posted
I had a linguistics test today, and a number of the questions dealt with politically correct language. I had a thought while doing so. I thought about the difference between prejudice and racism. Now, I know the official difference between them is that Racism is a belief that one race is better than another and prejudice a just judging a person that you don't know based on...whatever. But then I got to thinking about whether or not there could be an acceptable level of prejudice. I mean, everyone pre-judges people to an extent. I kinda thought that prejudice gets out of hand when people decide to act on their judgments in a way that is harmful, disrespectful, or just plain mean. So what does everyone else think? I'm curious...
Posts: 3003 | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
Boris, after just having talked about this topic in my social psychology class, I have a few thoughts.
I don't think there is anyway to get around prejudice. Everyone pre-judges people, whether you intend to or not. While prejudice is just a general attitude (along with its emotional components), it is often considered a hostile or general negative attitude based solely on membership of some group be it race, religion or what have you. However, it doesn't always have to be a negative view. Still, even positive views can be considered dangerous to a group of people. For example, if I were to say I believe that all black men are good at basketball. Sounds harmless at first, but what happens when you see a black man who isnt good at basketball...well then there must be something wrong with him, right? That is when something that is initially good can turn out bad.
I think prejudice gets out of hand when people start to generalize bad qualities to certain group. Good qualities generalized to certain groups, though they can be damaging, don't seem to have the repercussions that negative prejudices do. Once people start generalizing to the point where they believe it applies 100% of the time, then they are apt to begin outwardly expressing their stereotypes and discriminate against those that they have pre-judged.
In spite of all the things being done to curb prejudice, I don't think it will ever fully disappear. I think humans will always be judging others, it's just something we do. It's also something that I think more people should realize. Certain levels can be beneficial to us because it helps us to manage things in our head. It lets us have certain "scripts" that we follow when were are in ambiguous situations that give us the guidelines on how to act. We need these pre-judgements to give us a clue on things.
I know someone who tells me not to judge because it says so in the Bible and that I am wrong to place judgements on people, but I dont think it can be helped. I dont know anyone who has never pre-judged anything and to be quite honest, I think it can be good to an extent
ps sorry for the bad writing, its late and finals week is upon me and I am doing everything I can to procrastinate my studying...in fact...this is me right now ---> Posts: 306 | Registered: Jun 2003
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posted
What's curious about prejudice is that it is often considered terribly wrong when done in regards to race, religion, or gender, but at the same time it is often regarded as totally acceptable in regards to other things. If you say you think so-and-so is mean because they have a mean face, then it is considered okay, but if you say you think they are mean because they are black, then it is considered a terrible thing to say.
Posts: 2432 | Registered: Feb 2001
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posted
hum... an acceptable prejudice level... I am the first who say "n'ayez pas d'a priori !" (don't have a priori) but I am also the first who try to take care of my apparence (clear clothes, well shaved, correct language). If i don't prejudge everyone during the first meeting, I know many people do that. In addition to that, we have not an objectif vision. Our subconscious, trouble our eyes. This is cave story of Socrate. And, moreover, i think an attraction/repulsion sense exist between two persons. Have you never meet somebody you dislike for no really reason ? Or What's about "coup de foudre" ? Very interesting question. My current opinion is we can't be really objective, but we must try to correct our a priori by being patient.
Posts: 1189 | Registered: Dec 2004
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posted
Perhaps it was useful back in primative times, but now... Now it just seems to get in the way. It locks people into certain assumptions, which is not something people really need.
Posts: 9942 | Registered: Mar 2003
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quote: But then I got to thinking about whether or not there could be an acceptable level of prejudice.
First of all, our brains are hard-wired to make judgments based on limited information, to group things into generalities. This is the way we are. It's not going to go away just because we say "we don't need it" any more than our sex drive is going to go away now that our tribe doesn't need to propagate as prolifically as possible.
It seems to me that much of the PC movement is geared towards pretending you aren't thinking what you really are thinking. This I consider a bad and dangerous thing. It allows you to be prejudiced without ever realizing it in yourself.
Stereotyping is not an evil thing of itself. It's important to realize when you are doing it so that you don't take the stereotype as fact. It's more of a best guess based on past data.
While it would be ignorant to say "All people from group X have Y quality", there should be nothing wrong with saying "People from group X are likey to have Y quality." Perhaps it's incorrect, but it shouldn't be taboo to say things like that.
posted
I've found I get creeped out by a man standing around outside the apartment building. Not any one particular guy, just guys in general who loiter. I've never had any of them say anything to me, much less do anything, but I still hate walking past them to do my laundry.
