Mark Pruett
Focused on decisions.
Stereotypes: Curse to society or cure to its maladies? [2015] [When may stereotyping be useful?] (Rev. of Bus. Rsch, 2015)
When may the act of stereotyping actually be useful?
Management students are taught to avoid stereotyping even though stereotyping is almost unavoidable and, potentially, useful. There are over 600 peer-reviewed scholarly articles attempting to understand the reasons for the formation and reinforcement of stereotypes and the ways to overcome these.
This paper, however, introduces a different line of thought in which stereotypes may be beneficial. Stereotypes often may be proven wrong, leading to new stereotypes. The paper provides real life instances where if decision-makers had acted accepting stereotypes, billions of dollars could have been saved, firms could have avoided bankruptcies, and scandals could have been averted. We explore additional reasons for reexamining the way that stereotypes and stereotyping are typically considered. We explore how NOT ignore to stereotypes in appropriate situations.