September Blog Post

My communication classes have all overlapped and in my comm 221 class, we have also discussed social construction and stereotypes in the context of forming perceptions of others. I think in today's culture you often hear people say "don't judge" me and automatically assume that we will automatically put them into a box. I used to think that this was all completely wrong, but I realized that everyone does it to reduce uncertainty about others. Sometimes this can help us maybe be more emotionally intelligent, but it can also just as easily build up walls between ourselves and potentionally great relationships.
One of the best examples of sterotyping that I can think of in pop culture is in the Disney movie High School Musical. All of the characters have distinct identities and interests that categorize them and make them belong to a group. It makes it easier for someone to look at them based on how they dress and act and reduce the uncertainty that might be there. For example, when Troy meets Gabriella, it is easy for her to categorize him into a social group and find out information about him, by looking at how he acts, and who he associates with, which is Chad and the rest of the basketball team.

However, like I said earlier this can also negatively affect how we treat others and act towards them in a negative way. If we don't give others enough room to speak for themselves, they might feel like they are stuck in a socially constructed way of acting, thinking, and feeling. Just as Troy was scared that his basketball buddies would reject him if he sang in the school talent show, we also are fearful of rejection. We want to belong, but there is also a fine line we must walk with ourselves and also teh way we see others. Being self-aware when we are meeting people for the frist time is important so that they can have the chance to speak to who they truely are and how they may or may not follow social construction, and stereotypes that we have already given them.