We explain what prejudice is, how it originates, its relationship to stereotypes, and several examples. We also explain the differences between prejudice and prejudice.
What are prejudice?
A prejudice is a preconceived (and generally negative) idea or opinion about something or someone; that is, a judgment formed before having the opportunity to experience reality directly. Those who are prone to these types of opinions or points of view are called prejudiced.
Prejudices are part of the unconscious mental processes of human beings, which subjectively modify their ability to perceive reality. They have been extensively studied in psychology, given their importance in the formation of extremist, fanatic, and intolerant movements, policies, and personalities throughout history. You must read about Stressed Syllable once.
This is because, unlike other forms of reasoning, prejudices tend to have emotional roots and, through them, reinforce unfounded ideas that have little or nothing to do with what can be experienced in real life.
They frequently bring with them feelings of fear, contempt, aversion, or hostility, which often lead to similar actions. However, it is also possible for them to be the opposite: attitudes of favoritism and preconceived notions.
Finally, prejudices are axiomatic: they are either accepted or rejected, but it is difficult to discuss them rationally, given that they lack arguments of any kind, being based rather on an emotional, irrational, and subjective reaction. Maybe you should definitely read about Christmas once.
How do prejudices arise?
Prejudices arise from the need to anticipate reality and respond quickly, a natural human thinking mechanism. In other words, they are part of the defense mechanisms of our primitive mind, whose purpose is to protect us from potential dangers based on prior knowledge.
This, however, does not mean that prejudices are “natural,” far from it. While they are explained by a biological response, they are entirely cultural: they usually originate in upbringing, often in the culture we inherit or learn from our parents, or also in personal, social, or historical traumas.
For example, a person born in a nation with a history of conflict and war with its neighboring nation may learn from a very early age to think the worst of anyone who holds an enemy nationality.
This person may think they are aggressive, arrogant, or hateful, and associate certain negative tendencies with them, especially if this helps them justify their own mistakes or avoid having to think about the difficulties their nation, life, or culture faces.
It is also possible that, in doing so, they sacrifice potential friendships or relationships by not giving themselves the opportunity to get to know these people regardless of their nationality.
Examples of Prejudice
Typical cases of prejudice include:
- Racism: This is the positive and negative evaluation of certain races, rather than individual people based on their actions and behaviors.
- Xenophobia: This is the feeling of aversion and distrust toward foreigners or those belonging to other cultures, for no reason other than, possibly, insecurity or compensating for low self-esteem through nationalist discourse.
- Homophobia: This means contempt and aversion toward homosexual people, pigeonholing them into a predetermined profile rather than considering them as individuals.
Prejudice and Stereotypes
Stereotypes are pre-existing social patterns that, paradoxically, simultaneously play an important role in our organization of humanity into categories, enabling us to respond quickly and nimbly to situations of social interaction, and a negative role, contributing to the formation of prejudices.
Stereotypes are simplifications and generalizations that tend to think about individuals based on the communities to which they belong, rather than their thoughts, actions, and individual personality (for example: Black people, homosexuals, Mexicans, white people, etc.).
The line between stereotypes and prejudice is very thin, but it begins the moment we think a stereotype is true or real, rather than understanding that it’s a useful generalization and that no one fits it perfectly.
Prejudice and Prejudice
Although these two words sound very similar, they are actually very different terms and have very different meanings. We have already seen that prejudice is an a priori judgment about something or someone. The word “prejudice” is synonymous with “harm,” in the sense of “to harm”: to cause harm, that is, to cause damage or loss of some kind. It is a word widely used in legal jargon.
The similarity is due to the fact that both words come from the same Latin term: praeiudicium, which was used in Ancient Rome for first-instance trials, that is, the interrogations prior to a trial. The distinction between “prejudice” and “prejudice” emerged later in history.
References
All the information we offer is supported by authoritative and up-to-date bibliographic sources, which ensure reliable content in line with our editorial principles.
- “Prejudice” in Wikipedia.
- “Prejudice” in the Dictionary of the Spanish Language of the Royal Spanish Academy.
- “When do prejudices become truly dangerous?” in Anne Frank House.
- “How are prejudices born?” in the Instituto Superior de Estudios Psicológicos (Argentina).
- “Prejudice or prejudice” in Criteris of the University of Barcelona (Spain).
