Ignorance

A stereotype is a widely held mental picture that represents an oversimplified, prejudiced, or uncritical judgment, which can be either a positive or negative generalization. The explanation of stereotypes lies in the behaviors of socio-cultural groups and/or individuals, where they determine a certain ‘image’ of particular group. Many studies have been carried out to explain the formations of stereotypes, which include: Social-Cognitive Theory, Group Theory, and Social Representation Theory . However, I will be using Social-Cognitive Theory and studies done by Steele & Aronson (1995) and Hamilton & Gifford to support my explanation of the formation of stereotypes and their effects on behaviors.

Paragraph Social-Cognitive

Theory suggests that, stereotype formation are based on the following reasoning:

• Our social world is very complex and presents us with an overabundance of information oSince our capacity to process information is limited there is a need to simplify our social world
• oOne of the ways in which we avoid information overload is social categorization oThe categories used in social categorization are stereotypes.
• One source of stereotype is illusory correlations, which was claimed by Hamilton and Gifford (1976).

Illusory correlation is when individuals assume a relationship between two variables, they tend to overestimate the degree of correlation – or see a correlation where none exists. For example, “women” and “the ability to drive well”. It is believed that when we see these two variables we will conclude that “women cannot drive well”. Once the illusory correlation is made, the individuals tend to seek, notice and remember the information that supports the belief, which brings us to our second source of stereotypes, confirmation bias.

Bias is the tendency to search for new information that confirms our ideas and overlook information that contradicts what we think. By using confirmation bias we gather more evidence to support our illusory correlation. For example, when we have the illusory correlation that “women cannot drive well” then we will tend to find more bad female drivers while ignoring good female drivers (e. g. female race drivers). After, stereotypes are formed has a major effect on the behavior of the subject of the stereotype, which is called the stereotype threat. Stereotype threat refers to the performance impairment that results when individuals asked to carry out some task and made aware of a negative stereotype held against them regarding their groups’ ability to perform well in a task. Stereotype threat is cued by the mere recognition that a negative group stereotype could apply to you in the given situation.

And even if the person may not believe the stereotype, he or she may experience a threat. Steele, who is the person who first came up with the idea of stereotype, created an experiment with Aronson to demonstrate that stereotype threat can undermine intellectual performance. Steele & Aronson (1995) used common stereotype that Black Americans are unintelligent and academically untalented to create the experiment and gave a test under two conditions. The test was said to be highly related to academic ability and that it was just a laboratory exercise. The findings were astonishing. When the task was described as ‘unimportant or when participants were not asked to record their ‘race’, the black and white students did equally well. However, when the test was said to be for ‘academic ability’ or when ‘race’ was recorded, clack students did less well.

Using his findings, Steele (1997) was able to conclude that spotlight anxiety is responsible for stereotype threats because the emotional distress and pressure can undermine performance. Although many of the psychologists have confidence in their theories I can evaluate that investigating stereotypes is difficult because of the social desirability effect. Moreover, researchers are instead using implicit measures of prejudice such as the IAT (Implicit Association Test) which has its own array of problems.

Conclusion

In conclusion stereotypes are formed by social categorization, which leads to the social-cognitive theory, whereas their effects of behaviors are affected by believing certain traits (illusionary correlation) and confirmation bias demonstrates that we can percept the traits to influence our behavior.

1984 For as long as governments have existed, the people they ruled feared them. This fear and the desire to improve these governments have let to countless different attempts to perfect government. From the most liberal democracy to the most crushing dictatorship, governments have all faced some shortcomings. Because of the faults inherent in all governments, various types of governance have been the topic for many authors. The late novelist Ayn Rand wrote many books on the trouble that a socialist government could bring and espoused the virtue of individualism.

She felt that by allowing government to limit our individual freedoms, we were sentencing ourselves to a certain death. She wrote that “We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force” (Rand). Rand realized that a government with too much control would not be able to help but overreach.

Although George Orwell died seven years prior to the publication of Ayn Rand’s most well known novel Atlas Shrugged, he held the same fear of an all-powerful government. Orwell felt that with the new technology appearing during his life and the ever-increasing power of government, the politicians could choose to rule every facet of the citizens’ lives. The novel 1984 is a depiction of what Orwell thought would happen if a totalitarian regime were left unchecked by the people. He paints a stark picture of this dystopia in 1984 by the masterful use of both symbolism and irony.

