Science Of Small Talk

The science of social behavior, one interaction at a time
Sam Sommers, Ph.D., is a social psychologist at Tufts University. See full bio

All Stereotypes Are True? Since When?

Reassessing the argument that stereotypes always reflect reality.

In the end, the author wishes to argue that stereotypes are neither good nor bad but rather just "are," and that any resistance to stereotype application is simply reactive, sentiment-based posturing that takes place outside the purview of a single-minded scientific fundamentalist. But I'd argue that more pressing fundamentals of science include precision in advancing a thesis and thoroughness in assessing its veracity—especially a thesis with the type of political and social consequences with which Kanazawa, by his own admission, doesn't concern himself. Just as the pervasiveness of a belief in society does not prove its veracity, neither does simply including a sweeping conclusion in a blog make it a true statement.



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