Stereotype Distinctiveness: How Counterstereotypic Behavior Shapes the Self-Concept

Three experiments examined the relationship between distinctiveness & self-schematicity. Experiment I revealed that people were more likely to be self-schematic in domains of strong performance when they felt distinct from family & peers in those domains. Experiments 2 & 3 extended this...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of personality and social psychology 2001-08, Vol.81 (2), p.193-205
Main Authors: von Hippel, William, Hawkins, Chris, Schooler, Jonathan W
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Black White Differences
Differentiation
Females
Intelligence
Males
Physical Fitness
Self Concept
Self Evaluation
Sex Differences
Sex Stereotypes
Stereotypes
Task Performance
Whites
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Summary:Three experiments examined the relationship between distinctiveness & self-schematicity. Experiment I revealed that people were more likely to be self-schematic in domains of strong performance when they felt distinct from family & peers in those domains. Experiments 2 & 3 extended this finding into the arena of stereotypes by demonstrating that people were more likely to be self-schematic in domains of strong performance when their performance was counterstereotypic rather than stereotypic. In particular, African Americans & women were more likely to be schematic for intelligence than Caucasians & men if they performed well academically, whereas Caucasians -- especially men -- were more likely than African Americans to be schematic for athletics if they performed well athletically. These results suggest that counterstereotypic behavior plays a uniquely powerful role in the development of the self-concept. 7 Tables, 51 References. [Copyright 2001 The American Psychological Association.]
ISSN:0022-3514
DOI:10.1037//0022-3514.81.2.193