What are the disadvantages of stereotyping people or being prejudiced against them
Answers
Disadvantages of Stereotyping
The downside of using a stereotype to make a judgment about someone is that it might be completely misguided and incorrect, causing you to act differently towards the person which can offend them.
The media may have changed the way the person actually is on a normal daily life to how they are on TV. This may be because it will draw more attention from the Public eye as it is making the person, normally a celebrity, to look stupid. This will therefore increase the amount of viewers that programme gets.
For example, Paris Hilton is involved with a show called Paris Hilton's Best Friend. Some people may percieve this as a silly programme and a waste of time because why make a TV programme just to make a 'best friend'. This makes Paris look slightly silly and blonde because she is the one that has agreed to go on the show. The only reason she may have done this is because she wants to get seen by the public but she is too blonde to realise that people may be 'laughing' at her. It can be argued that are we as 'silly' as Paris Hilton? This is because we are the ones stupid enough to watch the programme therefore we are the reason how she makes money. People may stereotype her as being false, spoilt, vain, and an attention seeker but is this what the producers want us to see? My point is that the media may have changed her to look how they want her to look instead of how she actually is.
Some people may assume that the same group of people share the same ideals and personality traits just because they have something in common like their dress sense, culture or taste in music. Just because they may look the same, it doesn't mean they feel the same or think the same things.
This is a form of prejudice and can be distressing for the person who is being prejudged, who might feel that they are misunderstood, particularly when a stereotype is racially motivated.
The saying "Don't judge a book by its cover" demonstrates that appearance isn't enough to understand who a person really is.
Stereotyping can create problems in many social situations like the workplace, at school or in the local community.
For example, in the workplace if a female boss were to manage a group of men. The female might feel that she has to prove that she is capable to do the job because of the negative stereotyping that suggests that women are less capable, and the men might in turn assume that she is bossy and incompetent, this then creating negativity for her in the company.