Personally, I think most of my prejudice is based on appearance. Because of the jerks at my high school, I expect preps to be close-minded elitests. I have a friend who is preppy and sweet as can be. He can hang out with the Goth gamers and never be unpleasant in the least. (Of course I've always thought of Goths as preps in black, so I was pleasantly surprised by their acceptance as well.)
My prejudice was based on how people who belonged to the same cliques treated others. Now that most of my friends are late twenties, early thirties, I'm losing those prejudices. The people I observe don't act that way, so I expect it less often.
It'll be interesting to see how badly I revert once I start community college this summer and am in class with kids fresh out of high school. I guess as long as I don't expect any one individual to be exactly like my stereotype there's no harm in being leery.
Posts: 2283 | Registered: Dec 2003
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posted
Think of a more socially acceptable prejudice: perhaps that against drug users. We've been trained to think of people who smoke pot as lazy; heroin users as tragically strung out, violent, and unpredictable; and hallucinogen users as distracted, out-of-touch hippies. Are these true all of the time? No. Most of time? Maybe, but probably not. Are they useful in preventing drug use? I'd say no, but some people definitely think so.
Look at another rejudice, that a devout, American Christian votes Republican. Is it always true? Is it often true? Is it useful? Is it hurtful? It probably depends on how strongly you apply it. If you insist that every devout, American Christian votes Republican and if they deny it, they're either lying about who they voted for or who they are, it's going to cause problems. If you apply it only until any evidence contradicts it, you're probably going to be just fine.
Posts: 5 | Registered: Dec 2004
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quote: Because of the jerks at my high school, I expect preps to be close-minded elitests. I have a friend who is preppy and sweet as can be.
It's interesting that, decades later, you can still often tell who was popular in high school and who wasn't.
My BiL and SiL were both obviously popular in high school. It oozes out of them.
As a result, I have to make a conscious effort every single time I'm with them to not automatically dislike them because of that. When I allow myself to, I like them. But it takes a conscious effort to overcome my prejudices.
Perhaps some day I'll overcome that so that it doesn't have to be conscious. But today is not that day.
posted
Maybe it has to do with when you formed your opinion of yourself? I was in something of a dreamy cloud in high school, and I didn't start paying attention to the world until college. In college, there's not really any such thing as the in crowd, because there isn't as much forced association.
Posts: 26077 | Registered: Mar 2000
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My self-opinion formed in elementary school, when I was ostricized and mercilessly teased by almost everyone.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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I think junior high is awful for everyone. It was so awful for me that I just shut down for several years - hence the high school dreamy cloud. College was incredible, though. Posts: 26077 | Registered: Mar 2000
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posted
I think I kind of did that, too, kat, except I shut down before Jr. High. Of course, my childhood was atrocious in other ways; that's why I'm so well-read.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
High school seems to be a fairly binary experience, judging from most of the people I know. Some people had a great time in high school, then get to college and have trouble leaving all the things they liked so much about their life at home. Then there are those (like me) who hated high school, detested the circus act that it was, and do their best to forget it; for the most part these people who I've known hated high school have flourished in a college environment.
posted
When I was in "collège" (= Junior High School in France), I never had problem. That's right, i always was a talled and stronged boy... and very socialable. No doubt because of my wilness to forget "a priori".
Posts: 1189 | Registered: Dec 2004
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posted
I loved grade school and high school. There's a big section of the population that did too. From what I've seen, they just don't generally post on this site.
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Prejudice is a effort to reduce complexity. In itself this is not a bad thing. It's a necessary aspect of living in a world that is for all practical purposes infinite.
The problem with prejudice is at its heart a problem with an overemphasis on reducing and avoiding complexity and the uncomfortable thinking and cogntive reorganization that it fosters. Problematic prejudiced behavior generally manifests itself within an entire reducing/avoidant complex, which tends to make it insecure, violent, and unconsciously motivated and justified.
It's funny in a way, but because of this anti-complexity basis, unrelated pro-complexity stuff can actually reduce a person's reliance on prejudicial thinking. For example, studies have shown that increasing a person's (prejudice irrelevant) vocabulary will often reduce the role that prejudice plays in their thinking and actions.
Posts: 10177 | Registered: Apr 2001
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