Finish the phrases below:

John is energetic, eager and (intelligent/stupid)

Julie is bright, lively and (thin/fat)

Joe is handsome, tall and (flabby/muscular)

Jane is attractive, intelligent and (likeable/unpleasant)

Susan is cheerful, positive and (attractive/unattractive)

If you compare your answers with those of others, the chances are that they will be exactly the same. There is no logical truth based reason for this- it is simply part of the way that we stereotype. The fact that we naturally see the world in this kind of shorthand way with connections between different character traits, allows the media to create simplistic representations which we find believable. Implicit personality theory explains this process.

As humans we use our own unique storehouse of knowledge about people when we judge them.

Our past experience is more important than the true features of the actual personality that we are judging.- traits exist more in the eye of the beholder than in reality.

We have each a system of rules that tells us which characteristics go with other characteristics.

We categorise people into types (e.g. workaholic, feminist etc.) to simplify the task of person perception

Once we have in our minds a set of linked traits which seem to us to go together, they form a pattern of connections that can be called a prototype. In other words the mix of traits that we may consider "typical" of feminists are a prototype of what a feminist is like to us.

If we encounter someone in reality or in the media who seems to fit neatly into a prototype, we feel reassured. It confirms our stereotyped view- we do not need to think further.

Also once a few of the traits seem to fit our prototype, we will immediately bundle onto the person the rest of the traits from the prototype even if we do not know if they fit them in reality.

Research has shown that if we find people who do not fit into our prototypes, we will form very strong often impressions of them- it is surprising to us and disconcerting- it forces us to think more deeply.

On the other hand, if it is at all possible, we will try to twist the truth to fit in with our prototype, often ignoring traits which do not fit into our neatly imagined pattern of characteristics. This will particularly happen as time passes and we have time to forget things that do not fit in. This can lead to enormous differences between our perceptions of people and the reality.

All of this distortion happens naturally in our minds before the media have had their chance to simplify and distort. We do a lot of the business of stereotyping ourselves. It is almost as if we conspire with the media to misunderstand the world

Steve Baker 9/1/97