Human Stereotypes

[nostopballa]

What makes stereotypes? Isn't it just the 'normal' action, clothing, color,ect. of a person? If so, why? i mean, It could just as easily be the opposite. For example, most people believe pink is a girls color, it could just have easily been a boy's color IF boys where the first to where it repeatively. Another example is, homosexuals and their lisps. Straight people have lisps, couldn't be a straight characteristic as well? And are people with speech problems always gay, no. I'm posting because a lot of people around my area like to tease people with 'rare' traits, like all people that play DDR are either gay or girls. Period. Nobody can accept that guys like to play a game that includes "dancing". Can I get anyone else's opinion on this?

[FishFishRevolution]

I did a research project on stereotypes for a sociology class last year. Stereotypes are the perception of the majority of society, they are formed by the way one person thinks, which in turns catches on to other who can't/don't think for themselves. It then becomes a social norm to think this way, even if it isn't the way things are. This in turn causes things to be the way people think they are until someone breaks the trend (Sure there are always people going against the grain, but I'm talking about someone breaking the trend, and others following it). For example, dancing and playing DDR would NEVER be considered "girly" or "gay" where I live. Obviously, it's not a universal norm, someone in your area declared dancing and DDR to be "gay", and now it is. Until the majority of people start thinking differently, it won't change. =/ Stereotypes suck.

[Chromer]

DDR as a stereotype is one of the worst one's where I live. I told my friends that I played DDR, and they all laughed at me saying it was "gay" and "dancing was stupid". Like any intelligent DDR player would, I discontinued my relationship with those people. Stereotypes aremade to put other people down in a more public and widespread way. A big stereotype that even my mother thinks, is that since DDR was made in Japan, all asian people can play the game well. O_o I think this is a stereotype because not all people of Asian or Japanese descent play DDR(even though most of the ones I know actually play the game). I also don't like to play DDR on Fridays at the mall. That's when people of my own race(African American) come to the mall most often. I have faced many days of ridicule of my own race mocking me while I play the game just because it looks "stupid to them. I even had a really fat black guy try to "shadow" me while I was playing Holic on Heavy. Of course he acted like an idiot to get laughs but the joke was on him. Anyway Stereotypes cannot be broken unless someone takes the iniative to say "Hey, this isn't true or someone said that" or something like that. Just Deal With It. C'est La Vie.

[SotN]

Steorotypes because humans like 3 things in particular: order, things they can recognize, and shiny things.

Its a natual human tendancy to find patterns and group things. You associate gay people with lisps because the gay people you've seen have lisps, even though you've only met one or have only seen them on tv. You think all gang members are crack addicts because you have seen only one, even though others you've met are not. I feel that stereotyes go far deeper than our society, and are a natural tendancy.

In this way, we are very much a product of our environments.

[LEGO]

Originally Posted by Chromer

DDR as a stereotype is one of the worst one's where I live. I told my friends that I played DDR, and they all laughed at me saying it was "#$*" and "dancing was stupid". Like any intelligent DDR player would, I discontinued my relationship with those people. Stereotypes aremade to put other people down in a more public and widespread way. A big stereotype that even my mother thinks, is that since DDR was made in Japan, all asian people can play the game well. O_o I think this is a stereotype because not all people of Asian or Japanese descent play DDR(even though most of the ones I know actually play the game). I also don't like to play DDR on Fridays at the mall. That's when people of my own race(African American) come to the mall most often. I have faced many days of ridicule of my own race mocking me while I play the game just because it looks "stupid to them. I even had a really fat black guy try to "shadow" me while I was playing Holic on Heavy. Of course he acted like an idiot to get laughs but the joke was on him. Anyway Stereotypes cannot be broken unless someone takes the iniative to say "Hey, this isn't true or someone said that" or something like that. Just Deal With It. C'est La Vie.

Stereotypes aren't always negative. Some people I know think all Jewish people are rich, and one of my (ex-) friends wanted to be black because he thought all black people were cool and funny. They're just generalizations.

[zajac]

I feel with you about the whole DDR is dumb cuz I'm a guy... But everywhere you go... It is almost always the guys that play it... And down here at Santa Monica Pier, there is a DDR machine that basically ONLY guys play on, and they always do the 9 footers and such... ~shrug~

[CypherToorima]

Boo to stereotypes. I don't like them, but they are human tendencies, and there will always be stereotypes of some sort.

[Tsuguri]

Stereotypes are the lovechildren of the narrow view of the world that most people have, the natural tendency for the brain to try and organize things, and the subconscious human need to belong. People only see a very very tiny percentage of the world (figuratively and literaly), and thus, what they see becomes their norms, their reality.

[_do_you_luv_it_]

I don't stereotype the guys that dance. Personally, if my guy did ddr with me , I would love it. Anyways, I'd like to discuss a different type of steretype. Girls are stereotyped all the time. By other girls. Which is really stupid in my opinion. A girl who dresses in baggy sweaters and blue jeans could be just as slutty as a girl who wears mini skirts and tank tops. Just because someone chooses to dress to get attention doesn't mean that they are a slut. Why should girls care anyways? Girls have absolutely no reason to call another girl a slut based on what she's wearing. The only time the term slut would be reasonable for another girl to call one , is if a girl stole her boyfriend , other than that , STFU !!!

[ThEclipse]

Originally Posted by _do_you_luv_it_

I don't stereotype the guys that dance. Personally, if my guy did ddr with me , I would love it. Anyways, I'd like to discuss a different type of steretype. Girls are stereotyped all the time. By other girls. Which is really stupid in my opinion. A girl who dresses in baggy sweaters and blue jeans could be just as slutty as a girl who wears mini skirts and tank tops. Just because someone chooses to dress to get attention doesn't mean that they are a slut. Why should girls care anyways? Girls have absolutely no reason to call another girl a slut based on what she's wearing. The only time the term slut would be reasonable for another girl to call one , is if a girl stole her boyfriend , other than that , STFU !!!

I WOR A SHORT SKIRT AN GIRLS SED I BE A HO



I HAD NO PANTIES ON

[JesusWaffle]

I have enough to worry about without bemoaning the fact that God did not see fit to equally distribute the gift of intelligence.

- Someone