Orwell lets almost no time pass before he introduces symbolism and irony into his story. He begins his novel by saying that “it was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen” (Orwell 1). By saying that it was a bright day in April, Orwell gives the reader a sense that there is hope. April, a month in the spring, is a symbol of a new beginning and is a classic literary tool for showing the beginning of a novel. Orwell’s mention of a bright day is another reference to the hope still present in the lives of the characters.

Had Orwell stated that the day was dark or dim, it could have given the reader an entirely different outlook on how the characters lives might turn out. Despite these two optimistic symbols, Orwell also throws in two very ominous symbols in the same sentence. The reason for doing this is to set a tone of irony that carries through the rest of the book. In addition to describing the day as bright, Orwell also portrays it to be cold. This is his subtle way of informing the reader that not everything is well in the characters’ lives.

Orwell also found it important to tell the readers that the clocks were striking thirteen, an ominous number for many cultural civilizations. An example of this is in Christianity where Judas, the thirteenth person to be seated at the last supper, later betrayed Jesus. (Mark 14. 10-11) The development of the plot of 1984 is riddled with examples of irony. Orwell practically spells out the irony for the reader when he writes, “Even the names of the four Ministries by which we are governed exhibit a sort of impudence in their deliberate reversal of the facts.

The Ministry of Peace concerns itself with war, The Ministry of Truth with lies, The Ministry of Love with torture, and the Ministry of Plenty with starvation” (Orwell 178). This is an important example of irony because it is used to show the complete disconnect from the morals and principles of a free society. The main character, Winston Smith, is somewhat of an ironic character himself. He is not the typical protagonist. Most protagonists are strong, burly and brave, while Winston is slight and has an ulcer on his leg. Winston is employed in the “records” department of the Ministry of Truth.

Despite its noble name, The Ministry of Truth is actually the branch of government that revises the past to make the lies of the present true. In fact, Winston’s job is to rewrite history to meet current priorities. Another dominant example of irony is the Party’s slogan: “WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH” (Orwell 17). The slogan is an example of superficial verbal irony. However, upon closer examination, it sheds more light on Orwell’s intent. By stating that “war is peace”, Orwell sends distinct messages to two vastly different groups.

To the proles, the commoners, “war is peace” can be read at its most literal meaning, that there can one day be peace by defeating the enemy and securing victory. Despite the simple understanding the proles have of the slogan, those in the Inner Party, the group of people in charge of Oceania, have a much more devious understanding of it. To them, the slogan represents the shell game that they play with the common citizen. Much like the street gambler taking bets on which shell the rock is under, the Inner Party assures that the citizenry is focused on whatever country Oceania is fighting, rather than on the leaders of the country.

This claim is further supported on page 161 where Orwell describes the futility of the wars that are being fought. “None of the three superstates ever attempts any maneuver which involves the risk of serious defeat” (Orwell 161). Rather than try to end the wars, they continue fighting to keep the minds of the working class occupied with hate. The leaders in 1984 saw that it was not advantageous to advocate a strict moral code because it limited their ability to control the populace. Saul Alinsky shows a later example of this type of thinking in the book Rules for Radicals.

Alinsky, a community organizer, outlined a set of rules for people to follow as a deceptive means of gaining and maintaining power. He saw that in order to maintain power, things such as morals and ethics needed to be flexible. One of his most important rules was that “generally, success or failure is a mighty determinant of ethics” (Alinsky 15). It is a safe assumption that if Alinsky’s rules were available to the Inner Party, they would know exactly how to use them. Some of the strongest examples of irony in 1984 are the characters in the Junior Anti-Sex League.

The name is typical of an organization in a dystopian society that seeks to demonize anything that makes one group seem above another. Much like the Ministry of Love that handles the prisons and discipline, the Junior Anti-Sex League is a paradox as well. Actually, the members of the league are very promiscuous. One of the main characters involved in the Junior Anti-Sex league is Julia. It is ironic that while on an excursion with the Junior Anti-Sex League, she discovers the place where she and Winston first begin their affair.

