Top of Form
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, stereotyping defines as a “preconceived and oversimplified idea of the characteristics which typify a person, situation, or etc.: (Stewart, 2012, pg. 172). Essentially, stereotyping is classifying individuals into a category based on their characteristics. Individuals can be stereotyped by their type of religion, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, various other categories. Stewart (2012), provides examples on what classifies as stereotyping; examples include, calling an individual who identifies as an Asian smart just because of their ethnicity. Stereotypes can be positive and negative. Positive examples of stereotyping include saying that African Americans are better at sports or that African American women are naturally beautiful. Negative stereotyping examples can include saying that African American men are not smart or African Americans are rude and loud. All of these examples show how you can stereotype an individual based on their characteristics (Stewart, 2012).
Stereotyping can impact communication skills in many ways. Communication can be based on the perception of stereotyping, which can lead to it being impersonal on the impersonal- interpersonal continuum. Communication is also not all the time linked to stereotyping but can also be impacted by the interaction that is happening. Stereotyping can impact an individual’s evaluation of the conversation, but at times it does not impact how an individual eventually responds (Stewart, 2012).
It is important to not stereotype individuals, but at times it can be difficult because it is in human nature to classify individuals together based on their characteristics. Skills we can possess as human service professionals in regard to stereotyping, is simply not placing individuals into categories, but instead listening to that individual and hearing their problem for their problem, and not classifying them with others. Ways in which we can help prevent stereotyping from happening as often is helping an individual beyond the stereotype. It is important to be careful to not let this become a problem, but instead being aware how you classify individuals, and not make it noticeable (Stewart, 2012).
Stewart, J. (2012), Bridges Not Walls. A Book About Interpersonal Communication. McGraw Hill Publishers. New York, NY.
Bottom of Form