From Diversifying Economic Quality: A Wiki for Instructors and Departments
Stereotype threat is when an individual is at risk of confirming a negative stereotype about his or her own group. Therefore, an individual may not perform according to his or her innate ability, rather this ability is impacted by generally held beliefs regarding this individual's grouping, whether it is by sex, age, gender, race, etc. Click Here to learn more.
Examples of Stereotype Threat
Ambady, Paik, Steele, Owen-Smith, & Mitchell, 2004
How to Prevent Stereotype Threat
- Reframing the task
- Deemphasizing threatened social identities
- Encouraging self-affirmation
- Emphasizing high standards with assurances of capability
- Providing role models
- Providing external attributions for difficulty
- Emphasizing an incremental view of ability
Click Here for details in how to implement the above solutions.
References
Reviews of "Whistling Vivaldi: And Other Clues to How Stereotypes Affect Us (Issues of Our Time)." Click here to view them.
"Stereotype Threat, Underperformance and Diversity | Athene Donald's Blog." Occam's Typewriter | The Sharpest Blogging Network in the Box. Web. 30 June 2011. <http://occamstypewriter.org/athenedonald/2010/11/18/stereotype-threat-underperformance-and-diversity/>.
"Linking Stereotype Threat and Anxiety" Osborne, Jason W., Educational Psychology, v27 n1 p135-154 Feb 2007. Click here to access it.