We know that prejudice is socially ,motivated and directed - there is a considerable element of political and media duping, involved but there has to be more to it than socio-political process, otherwise everyone would be prejudiced in the exactly the same ways. And we arent at all. There are some identifiable psychological characteristics that present reasons why some people may be more susceptible to adopting prejudice as a kind of defence mechanism: Avoiding uncertainty - Prejudice allows people to avoid anxiety, anger, doubt and fear. Its a way of choosing something easier to confront than a reality, since stigmatising a vulnerable social group is an easier option than facing a government that is invariably responsible for the anxiety, anger, doubt and fear in the first place. Of course, that diversion of blame and responsibility suits the government very well, too. Avoiding ambiguity and insecurity - Prejudice gives people scapegoats to blame in times of social crisis. It offers people a simple formula from which to make predictions about other people’s behaviour. Allowing self-serving bias - Prejudice may be used to boost self-esteem. People with prejudiced attitudes tend to be those that harbour a sense of inadequacy. (See IDS,for example) Permitting oppressive behaviours - Prejudice legitimises discrimination because it apparently justifies hierarchical thinking, and one group’s dominance over another. Prejudice has been linked with the tendency for over- simplification of explanations - seeing the world as black and white, and also, hierarchical thinking. Conservative authoritarianism correlates with prejudice.Conservatives view the social world hierarchically , and are more likely than others to hold prejudices toward low-status groups. This is especially true of people who want their own group to dominate and be superior to other groups -- a characteristic known as social dominance orientation not all conservative authoritarians identify as such, either. But any group claiming dominance over another - including the working class - is displaying social dominance orientation. The oppressed can be oppressive, too Reducing Prejudice: Research shows that prejudice and conflict among groups can be reduced if four conditions are met: 1) The groups have equality in terms of legal status, economic opportunity, and political power. This is one reason why Labours Human Rights Act and the Equality Act are so important. 2) Authorities advocate equal rights and are positive about diversity. We ought to be able to expect positive role modelling from a government. That will never happen with any right wing administration. They advocate measures and present narratives that heighten prejudice, Labour are currently the only party actually addressing the root causes of prejudice. 3) The conflicted groups are provided with opportunities to interact formally and informally with each other. 4) The groups cooperate to reach a common goal.
Posted on: Wed, 04 Jun 2014 01:51:06 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015