When Orwell describes her, he talks about “her sweet supple waist, which seemed to ask you to encircle it with your arm” (Orwell 17) and describes the scarlet sash around it. It is ironic that Orwell would go to such great lengths to describe Julia as an attractive feminine character, since she is a member of the Junior Anti-Sex League. Typically, those associated with groups that espouse feminism try to downplay their ladylike characteristics. It is also ironic that the sash around her waist is scarlet. Scarlet is a color most associated with passion and love, concepts that the Junior Anti-Sex League did not agree with.

One of the key tenants of the Junior Anti-Sex League is chastity. When using symbolism, most authors choose the color blue in order to convey a sense of “loyalty, fidelity, constancy, and chastity” (Jaffe). This is why The Virgin Mary is typically painted wearing blue. An example of symbolism, prolific throughout the story, is that the lives of the characters are in “telescreens”. A telescreen is a device that “received and transmitted simultaneously” (Orwell 6), and allowed Big Brother to keep an eye on the people. The telescreens directly symbolized the pervasive nature of a totalitarian government’s desire to control the populace.

Throughout his life, Orwell had experiences that helped shape his view of these government types. As a young man, Orwell worked as a peace officer in Burma. There, he saw the way the British government treated the native Burmese people. Orwell became outraged with the inhumanity that pervaded the British Imperial and eventually published two of his most famous essays, “A Hanging” and “Shooting an Elephant” (Brunsdale 7). Orwell was also able to see the horrors committed by the Soviet Union, “where an estimated seven million perished in 1940 alone” (Tolstoy 283).

Because of his life experiences, Orwell used the telescreens as a metaphor for how governments abuse their power, and to shed light on his distaste for totalitarianism. As the story progresses, Winston finds an antique shop. Among other things, Winston purchases a glass paperweight. Inside the glass is a piece of coral. Orwell describes the paperweight as a “heavy lump of glass, curved on one side, flat on the other” with a “strange, pink, convoluted object that recalled a rose or a sea anemone” (Orwell 80).

Winston is impressed by how large the coral appears to him and feels that it has a sense of permanence and importance. “Winston’s [paperweight] has a piece of coral embedded in it, and he examines it intently, surprised that anything so delicate could survive in a brutal age” (Shelden 431). The paperweight is important for two reasons. One is to show how little the people know of how old something is. The paperweight is the cheap type of nick-nack that would be found in a gift shop at a hospital or a truck stop. However, the man at the antique store estimates that it “wasn’t made less han a hundred years ago” and how he “can remember when a thing like that would have fetched eight pounds” (Orwell 81). The other indicates that the paperweight represents the spirit inside of Winston Smith. When Smith is finally captured (ironically at the antique store where he felt he was safest from The Party and their telescreens), the agents of the Party shatter the glass and reveal how small and insignificant the coral inside the glass actually is. This truly upsets Winston and signals the beginning of the crushing of his spirit and the inevitability of a Party victory.

The game of chess is also used by Orwell to show the plight of the characters in 1984. Chess, in its simplest form, is a strategy game where the object is to capture the king. The pieces are typically black and white. In literature, this is considered a metaphor for good (white) versus evil (black). Chess is also used as a metaphor in William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, along with many other pieces of classic literature. In The Tempest, Shakespeare uses the chess game to show how Prospero’s daughter has cunningly built alliances and manipulated people with the skill of a great chess player.

She exclaims, “the strongest piece is the queen; and the combat always ends with the cry, ‘Checkmate! ‘” (Frans van Dijkhuizen). This signifies her triumph over Prospero. In 1984, Orwell complicates things by using his unique style to give the reader a better understanding of Winston’s life. Orwell tells the reader that the citizens of Oceania receive chess problems daily in their newspapers. In these problems, the citizen is assigned the black chess piece. Rather than use white as the color attached to the protagonist, he assigns white to the Party.

