Stereotype threat is a multifaceted phenomenon in modern society, stemming from diverse sources and affecting individuals and communities in different ways. Having deep roots in nationalism, culture, and psychosocial identity, stereotype threat finds itself a lot in the social and academic discourse. This paper digs deeper into the literature on stereotype threat concerning victimization, situational setting, consequences, and catalytic mechanisms as the critical domains of the subject. By expounding the nature of the research and studies informing the current knowledge of stereotype threat, this review aims to shed more light on the contemporary understanding of the subject.
Victimization
Clawson et al. (2000) highlight the role of the media in propagating stereotype threat, effectively putting the mainstream media to blame for minority populations' victimization. The disruptive research was conducted between 1992 and 2000 against the backdrop of a widening gap between the rich and the poor. For instance, Clawson et al. (2000) argue that the media intentionally portray the old, poor Blacks with a misdemeanor, often implicitly attributing that they deserve their problems. Besides, the paper illustrates that select programs in renowned media such as Washington Post and TV stations insinuate that the Welfare Program beneficiaries take advantage of the system and thus are lazy and irresponsible, which is a misinformed and alarmist perspective. Similarly, from the research, we realize that mass media often reinforces and perpetuates negative beliefs that promote victimization of some sections of the population, thus cultivating stereotype threat.
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Equally, Spencer et al. (2016) set out to review the mechanisms by which stereotype threat is circulated, the consequences, as well as the viable interventions for the problem in academia. The paper starts by declaring that every individual in society is susceptible to stereotype threat, a daring presumption that is fair enough unique. The article further posits that stereotype threat is most prevalent within the Black community, citing the multiple studies that affirm the observation. Spencer et al. (2016) ideally recreate a typical stereotyped environment. Participants are subjected to unequally represented gender, class, and ethnic groups in classroom tests to validate the research's robustness. To complement the theoretical postulation, the paper meta-analyses the responses based on age and skin color. Effectively, we observe cues that affirm the detrimental effect of stereotype threat on physical and cognitive ability.
Frantz et al. 's (2004) research paper involve three correlated tests seeking to validate the practicality of the Implicit Association Test (IAT) in demonstrating stereotype threat. The first two tests delineate the role of attitudinal prejudice to racial judgement. In contrast, the last test investigates self-affirmation as a weak link against stereotype threat since many individuals would knowingly deny the influence of ethnic prejudice on surveys. The paper is unique because it critiques the traditional view that general intelligence and prejudice tests are not subject to subjective bias, thus delimiting methodological implications regarding the plasticity and extent of automatic prejudice. Frantz et al. (2004) also capture the subtle disguise that respondents often succumb to, making them want to appear less biased when they know that the test is about ethnic or gender bias. We learn from this paper concerning victimization and stereotype threat that people are poignantly driven not to behave in an inclined manner whenever they are aware of the goal of a survey. In effect, Frantz et al. (2004) conclude by recommending that researchers be innovative with setting the proper heuristics and modalities for the IAT score, which then stems from the tendency of the racial attitudes to inflate IAT scores, as with the pro-White bias in this case.
The Situational Factor
Multiple research findings have suggested that individuals' sense of bias is dependent on their understanding of individual perception in the immediate context, which implies that one could have a slightly differing performance on multiple tests depending on the prevalent self-identity at the moment. A notable study affirming the observation was done by Shih et al. (2006) on Asian American women with the female, and Asian attributes emphasized separately to reflect desired effects on their intelligence. Candidates whose Asian identity was primed prior to the test performed better than those whose female individuality was primed. The paper successfully conveys that individuals whose less dignified individuality or belonging is made prevalent before a task are likely to underperform. The remarks are congruent with McGlone & Aronson's (2006) investigation whereby the awareness of the student's stereotypes affected their performance. Technically, the latter study sought to justify the concept of group identity, whereby an individual's feeling or performance corresponds to the dominant group identity.
Consequences
Good et al. (2008) hypothesized that the reason most women perform poorly in mathematics and science disciplines could be attributed to stereotyping rather than their innate ability to flourish. The experiment featured women and men in college-level mathematics majors. For the test group, the instructions to the calculus test emphasized that previous versions of the exam had reported wide disparities in gender; therefore, priming candidates with gender biases. As for the control group, the exam instructions indicated that the test only measured math ability, and the gender factor was insignificant. The duration was intentionally made shorter for the degree of complexity of the test. A further questionnaire was provided at the end of the quiz to collect feedback on the exam instructions gender bias.
