Stereotypes

Imagine you are conducting a job interview for an administrative assistant role at your real estate company. The following two candidates are presented to you:

Josh has dyed his hair bleach blond and has a long beard. He has a tattoo sleeve and a nose piercing. He speaks with a heavy accent.

Amelie has long brown hair. She is wearing a little bit of makeup, but no extreme colors. She is well dressed and speaks eloquently.

Based on these two descriptions, which candidate would you hire? Your initial instinct is likely to hire Amelie. Yet, you have absolutely no information on what kind of experience either candidate has – so how did you come to make that choice?

It is likely that you relied on a stereotype. Stereotypes are preconceived ideas about a person based on what people from a similar group might ‘typically’ be like.¹ They cause us to make snap judgments based on a few characteristics – such as the inclination dyed hair, tattoos and piercings might make someone a worse candidate for an administrative role. A gender stereotype may also have led you to believe that a female is more suited to a secretarial position.

While stereotypes can lead to faulty conclusions and discriminatory practices, they do exist for a reason. If we aren’t presented with enough information, is relying on generalizations an appropriate response? Might stereotypes have certain advantages?