This symbolizes the irony that, although the reader knows the Party is evil, the lines have been skewed for the characters in 1984 by the indoctrination into their society. This uncommon twist shows that in the eyes of the Party, they hold the moral high ground. As the game plays out, Winston ends up losing the problem to the party and recalls, “in no chess problem since the beginning of the world has black ever won”(Orwell 238). This symbolizes the “fragility of life and the imminence of death” that permeates all of the characters’ lives. Bowker 370) George Orwell’s novel 1984 has left an indelible mark on pop culture and will probably be studied for years to come. It is uncanny to see how some of his predictions have come true. It is also telling of the impact that 1984 has had on society; words and phrases like “Newspeak” and “Orwellian” are now part of the English language. “His very particular perspective on the world, his ability to see how whole systems function and the threat they pose, and to portray them in the most limpid of prose in all their comedy and horror – that vision is instantly recognized as ‘Orwellian’” (Bowker 434). [Orwell] revealed in the starkest way the threat which not only totalitarianism offers to individual freedom and thought, but also science unconstrained by morality” (Bowker 434). While many authors have used symbolism and irony in their works, perhaps none have used them as masterfully as George Orwell did in 1984. Works Cited Alinsky, Saul. Rules for Radicals. Vintage ed. New York, NY: Random House, Inc. , 1989. Print. Bowker, Gordon. Inside George Orwell: A Biography. 1st ed. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003.

Print. Brunsdale, Mitzi. Student Companion to George Orwell. 1st. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000. Print. Frans van Dijkhuizen, Jan. “Prospero’s Dream. ” The Tempest and the Court Masque Inverted. Web. 17 Nov 2009. . Jaffe, Eric. Dictionary of Symbolism. 2001. University of Michigan, Web. 19 Nov 2009. . Orwell, George. 1984. New York, NY: Penguin Putnam Inc. , 1950. Print. pagename=arc_ayn_rand_the_nature_of_government>. Rand, Ayn. “The Nature of Government. ” Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights. Web. 16 Nov 2009.

9Name: Brielle Cantagallo Class: Statistics Date: 3/17/13 ? EXERCISE 29 Questions to be Graded * 1. Were the groups in this study independent or dependent? Provide a rationale for your answer. The groups in this study were independent because the two sets of data were not taken from the same subjects. The subjects were in one group: female and the second group: male. * 2. t = ? 3. 15 describes the difference between women and men for what variable in this study? Is this value significant? Provide a rationale for your answer. t= -3. 15 describes the difference between men and women for the variable of mental health.

This value is significant because 0. 002 is less than the alpha type 1 error rate of 0. 05 that was used. * 3. Is t = ? 1. 99 significant? Provide a rationale for your answer. Discuss the meaning of this result in this study. t= -1. 99 is significant because it shows that the physical functioning and health functioning of both the men and women in this study were almost the same across the board. The p value of 0. 049 was also the same in each of these variables concluding that the type 1 error rate for this was less than the alpha 0. 05 that was set for this study. * 4. Examine the t ratios in Table VI.

Which t ratio indicates the largest difference between the males and females post MI in this study? Is this t ratio significant? Provide a rationale for your answer. The t ratio that was the largest difference between males and females post MI in this study was mental health with -3. 15. This t ratio is significant because it shows that the mental health of the women versus the men in this study was the largest difference. * 5. Consider t = ? 2. 50 and t = ? 2. 54. Which t ratio has the smaller p value? Provide a rationale for your answer. What does this result mean? T ratio -2. 54 had the smaller p value of 0. 007. -2. 0 had a p value of 0. 01. This result means that because the 0. 007 p value is less than the predetermined alpha which was 0. 05 that the observed result would be highly unlikely under the null hypothesis. Making this research credible. * 6. What is a Type I error? Is there a risk of a Type I error in this study? Provide a rationale for your answer. A Type I error occurs when the researcher rejects the null hypothesis when it is in actuality true. I do believe that there was a type 1 error risk in this study because according to the study 9 t tests were performed and the risk of type 1 errors increases when performed more than one time. 7. Should a Bonferroni procedure be conducted in this study? Provide a rationale for your answer. I do believe that a Bonferroni procedure would need to be conducted in this study because the t test was conducted 9 times. * 8. If researchers conducted 9 t-tests on their study data. What alpha level should be used to determine significant differences between the two groups in the study? Provide your calculations. The alpha level that should be used to determine the significant differences between the two groups in this study would be 0. 006. The alpha was set to 0. 05. That needs to be divided by the 9 t tests and you get 0. 055 and when rounded becomes 0. 006 for the corrected alpha. * 9. The authors reported multiple df values in Table VI. Why were different df values reported for this study? Different df values were reported in this study probably due to non participation in certain study areas. Because of that they would have to change the df if the number of participants was different in those areas or the research would not be accurate. * 10. What does the t value for the Physical Component Score tell you about men and women post MI? If this result was consistent with previous research, how might you use this knowledge in your practice?

