First, i want to start off by answering the question: What is social cognition? Well according to the VeryWellMind website there is currently no single definition for social cognition but instead there are some common factors. Factors such as: it involves perceiving others and understanding how we know about people in the world, also understanding mental processes that affect how we interact with others. With Social cognition there are so many topics that can be studied such as: attitudes, person-perception, prejudice, stereotypes, self concept, discrimination, persuasion, and decision making. The topic I have chosen out of interest and will be writing about is stereotypes; Specifically negative stereotypes about African Americans and how it influences the way they are treated in some western societies.

Racial stereotypes as defined by K. Sue Jewell in her book From Mammy to Miss America and Beyond are constructed beliefs that all members of the same race share given characteristics. These attributed characteristics are usually negative. Negative stereotypes about black people have had a great impact on their treatment in places like the US where African Americans are discriminated against and sometimes even denied access to social institutions. Historically there were seven stereotypes attributed to African American slaves such at the sambo, Jim crow, the savage, the mammy, aunt Jemimah, sapphire, and jezebelle. Images of black people as jokes, sexual objects, and “happy slaves” were spread through music, folk sayings, children stories, games, artifacts and as a result of this African Americans have throughout history been victims of discrimination and unfair treatment within criminal justice systems. Negative stereotypes held by those working within the criminal justice systems are one of the main reasons African Americans are mostly accused of committing violet crimes when compared to other races. To prove this i found a study by Peffley et al conducted in 1997 which concluded that whites who hold a negative stereotype of African Americans judge them more harshly than they do other whites when making hypothetical decisions about violent crimes. A great example of this is the Netflix show When They See Us, based on the true story of five African American teenage boys who were wrong fully sent to jail for a violent rape that they did not commit. The DA who was assigned to the case viewed black men as “a bunch of turds”, “animals”, and “a pack”; Basically she had a stereotype that black men posses animal like behavior. This stereotype she held pushed her to believe that the boys were the only ones capable of committing such a violent act even when all evidence pointed to a single attacker.

Negative stereotypes have also been proven to influence African American’s chances of getting a job. Stereotypes that say African Americans are lazy workers, uneducated or unprofessional cause employers to be wary about hiring them. It has gotten to the point where black people with African names or with stereotypical “black names” have to write down a “white” name on their resume just so an employer can call them back. I’ve also heard of instances where black people with “white” sounding voices and not the stereotypical “black” voice get a in-office interview after completing the over the phone one but when they show up for the interview the employers who are shocked by their appearance ask them what they’re doing there. The employers then go on to say that the position isn’t available to them anymore because they’re not who they’re “looking for”. A study conducted by researchers at the Northwestern University, Harvard and the institute for social research in Norway proves my point about the influence of racial stereotypes. They found that from 1989 through 2015 anti-black racism in hiring has remained unchanged. By looking at resume and in person audits they concluded that, on average “white applicants receive 36% more call backs than equally qualified African Americans.” Clearly, the negative stereotypes about African Americans is influencing the way employers view them. It is so crazy to me that African Americans who have a history of being hard working slaves that endured long hours of labor work and inhumane treatment BUT STILL did their jobs for many years are being called “lazy and unreliable workers”….It’s sad to think that whether you get a job in some parts of the western world is reliant on the pigment of your skin and the sound of your voice!

Resources:

Cherry, K. (2019). Social Cognition in psychology. Retrieved from: https://www.verywellmind.com/social-cognition-2795912

Hurwitz, J., Peffley, M., & Sniderman, P. (1997). Racial Stereotypes and Whites Political Views of Blacks in the Context of Welfare and Crime. American Journal of Political Science. 41.,30-60.

Jewell, S.K. (1993). From Mammy to Miss American and Beyond: Cultural Images and the Shaping of US Policy. New York: Routledge.

Lopez, G. (2017). Study: Anti-Black Hiring Discrimination is as Prevalent Today as it was in 1989. Retrieved from: https://www.vox.com/identities/2017/9/18/16307782/study-racism-jobs  

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