Divided By Gender – Stereotypes Dissuade Girls From Careers In Computer Science

Allison Master, University of Houston; Andrew N. Meltzoff, University of Washington, and Sapna Cheryan, University of Washington Stereotypes about what boys and girls supposedly like aren’t hard to find. Toy advertisements send signals that science and electronic toys are intended for boys rather than girls. Computer scientists and engineers on television shows and movies are often white men, like the guys on “The Big Bang Theory.” Policymakers, teachers and parents sometimes subscribe to these stereotypes, too. They might spread them to children. Efforts to combat these stereotypes often focus on boys’ and girls’ abilities. But as researchers who specialize in motivation, identity and cognitive development, we think society has largely overlooked another harmful stereotype. And that ...
We Found Dangerous And Stigmatizing Stereotypes Prevail While Studying Depression Messages On YouTube Videos
HEALTH & WELLNESS, SOCIETY, VIDEO REELS

We Found Dangerous And Stigmatizing Stereotypes Prevail While Studying Depression Messages On YouTube Videos

Rates of depression have tripled in the U.S. since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and most recent estimates suggest these numbers remain elevated compared with pre-pandemic rates of mental health problems. Even before the pandemic, depression was a leading source of disability, affecting over 17 million Americans each year. In a society where mental health education is not uniformly taught in schools, and where most people with depression go untreated, this is a recipe for disaster. Psychologists have proposed ways to reform mental health care such as increasing access to care through telehealth. These actions are important. However, few experts have provided recommendations for how everyday citizens can flatten the depression curve by reducing stigma. To better understand why ...
Many Still Persist, But Racial Stereotypes Drive Students Of Color Away From STEM
EDUCATION

Many Still Persist, But Racial Stereotypes Drive Students Of Color Away From STEM

Dominique, a Black electrical engineering doctoral student, found herself in an awkward situation in the lounge of a hotel where she had been attending a conference on science. A white man at her table assumed a nearby Black woman was on the hotel cleaning staff, so he asked her to clean their table. The woman did as she was asked, but in the process she informed him that not only was she a scientist attending the same conference as he, but she was also the keynote speaker. Rather than apologize for his erroneous assumption, the man cracked a joke. “But she cleans so good,” the man told everyone at the table. “Can we say: ‘Dual career opportunity?’” – as if an accomplished scientist would need an “opportunity” to clean tables. All of the white folks at the table stared at Dominique (no...
Ethnic diversity on campus helps break down stereotypes
IN OTHER NEWS

Ethnic diversity on campus helps break down stereotypes

When students attend ethnically diverse colleges, their enriched experience transforms how they view different ethnic groups and better prepares them for life and work in 21st century America. This finding is based on the responses of nearly 4,000 students from 28 U.S. colleges who completed annual surveys between 1999 and 2004 about their views of overall ethnic diversity at their schools, specific ethnic groups and their own well-being. More diversity makes students see ethnic groups as being basically the same when it comes to warmth and competence – two major dimensions of group stereotypes. That is, the more diverse a campus is, the more likely students perceive Asians, Latinos, Blacks and whites as similarly trustworthy and similarly intelligent, rather than as stereotypically diff...