Formation and change of ethnic and national stereotypes: An integrative model

The paper suggests an integrative model which explains the formation and change of the contents, as well as their intensity and extensiveness, of ethnic and national stereotypes. The model focuses on three categories of variables which determine the stereotypic contents and their intensity and extensiveness. The first category, labelled as Background Variables, consists of the history of intergroup relations, political-social climate, economic conditions, behavior of other groups, characteristics of the outgroup and nature of intergroup relations. These variables, being interrelated, influence the second category, labelled as Transmitting variables. This includes political-social-cultural-educational mechanisms, family's channel and direct contact. Finally, the influence of the above-mentioned factors is mediated by the category of Personal Mediating Variables consisting of a person's values, attitudes, personality, motivations, and cognitive styles. The paper describes the essence of the variables and discusses their interrelationships by analyzing previously proposed theories of prejudice formation and by reviewing the supporting empirical evidence. Finally, the implications of the integrative model are presented and especially the social nature of stereotyping phenomenon is emphasized, which is influenced not only by intrapersonal processes, but also by, intergroup, intragroup, and interpersonal ones. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.