From the two-way ANOVA analysis on the grades, female students from the test group performed marginally lower than the males and females in the control group. As predicted, the males from both groups posted no differences in performance, elevating the disparity with women's performance. Similarly, women nodded to gender bias on the end-of-test questionnaire, which also proved to be a factor in their lower performance, as it reduced their confidence. We learn from the study that the consequences of a particular group affect the spirit of its members, thus impacting their performance and decision-making ability. The effects can be glaring, especially when the individuals are primed right before the task.
Mechanisms
Cadinu et al. 's (2005) study best explains the mechanisms that catalyze the impact of stereotype threat on individuals. The individual of concern is negative thoughts, and the study involved sixty female participants presented with a challenging mathematics task. The review uses a thought-listing technique to draw a link between performance and negative thoughts about the feminine gender (and the idea that women aren't so good in math). The paper builds on earlier research related to anxiety in participants of a study with a stereotype threat to establish a direct link between thought intrusion and negative thought about performance. Like in Good et al. 's (2008) test, participants in the stereotype-threat group were informed that recent research held that women and men performed distinctively in logical math tasks, while the control group was told the absolute opposite. Before proceeding to start the paper, a blank page was provided, and a prompt required the candidate to write anything that came to mind.
Following an analysis by the ANOVA technique, the prediction that results, as well as responses on the blank page, would be distinctive between the test and control groups was realized. The implication is that negative thoughts related to maths would facilitate the stereotype threat's effects on performance. The study establishes that negative thinking has a sour impact on performance, but does not verify that intrusive thoughts are, on their own, responsible for performance deficit. That said, there remains a need for more research to stitch together anxiety, thought intrusion, and negative thought, and evaluate an evocative relationship as a mechanism that incites stereotype threat.
Furthermore, Croizet et al. (2004) conducted a study to measure cognitive ability at the group level, taking into account the particular situational burden (evaluated as emotional load). In this study, what comes across uniquely is the consideration of the psychological factor, which is obtained by measuring heart pulses, unlike previous researches that ignored the situational context. Croizet et al. (2004) apply an adaptation of the Raven Advanced Progressive Matrices Test to whether the impact of triggering an upsetting mental load affects stereotype threat. The paper sets up an experiment modeled on a psychophysiological recording for a neuroscience class. Based on a sample size of one hundred and sixty-four college students form four departments in the 21 to 56 age bracket, the outcomes proved the hypothesis. Analysis indicated that participants who imagined that the test was meant to measure cognitive ability panicked (as indicated by pulse rates). The number of problems solved depended on their majors. Croizet et al. (2004) successfully illustrate that stereotype affects physiological and psychological processes in equal measure. Thus, the study shows the psychological and physiological effect as a mechanism of enhancing stereotype threat.
Conclusion
This paper ascertains that the four dimensions of psychological threat have been thoroughly researched, and further emphasizes that each domain is faced with unique challenges. The article further indicates that the four aspects of the stereotype threat discussed are interrelated. However, insufficient data is available to exhaustively document the problem and offer a workable solution, given that the problem is dynamic and ever-changing. Therefore, further research is needed to consolidate the facts that will prove critical in formulating sustainable strategies for combating stereotype threats in society and academia.
References
Cadinu, M., Maass, A., Rosabianca, A., & Kiesner, J. (2005). Why do women underperform under stereotype threat? Psychological Science, 16, 572-578.
Clawson, R. A., & Trice, R. (2000). Poverty as we know it: Media portrayals of the poor. The Public Opinion Quarterly , 64 (1), 53-64.
Croizet, J., Després, G., Gauzins, M., Huguet, P., Leyens, J., & Méot, A. (2004). Stereotype threat undermines intellectual performance by triggering a disruptive mental load. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30, 721-731.
Frantz, C. M., Cuddy, A. J. C., Burnett, M., Ray, H., & Hart, A. (2004). A threat in the computer: The race implicit association test as a stereotype threat experience. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30, 1611-1624.
McGlone, M. S., & Aronson, J. (2006). Stereotype threat, identity salience, and spatial reasoning. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 27, 486-493.
Good, C., Aronson, J., & Harder, J. A. (2008). Problems in the pipeline: Stereotype threat and women’s achievement in high-level math courses. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 29 , 17-28.
Shih, M., Pittinsky, T. L., & Trahan, A. (2006). Domain-specific effects of stereotypes on performance. Self and Identity, 5, 1-14.
Spencer, S. J., Logel, C., & Davies, P. G. (2016). Stereotype threat. Annual review of psychology , 67 , 415-437.
