Students' Stereotypic Expectancies of Scholastic Ability for Ethnic Majority vs. Minority Group Students

Abstract

This study examines the effect of varying sociocultural cues (ethnic majority vs. minority group) on students' expectancies with respect to scholastic ability. It was hypothesized that students' expectancies would mirror common cultural stereotypes based on actual observed differences among sociocultural groups. The study was based on two independent samples of 223 and 259 Israeli elementary and junior high school students, respectively. Subjects were presented with sociocultural profiles of two hypothetical students (Western majority vs. Eastern minority group) immediately following standardized group scholastic ability testing procedures and were asked to rate the expected level of performance of the students on the ability test administered, along a five-point scale. Mean ratings of the two stimuli with respect to ability test performance were significantly discernible in both studies, with the Eastern minority group student stimulus expected to perform signficantly lower than the Western majority student counterpart. Overall, the autostereotypes and heterostereo-types of varying sociocultural groups were highly similar.