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Room
Seezimmer 3
Thursday, September 13  »  10:15 - 11:30
Symposium 4
Stereotypes and Prejudice and Their Consequences
Host
Sabine Sczesny (University of Berne)
Chair
Sabine Sczesny (University of Berne)
Discussant
Franciska Krings (University of Lausanne)
One of the most important consequences of stereotypes and prejudice is that they can lead to unfair treatment and other negative outcomes when they are applied to members of stereotyped groups. The symposium comprises five presentations, each contribution investigates an important aspect of stereotyping and prejudice by focusing on mechanisms that drive stereotyping and by emphasizing possible consequences. Moreover, three contributions adopted a cross-cultural perspective. Specifically, Sarrasin analysed how the relationship of different forms of prejudice toward women is related to attitudes toward the use of gender-fair language in three different languages. Bosak and colleagues investigated to what extend the presentation of men and women in the same social role eliminates gender-stereotypical trait judgments of men and women in Norway and Switzerland. Contributions by Angerfelt & Antonakis, Sczesny, and Krings focus on the consequences of stereotypes in an economic and work-related context: Angerfelt and Antonakis investigated the relation between gender empowerment, economic development, and cultural values (egalitarianism) across 39 countries. Sczesny analysed the phenomenon of feature-based stereotyping in the context of personnel selection and potential consequences for applicants. Finally, Krings studied conditions of employment discrimination against older applicants, focusing on different types of job skill requirements.
Speakers
Oriane Sarrasin
On the relationship between different forms of sexism and the attitudes towards a nonsexist language
Authors
Oriane Sarrasin (University of Berne)
Some expressions or words differentiate between women and men, or exclude women. This is called sexist language and can involve different things such as the use of the masculine form to represent sex-unknown or mixed sex-referents. However, most empirical research on the use of the masculine intended as generic has demonstrated that the use of the masculine evokes concepts of men thus eliminating women as referents. This has lead to the creation of alternative solutions perceived as less sexist.
Nonsexist language is not totally adopted though and sometimes even meets strong resistance. Our study aims to shed light on the factors (different forms of sexism) linked to attitudes toward nonsexist language. These different variables have been assessed in English, German and French by means of a questionnaire (N=223).
Hostile Sexism and Modern Sexism, which are more or less subtle measures of negative stereotypes toward women, are linked to negative attitudes toward nonsexist language. People who hold negative attitudes toward women are not favourable to measures enhancing women’s visibility. However, the sexism is not only constituted of negatives attitudes but also of subjectively positive and paternalistic attitudes (Benevolent Sexism). No study has been conducted so far to assess the link between this form of sexism and attitudes toward a nonsexist language. We will present data that do so and that shed further light to the complex interaction between language and sexism.
Janine Bosak
A Cross-Cultural Comparison of the Impact of Social Roles on Trait Judgments
Authors
Janine Bosak (University of Berne)
Bernadette Renggli (University of Berne)
Sabine Sczesny (University of Berne)
According to gender-stereotypical beliefs, women are communal (e.g., affectionate, sympathetic) and men are agentic (e.g., dominant, competitive). The present research investigates to what extent the presentation of women and men in the same social role eliminates these gender-stereotypical judgments (social role theory; Eagly, Wood, & Diekman, 2000). By taking the traditionalism of gender roles in societies into account, we predicted that role effects should be stronger for participants from less traditional countries than for participants from more traditional countries. In the present study students from Norway and Switzerland judged men and women in specific male- and female-dominated occupational roles or without role information on agency and communion. Specifically, the participants estimated the frequency with which a male or female target person in a specific role would engage in agentic and communal behaviors. As expected, role information reduced sex differences in ascribed agency and communion. Nevertheless, the traditionalism of the two investigated societies did not affect the impact of social roles in people’s trait judgments.
Marika Angerfelt
Gender empowerment: The role of religion and cultural values
Authors
Marika Angerfelt (University of Lausanne )
John Antonakis (University of Lausanne )
Gender stereotypes against women leaders are thought to result from the perceived lack of fit between stereotypical female attributes and leader roles that are usually defined in male terms. We theorized that women should have greater access to positions of power as stereotypes become less ingrained in cultures. Furthermore, economic development, as a proxy of better schooling and professional opportunities, should also improve women’s empowerment. We tested the predictive validity of these two factors as well as their interaction. We used longitudinal data on gender empowerment across 39 countries (United Nations Development Reports, 1997-2006). Economic development was measured in terms of GDP per capita (at purchasing power parity, UNDP, 1997-2006). Gender egalitarianism was measured using the GLOBE project Social Practices Index (Emrich, Denmark, & Den Hartog, 2004). The results of a random-intercepts model indicated that GDP and Egalitarianism had strong and positive effects on gender empowerment; richer and more egalitarian countries had a higher level of gender empowerment than did poorer countries. As predicted, the relation of GDP with gender empowerment was moderated by Egalitarianism such that the relation was strong and positive in poorer countries. In richer countries the relation was essentially flat. The results suggest that values and attitude changes, along with economic development should be used to improve gender equality, particularly in poorer countries.
Sabine Sczesny
Feature-based stereotyping in the context of personnel selection
Authors
Sabine Sczesny (University of Berne)
According to one line of reasoning stereotyping results from cognitive processes of social categorization. Such categorizations are usually based on (stimulus) features. As such, the body weight can be used to infer that a person can be categorized as over-weighted, just as the body-shape can serve as a cue to identify a person’s sex. Recent research has indicated the existence of feature-based stereotyping beyond such categorization, namely within-category stereotyping: For example, within each sex, applicants associated with typically masculine physical features were employed with a higher degree of certainty compared to applicants with typically feminine features (Sczesny & Stahlberg, 2002; Sczesny, Spreemann, & Stahlberg, 2006). These findings are highly important on a theoretical and practical level: Due to meta-cognitive restrictions individuals might not be capable of correcting for the influence of more subtle features, even when the prerequisites for judgment correction are met (e.g., high cognitive capacity; Sczesny & Kühnen, 2004). A series of experimental studies shows that the impact of feature-based stereotyping in the context of personnel selection is a robust phenomenon resulting in negative consequences for stereotyped applicants.
Franciska Krings
Experimental evidence for the pervasiveness of age discrimination at employment
Authors
Franciska Krings (University of Lausanne)
In order to better combat workplace discrimination, it is important to identify the conditions under which it is likely to occur. In three studies, we investigated conditions of employment discrimination against older job applicants by focusing on the impact of skill requirements within a job. Participants evaluated one or more fictitious candidates that differed with respect to age. Moreover, skill requirements within the job that the fictitious candidates applied for were manipulated by focusing on different types of interpersonal and on administrative skill requirements. Studies 1 and 3 used student samples and Study 2 a sample of HR professionals. Results were consistent across the three studies: Younger candidates were evaluated more positively and had a higher probability to become invited to an interview than older candidates, despite the fact that older candidates were perceived as being well-qualified. The influence of skill requirements was limited. Results of study 3 suggested that the high rejection rates for older candidates were based on the fact that evaluators questioned the older candidates' integrity and motivation. Results imply that age discrimination at employment is pervasive, independent of evaluators' age or professional background and independent of skill requirements within a job. They further underline the call for implementing age management practices that protect older employees against discrimination at the workplace.
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