Self Fulfilling Stereotypes
“How a Self-Fulfilling Stereotype Can Drag Down Performance” is an article written by Shankar Vendantam. This piece was published in the science section of the Washington Post in 2009. Vendantam’s article discusses how negative stereotypes may impair group member’s performance in tasks that evoke these stereotypes. This is a phenomenon, known by scientists, as “stereotype threats.” Current research supports the notion that stereotype threats negatively influence people when it comes to race and gender.
These threats can influence race negatively because stereotypes often revolve around race. For example, when whites and African Americans were posed questions by a white interviewer “…blacks on average answered 5.49 questions correctly and whites …show more content…
For example, when women are told that men score better on math tests it “…depresses the women’s scores.” This demonstrates that women internalize the “stereotype threats” and succumb to the proposed outcome of male superiority. In addition, despite having the same SAT scores as men, colleges feel inclined to pick male students over females because “…his score predicts he will do better.” This indicates that women are routinely influenced by female stereotypes that ultimately affect their performance. Colleges themselves are contributing to the idea of stereotype threats by admitting males based on an assumption that female achievement is lower. This is very telling because it confirms that stereotypes are driving the outcome of higher education and the future educational goals of women. On the other hand, this outcome is echoed in race relations when white males are told that Asian male performance is superior. Both instances, despite the difference between gender and race, result in lower performance due to the negative effects of stereotypes. By eliminating gender and racial stereotyping, individuals despite any biological differences, can achieve their maximum potential.
In this article, the author wanted us to learn that stereotypes do negatively affect the performance of people at the base of these. In a final analysis, stereotype threats are detrimental to the
These threats can influence race negatively because stereotypes often revolve around race. For example, when whites and African Americans were posed questions by a white interviewer “…blacks on average answered 5.49 questions correctly and whites …show more content…
For example, when women are told that men score better on math tests it “…depresses the women’s scores.” This demonstrates that women internalize the “stereotype threats” and succumb to the proposed outcome of male superiority. In addition, despite having the same SAT scores as men, colleges feel inclined to pick male students over females because “…his score predicts he will do better.” This indicates that women are routinely influenced by female stereotypes that ultimately affect their performance. Colleges themselves are contributing to the idea of stereotype threats by admitting males based on an assumption that female achievement is lower. This is very telling because it confirms that stereotypes are driving the outcome of higher education and the future educational goals of women. On the other hand, this outcome is echoed in race relations when white males are told that Asian male performance is superior. Both instances, despite the difference between gender and race, result in lower performance due to the negative effects of stereotypes. By eliminating gender and racial stereotyping, individuals despite any biological differences, can achieve their maximum potential.
In this article, the author wanted us to learn that stereotypes do negatively affect the performance of people at the base of these. In a final analysis, stereotype threats are detrimental to the