The t value -2. 50 for the physical component score tells me that men and women have a significant difference in their perception of post MI coping. Women perceive themselves has having lower physical and psychological quality of life post MI. If this result was consistent with previous research, I could use this knowledge to set up a plan of care to assist the women with increasing their physical and psychological aspects of quality of life. I would also reach out to women and form support groups to help them improve their perceptions on their quality of life.

Ignorance is Bliss In Sophocles’ “Oedipus Rex” and Athol Fugard’s “Master Harold and the Boys” we see the protagonists evolve from ignorance to knowledge in several different ways. As we watch this evolution we see both characters start at ignorance in very similar ways and while both take very different routes they end their journeys with similar complex consequences resulted from the knowledge they gain along the way. In “Oedipus Rex” the protagonist, Oedipus, starts from his entrance in the story at a place of ignorance.

He is naive to the truth about his life and the direction it is heading. Oedipus is unaware that he is King Laios’ son and he will ultimately fulfill his destiny to kill his father and marry his mother, no matter what steps he or his parents take it is a fate they cannot run from. Oedipus’ knowledge comes only later when he realizes the truth, that he is in fact King Laios’ son and when he murdered the king along the road where the three highways meet he did in fact kill his father and go on to marry his mother (Anti 2. 192).

The knowledge of the seer’s prophecy coming true leads to Oedipus’ ruin. In “Master Harold and the Boys” the protagonist is Hally the seventeen year old shop owners son. The reader is shown Hally’s ignorance by how he acts with Sam and Willie. Hally treats these men as friends, particularly with Sam, the two are more like companions then a white boy and black hired help. Instances of this ignorance are seen in the way they spent their time together. Hally naively believes that him and Sam can be friends despite the place and time they are in and how is father treats them.

Hally believes that since progress is seen in the world that he can escape his fathers beliefs and that despite Sam’s observation that some people are bad and that’s just the way it is: “Hally: It doesn’t have to be that way. There is something called progress, you know. We don’t exactly burn people at the stake anymore” (482). Like Oedipus, Hally is trying his best to fight his fate but he is only moving himself closer to it. Hally’s knowledge really comes when he and Sam begin fighting. When Hally is upset he takes that out on Sam because he can.

He talks to Sam in a way only previously done by his father. This entire scene shows the realization that Hally truly is more like his father then he wanted to admit. Both Hally and Oedipus discover truths about themselves that they did not like and tried to run from, however they were unable to escape their fate and eventually succumbed to it. Oedipus’ truths are similar to Hally’s in several ways. First Hally realizes he is more like his father then he wanted to admit and in the end he just started the cycle of his fathers negative beliefs and attitudes all over again.

Oedipus like Hally is also destined to become like his father, he follows in his fathers footsteps first by running from a prophecy then eventually following him to his own ruin. While Oedipus’ knowledge is more literal then Hally’s both men commit actions that have severe consequences leading them to the truths they uncover about themselves. Hally’s actions of taking his anger and frustration out on Sam causes his true ideals to come out. When he begins to act out the audience is shown just how much he really thinks like his father.

Despite his best efforts to show that he believes things can change in the dynamics between whites and blacks, it is really not a strongly held idea as the beliefs of his father, that he as a white man is superior to his black help. The words he says to Sam can never be taken back and forever shifts the relationship between him and Sam, no longer friends they are now master and servant. Oedipus also deals with a similar problem. He also commits actions that completely change the shape of his life and can never be taken back. Like Hally Oedipus wants to change is fate.

Where Hally does so by trying to be friends with Sam and Willie, Oedipus does this by leaving home putting as much distance as he can between himself and the man he believed to be his father. However like Hally, Oedipus in the end realizes that consequences for his actions. Killing King Laios and then marrying his queen are actions that have dire consequences for Oedipus and like Hally’s they can never be undone. While both Hally and Oedipus try to fight their fate and both commit actions that forever alter their futures, they come about in very different ways.

