title: Selective pressures on the once and future contents of ethnic stereotypes: effects of the communicability of traits.
abstract: It is hypothesized that traits that are most likely to be the subject of social discourse (i.e., most communicable) are most likely to persist in ethnic stereotypes over time and that this effect is moderated by the extent to which an ethnic group is the subject of social discourse. Study 1 yielded communicability ratings of 76 traits. Study 2 tested the relation between a trait's communicability and its presence in stereotypes of 4 Canadian ethnic groups. Study 3 tested the relation between a trait's communicability and its persistence over time in stereotypes of 8 American ethnic groups. Results supported the hypotheses. A communication-based analysis of stereotypes appears helpful in predicting persistence and change in the contents of stereotypes of real groups in the real world.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. schaller@cortex.psych.ubc.ca
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schaller
authors.forename: Lucian Gideon
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Conway
authors.forename: Tracy L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Tanchuk
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D002170:Canada; D003142:Communication; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D010551:Personality / Q000502:physiology*; D013240:Stereotyping; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States