Stereotypes - By Tan Shi Yuan

Stereotypes are generalizations about a group of people whereby we attribute a defined set of characteristics to this group. These classifications can be positive or negative, such as when various nationalities are stereotyped as friendly or unfriendly.


Whenever you see, hear, or taste something, you can only tell so much about it based on what you sensed. This often is not enough, so we make assumptions about what the rest of the thing is like, when people hear "bird", they probably think of something that is fist-sized, flies, and sings, even though none of these things are true about every single bird. When a set of such assumptions about something become "common knowledge," they form a stereotype. Most of the time, nobody notices, as in the case of birds. Sometimes the assumptions that come with a stereotype cause people to behave strangely and callously towards one another; sometimes people resist changing their assumptions even when they are given very good reasons to do so.

To change a person’s view of your stereotype, be consistently different from it. Beware of your own stereotyping blinding you to the true nature of other individuals. Stereotyping can be reduced by bringing people together. When they discover the other people are not as the stereotype, the immediate evidence creates dissonance that leads to improved thoughts about the other group. 


Currently, I would like to share about the media stereotypes which is on magazines. Magazines are everywhere. They are proudly displayed in bookstores, gas stations, and the most memorable place, the check out at grocery stores. Magazines are full of useful information and juicy gossips, two things people apparently cannot live without. Some magazines also seem to be dictating unrealistic gender stereotypes, sending subliminal messages to both men and women. After perusing some magazines the conclusion might be drawn that magazines are portraying men and women in a unrealistic terms, providing messages to men and women about how they should look, act, shop, etc.

Before any discussion of gender in lifestyle magazines can be considered, it is important to be 
clear on the difference between sex, gender and sexuality.


• Sex refers to a person’s biological sex: whether they are male or female.
• Gender refers to the role or behaviours a person has been socialised into according to their 
   sex, whether they are masculine or feminine.
• Sexuality refers to a person’s sexual preference: whether they are heterosexual, homosexual  
   or bisexual.


The issue of gender is not static. Acceptable behaviour for each sex changes over time. Contemporary ideas of masculinity and femininity will be different to those of previous generations. For example, your grandmother would probably not, enter a pub alone and order a pint of beer, whereas young women today may well do just that.
In our society there are certain attributes and behaviours which are seen to be more appropriate for one sex than the other. The following opposing lists illustrate how men and women are seen to be different:

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Here are the examples of the stereotype's magazines...

Men's Health

Women's Health