Oedipus deals with his fate in a more literal way. Oedipus learns the prophecy he had feared his whole life was actually true by the realization that he did murder is father and marry his mother. These physical actions lead to Oedipus’ downfall and are permanent. Hally, on the other hand, comes to learn the truth about himself, that he is like his father, by his actions toward Sam. While no less severe they are more emotionally damaging and speak to the relationship Sam and he tried to have but wound up losing because of the fight.

This is damaging but not quite as physical as what Oedipus went through. Throughout each story we see the evolution of the characters from their naive beginnings to the painful realization of who they truly are. Both characters come to several truths about themselves during their respective stories, in both cases their truths have significant effects. Oedipus’ knowledge leads him to his own downfall in order to save his kingdom from certain death. Hally’s truths about himself has a more hidden effect that is very significant and the true meaning behind the play.

Hally’s actions during his fight with Sam causes a divide between them that is irreparable, it is the effect of this rift that is most significant. Throughout the play we see several instances of imagery used to describe the world the characters are living in and here is no different. The argument between Hally and Sam causes the same “dance” to continue. This dance is a symbol for the beliefs held by Hally’s father and the world they live in. By acting the way he did toward Sam, Hally is causing the imperfect dance to continue on.

The effect of Hally’s actions causes him to start becoming more like his father then he wanted but cannot avoid. In both “Oedipus Rex” and “Master Harold and the Boys” we see several instances of the main characters moving from ignorance to knowledge. While they gained insight into themselves it came at a price. For Harold it was the loss of his innocence and a bleak look at his future with Sam and Willie, with Oedipus it was the loss of everything he thought he had and his own painful exile.

Each character tried to fight their fate, Oedipus literally by trying to flee the seer’s prophecy and Hally by doing the exact opposite of his father and befriending Sam and Willie. No matter the path they took each eventually succumb to their destiny and was forced to learn more about themselves then they wanted. Despite the painful ending it was a journey they were meant to be on. Works Cited Fugard, Athol. “’Master Harold’…and the Boys”. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2006. Print. Sophocles. “Oedipus Rex”. Trans. Fitts, Dudley & Fitzgerald, Robert. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2006. Print.

Stereotype threat theory functions in a social environment in which a person is negatively stereotyped which creates a reaction of tenseness, indecision, uneasiness and distress on the person the stereotype was intended for. This distress comes from the understanding that one’s actions may possibly corroborate a negative stereotype which frequently results in confirmation or verification of the stereotype.The hypothesis that all three articles stereotype threats affects psychological processes that creates a situational pressure that depresses performance in an assortment of situations and settings for example on standardized test performance, sports performance, female math performance, compared to people who are not affected by Stereotype threat. The article “The Effects of Stereotype Threat on Standardized Mathematics Test Performance and Cognitive Processing” demonstrates that stereotype threat depresses performance on standardized tests in which results in an invalid method of assessment.

The article “Stereotype endorsement and perceived ability as mediators of the girls gender orientation–soccer performance relationship” demonstrates that stereotype effect affects psychological processes that depress performance in sports. The Effects of Stereotype Threats A schema is a mental framework that assists in organizing and categorizing information about an individual’s social environment. Schemas are associations that are used to assist people in differentiating, judging and retaining processed information which as a result creates mental shortcuts.Schemas are used to explain behavior about certain ethnic groups, genders and social economic statuses. In this case schemas are referred to as a stereotype which are overgeneralizations about characteristics and traits that are generalized to explain the behavior of every person in a particular people group. Stereotypes create stereotype threats that cause negative consequences for individuals that are in the group the stereotype is directed toward.Stereotype threats affects psychological processes that creates a situational pressure that depresses performance in an assortment of situations and settings for example on standardized test performance, sports performance, female math performance, female sports performance compared to people who are not affected by Stereotype threat.

