Why Do We Stereotype? @ When we stereotype we a\tribute to a person a range of characteristics and abitities that we assume atl members.of that group have- Stereotypes lead to social categorizatìon Bnd tendrto convey a negative impression. White att stereotype\are generalizations, not att,generatizations are stereotypes. One danger of stereotypìng is that it makes us ignore the differences between individuats. Ge.peralizations may lead us to formutate incorrect opinions and therefore ùe think ttTings about peopte that might not be true. A positive aspect of"the use of stereotypes is that it may work as a means to simptify our sogial world because they reduce the amount of think'ing we have to-do whe;r we nieet a new person. A positive example is given by the phrase "sober às a ;uàge", which refers to a stereotype with a yery respectabte set of characteiistics; negative stereotypes, however, seem to be far more comrnon. ln the fitm industry for example, Arabs often used to be depicted as betty dancers, harem girls and oil sheiks".Duetg media representations, people think that Egypt has few cities and that the country is onty sand and pyramids. lreland has long been cohside/ed a nation of heavy drinkers. The most common stereotypes about ltatians are: eating spaghetti, the mafia, using a lot of gestures, being romantic, being toud, being chaotic and fashionable. Austrians on the other hand, are often depicted as serious, hardworking and tacking in any sense of humour. These represent what are known as nationat stereotypes, which have been the subject of jokes for centuries. The following is a typical joke about national characteristics and stereotypes: "Heaven is where the cooks are French, the police are British, the mechanics are German, the tovers are ltatian and everything is organized by the swiss. Helt is where the cooks are British, the police are German, the mechanics are French, the lovers are Swiss, and everything is organized by the ltatians". Why do we stereotype? How do such stereotypes devetop? A team of researchers from the university ofAberdeen provides evidence that they are a resutt of the way we process and communicate knowledge. The process of repeatedty passing sociat information from person to person can resutt in the unintentionat and spontaneous formation of cutturat stereotypes.