1. PREJUDICE
CHAPTER 2

2. Hate Crimes Hate crimes statistics act became law in 1990
Government definition of Hate Crime
An ordinary crime as a hate crime when offenders choose a victim because of some characteristic-for example, race, ethnicity, or religion-and provide evidence that hatred prompted them to commit the crime. Hate or bias crimes which is another name can also be based on hatred because of national origin or sexual orientation (Harlow 2005:1)

3. PREJUDICE & DISCRIMINATION
Negative attitude that rejects an entire group
Discrimination
Behavior that deprives a group of certain rights or opportunities
Ethnopaulism
Ethnic slurs that include derisive nicknames and include speaking about or to members of a particular group in a condescending way

4. LaPiere’s Study
Merton’s typology points out that people do not always act as they believe
Richard LaPiere (1934, 1969)
Exposed the relationship between racial attitudes and social conduct
Traveled with a Chinese couple across the United States
Despite alleged intolerance, couple was treated courteously at hotels, motels, and restaurants

5. Theories of Prejudice Four theories of prejudice Scapegoating
occurs when an individual (group) projects and blames their own inadequacies or problems onto another group
Criticisms of Scapegoat Theory
Fails to explain why one group is used as a scapegoat and not another
Fails to explain why two individuals who share the same experience vary in tolerance
Does not explain personality differences

6. Criticisms of Authoritarian Personality
Adorno et al 1950 – study of authoritarianism and prejudice
Authoritarian Traits
Rigid adherence to conventional values
Uncritical acceptance of authority
Power and toughness
Intolerance and aggression toward those that don’t conform to conventional values
Criticisms of Authoritarian Personality
Focus on right wing groups and ignored left wing groups
Prejudice is related to other traits such as social class
Methodology employed
Focused on only extreme forms of prejudice and not on other forms of prejudice

7. Criticisms of Exploitation Theory
Prejudice is rationally and economically motivated on the basis of self interests
The dominant group benefits from prejudice in that it is rooted within the exploitation of a group
Criticisms of Exploitation Theory
Not all subordinate groups are exploited equally
Prejudice occurs for reasons other than economic
Prejudice is not necessarily rational and may undermine dominant group interests

8. All four theories of prejudice have contributed to its understanding
Normative
prejudice is patterned into the cultural norms and values of a group or society
Prejudice is a function of conforming to group norms of intolerance
All four theories of prejudice have contributed to its understanding

9. Content of Prejudice: Stereotypes
Unreliable generalizations about all members of a group that do not take individual differences into account
Stereotypes are often exaggerated and negative images of a group
Stereotypes come from a variety of sources
a kernel of truth
the media
but power plays a role in their effect

10. Trends in Stereotypes
Stereotypes often become a self-fulfilling prophecy
Affect how we feel
Affect how we relate to others
Stereotyping In Action: Racial Profiling
Any police-initiated action based on race, ethnicity, or national origin rather than the person’s behavior
Can be an explicit use of stereotypes

11. Extent of Prejudice
It is difficult to quantify the extent of prejudice between groups
Measure the relative extent of prejudice between groups
Social Distance
The tendency to approach or withdraw from a racial group
Emory Bogardus’s Scale
used to measure social distance empirically and describes different degrees of social contact or social distance

12. Trends in Prejudice
Nationwide surveys consistently show growing support by Whites for integration
A change of attitude may create a context in which legislative or behavioral change can occur
Opposition by Whites to immigration or affirmative action
More acceptable, veiled way to express prejudice
Described as “modern racism, color blind racism, or laissez-faire racism”

13. The Mood of the Oppressed
Opinion polls have demonstrated interest in White attitudes on racial issues longer than they have measured views of subordinate groups
Bias of White researchers
Dominant group is more important to study because it is in a better position act on its beliefs
Prejudice and its affect on the self esteem of the subordinate group

14. Prejudice affects perceptions on fairness or equality of opportunity
Jobs, Housing, Justice
Research literature of the 1940’s through 1960’s emphasized the low self esteem of minorities
Should not assume minority status influences personality traits in a good or bad way
Such assumptions may create a stereotype
Characteristics of minority-group members are nor entirely the result of subordinate racial status
Many studies of personality imply that certain values are normal or preferable, but the values chosen are those of the dominant group

15. Intergroup Hostility
Content and extent of prejudice and stereotypes between ethnic - racial groups
Members of oppressed groups have adopted the widely held beliefs of the dominant culture concerning oppressed groups
Some groups feel they get along better with Whites than with other minority groups
Low-income people compete with each other and do not see the larger societal forces the contribute to their low status

16. Reducing Prejudice
Obvious way to eliminate prejudice is to eliminate its causes
The desire to exploit
The fear of being threatened
The need to blame others for one’s own failure
Answer rests with programs directed at society as a whole
Prejudice is attacked indirectly when discrimination is attacked

17. Despite contrary prevailing beliefs, prejudice can be legislated
Statutes and decisions do affect attitudes
Studies to determine how to change negative attitudes toward groups of people find the following encouraging
Education
Mass Media
Intergroup Contact
Workplace training programs

18. Education and Mass Media
Research consists of two types:
Artificially (experimentally) created situations
Studies that examine the influence on attitudes of motion pictures, television, and advertisements
Media has had both positive and negative effects depending on the program, situation and subjects exposed.
Well constructed programs tend to have an impact on reducing prejudice but to be effective they have to address the cognitive, affective, and action tendency dimensions

19. Some programs only focus on the cognitive or affective
Formal education is related to a reduction in prejudice
Formal education may not reduce prejudice uniformly within a group.
Mass media may reduce prejudice without the need of specially designed programs
Contact Hypothesis
States that intergroup contact between people of equal status in harmonious circumstances will cause them to become less prejudice

20. Diversity Training
Prejudice carries a cost not only to the victim but also to any organization that allows prejudice to interfere with its functioning
Most organizations have initiated some form of diversity training
Difficult to assess their effectiveness because of variation in structure between organizations
Content also varies
To have a lasting impact, training should not be separated from other aspects of the organization

21. Ways to Fight Hate 1. Act 2. Unite 3. Support The Victims
4. Do Your Homework
5. Create An Alternative
6. Speak Up
7. Lobby Leaders
8. Look Long Range
9. Teach Tolerance
10. Dig Deeper

22. Questions

23. What is the role of the internet in bias globally?

24. How can television reduce prejudice in American society and can it be used globally? Why or why not?

25. Why is education an important tool for reducing prejudice and discrimination?

26. How can one’s name lead to discrimination in seeking employment?