Stereotype threat theory functions in a social environment in which a person is negatively stereotyped which creates a reaction of nervousness, indecision, uneasiness and distress on the person the stereotype was intended for.This distress comes from the understanding that one’s actions may possibly corroborate a negative stereotype which frequently results in confirmation or verification of the stereotype. Therefore, the outcome or end result of this discomfort is the definition of stereotype threat which frequently produces negative performance by individuals in the stereotype group. Stereotype effect hinders performance of individuals demonstrating that stereotype-threatened individuals describe reduced expectations which includes reduced hope, opportunities, and belief in oneself.The article “The Effects of Stereotype Threat on Standardized Mathematics Test Performance and Cognitive Processing” demonstrates that stereotype threat depresses performance on standardized tests in which results in an invalid method of assessment. The purpose of the study in the article was to demonstrate if stereotype threat impacts the way student’s cognitively process information (Arbuthnot, 2009). The students were randomly assigned to the low- or high-stereotype-threat group which was decided on their race measure of accomplishment and grades the students received in math (Arbuthnot, 2009).

The results of the study demonstrated that stereotype threat affects psychological process which in turn negatively affects the performance of standardized test as seen with the high-achieving black students on the mathematics tests in the high stereotype threat condition (Arbuthnot, 2009). The results also proved that stereotype threat contributes to differences on math tests scores between white and black participant because stereotype threat impacts different kinds of test items (Arbuthnot, 2009).The study clearly demonstrates that the African American students when present with high stereotype threat perform differently because of the negative impact that it has on how the student’s psychologically process the test questions (Arbuthnot, 2009). One noticeable limitation that was present in the study was that the researchers’ wanted to replicate a conventional standardized testing environment where the students were not aware that the tests were voluntary but the limitation was that the students knew it was a voluntary research project (Arbuthnot, 2009).The article “Stereotype endorsement and perceived ability as mediators of the girls gender orientation–soccer performance relationship” demonstrates that stereotype effect affects psychological processes that depress performance in sports. The article proves that stereotype effect affect girls that a majority of sports have a stereotype that many sports are manly and creates a pressure which affects female’s apparent capability in sports (Chalabaev, A. , & Sarrazin, A.

007). The article is similar to the article “The Effects of Stereotype Threat on Standardized Mathematics Test Performance and Cognitive processing” because both articles provide a correlation between stereotype threats effects ability to depress performance. The two articles differs in that the stereotype threat impacts two different situations in one article stereotype threat affects standardized tests and the other article stereotype threat affects sports performance.The method that the study used during a required soccer class in which soccer in Europe is looked at as being a masculine sport took a survey and grouped the students by the level of students performance after the students worked out for ten minutes. The results demonstrated that if the girls thought that it was a negative stereotype correlated with the negative stereotype of girls and soccer the girls performed low. The results of the study prove that stereotype affects psychological processes by decreasing an individual perception of the activity by decreasing performance.The limitations that were present in the study showed was that when using path-analytic studies probability that a variable could have been not added.

The article “Stereotype Threat in Classroom Settings: The Interactive Effect of Domain Identification, Task Difficulty and Stereotype Threat on Female Students’ Math Performance” demonstrates that stereotype threat affects a psychological process that depresses performance in on standardized test performance by demonstrating that stereotype threat is more prominent when the exam consists on complicated concepts.The article also demonstrates that stereotype threat depresses performance because of the previous research done in laboratory settings. The article also discusses how a number of experiments have found that stereotype threat is related to pressure and arousal by measuring individual’s cardiovascular system. The goal of the study was to investigate stereotype threat theory in high school students. The second goal of the tudy was to investigate a relationship between stereotype threat and the effect of how difficult the problems of the exam The method in the study was that students were given a math exam compromising of different levels of complexity. The results of the study showed that the female student performance was depressed in the stereotype threat group. The results prove that stereotype threat depresses psychological processes that create a situational pressure that on standardized test performance.

The article “Stereotype threat in classroom settings: The interactive effect of domain identification, task difficulty and stereotype threat on female students’ maths performance” is similar to the article “Stereotype endorsement and perceived ability as mediators of the girls gender orientation–soccer performance relationship” in that both articles demonstrated the effect that stereotype threat has in depressing performance in women. The articles differed in that one article demonstrated stereotype threat in women’s sports performance and the other article demonstrated stereotype effect on women’s test performance on difficult test items.