The effects of comparative status on social stereotypes: How the perceived success of some persons affects the stereotypes of others

Prior research has shown that the perceived roles and positions of a group affect stereotypes of that group (e.g., Eagly & Steffen, 1984). Studies were performed to examine how the perceived roles and positions of groups and individuals affect the stereotyping of other groups. Experiment I investigated the impact of stories of individual success on stereotypes of African Americans. Experiment 2 examined the effect of information about Asian American success on the stereotyping of Mexican Americans. In both studies,, observations of the attainments of select groups and individuals contributed to the negative stereotyping of disadvantaged groups. The studies also examined the processes through which comparative status information affects stereotypes. As expected, information about the success of some persons contributed to the stereotyping of others by altering beliefs about opportunity in society, which, in turn, influenced the attributions that were made for the positions and roles of the target group, Thus, social mobility beliefs and attributions of group status were shown to be important determinants of stereotypes that can mediate the impact of social status information on stereotyping, The findings suggest that there may be important unwanted consequences to the commonplace stories of individual attainment and Asian American success that frequent the popular media. The implications of the research for prejudice reduction are discussed.