Implicit Personality Theory and Stereotypes - 1650 Words

According to Baron, Byrne Suls in their book Attitudes: Evaluating the social world. (1989) they defined the term Social Psychology as â€Å"the scientific field that seeks to understand the nature and causes of individual behavior in social situations†. (p. 6). There are many concepts of social perception, two of these that will be looked at in this essay are Implicit Personality Theory and stereotypes. Implicit personality theory describes the beliefs, biases and assumptions, that an individual uses when he or she forms impressions on a stranger based on limited information. The way we form impressions and the different conclusions we make about other people based upon our individual impressions is also part of this theory. One of the first†¦show more content†¦Social identity theory was first proposed by Henri Tajfel and John Turner in 1979, in the theory Tajfel and Turner proposed that the groups (family, social class, ethnicity etc) which people belonged was an important source of self esteem and pride. Groups give us a sense of social identity - a feeling of belonging to the social world. They believed that there were three separate mental processes involved when we evaluate other people (the â€Å"Us† and â€Å"Them† mentality). The first stage is categorization: We categorize objects and people in order to identify and understand the social environment. Social categories such as white, Black, English American rich and poor are used because they are useful to help identify a particular group. The second process is social identification, once we have identified and categorized ourselves into the group that we belong to, people tend to adopt the behaviour of that group, for example a student, teacher or businessman. The final stage is social comparison, once we are part of a group and identified with that group, people tend to compare their group to others, as this helps self-esteem to be maintained. Tajfel and his colleagues carried out one of the most renowned studies to support his theory called the minimal group paradigm. The aim of which was to determine if putting people into groups was enough to create in-group favoritism and out-group discrimination with the participants. Like all theories social identity theoryShow MoreRelatedAggressive Behavior Essay1189 Words   |  5 Pagesgenetically inheritable predisposition for psychopathy, possibly involving the autonomic nervous system, which is connected to emotion. This idea is based on studying psychopaths’ particular adeptness at ignoring stimuli. Research has also supported the theory that psychopaths fail to appreciate the emotional significance of an event or experience. This, along with unwillingness or inability to â€Å"process or use the deep semantic meanings of language,† may be causal in psychopaths’ apparently subtle formRead MoreEssay on Gender and Sexuality897 Words   |  4 Pagesgender, and a gender identity that are all aspects of our sexuality. These aspects describe who we are, in different personalities and attributes but related. Society’s categories for what is masculine and feminine may not capture how we truly feel, how we behave, or how we define ourselves. In today’s society, the imagery of men and women are portrayed in their different personalities. The ideal male is always characterized as being competent, stable, tough, poised, sturdy, skillful, and aggressiveRead MoreAn Investigation into the Effects of Race on the Perception of Guilt1478 Words   |  6 PagesThis illustrates that certain racial stereotypes still exist in society but perhaps on a subconscious level. Introduction ============ Theory In 1954 Bruner and Tagiuri theorised that our perceptions of others are not based on reality but on our general expectations. Everyone has ideas about which personality traits are consistent with other personality or physical traits. This theory is Implicit Personality Theory (IPT), this is an unconscious inferenceRead MoreRacism And The South And Police Brutality1378 Words   |  6 Pages(2017), proposed the following research questions: are there any differences in the effects on stereotype, social distance, and prejudice based on the demographic characteristics? 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Devine argues that the fact that negative stereotypes can be unconsciously activated should not be taken asRead MoreThe Lunch Date: Interpersonal Perception of the Film Essays793 Words   |  4 Pagesï » ¿Lesly Morrow Professor Clark SC 155 12 March 2014 The Lunch Date When I first viewed The Lunch Date , I formed many different impressions of the lady and what was going on. When the lady came walking into the station, my impression formation theory of her was that she was a bit more of the higher class, due to her physical qualities and elegant attire. She had an uncomfortable perhaps uneasy expression the whole time she was making herself aware of her environment. I felt as if she had notRead MoreGender And Social Stigma Of Loneliness Essay1349 Words   |  6 PagesGender stereotypes have long been a cause of judgment of individual performance in academic, athletic, and professional situations. Society has constructed and reinforced concepts of the quintessential male and female and their respective roles in the community. The expectations for each sex may incidentally affect their performance and success, especially when tasks seem to deviate from stereotypical gender roles. This experiment explores the effect of these judgments in stereoty ped career settingsRead MoreStereotyping And Stereotypes1560 Words   |  7 Pagesfield, stereotypes are seen as negative overstatements about individuals and groups of people, which may be used to justify discrimination (Allport, 1954/1979). However, there are distinctions to be made between stereotypes and the act of stereotyping. Stereotyping is a natural process that can actually be beneficial. This process has been characterized by different cognitive processes, such as perception and memory, and social theories, like social cognitive theory and self-categorization theory. StereotypesRead More Discussing Impression Formation Essay examples1676 Words   |  7 PagesImpression formation and stereotypes First impressions are considered very important. It is very common to hear people talk about the importance of giving a good first impression because that very first moment in which people see or meet someone new, shows them the kind of person they are most likely to be. How is personality impressions formed? Do first impressions have a much greater impact on judgements than subsequent impressions? How first impressions are formed has been a subject ofRead MoreGeneral Conception Of Prejudice And Prejudice919 Words   |  4 PagesThe presence of stereotypes and prejudices existed from a long time ago along with the human history – partially often deeply integrated with religion or social status. In 21st century, people are facing with many different stereotypes and prejudices either directly or indirectly. Stereotype is a generalized belief or assumption towards some specific groups or people by the defined attributes or characteristics. Stereotyping can foster prejudice and shape people’s point of views and behaviors of