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A Sense-Making Study of How People Overcome Stereotypes about Others through Social Interaction

Pariyadath, Renu
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1248106595

Abstract Details

2009, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, Communication.
Contact theory has been successfully used to predict when inter-group contact will reduce prejudice among group members. The theory, though, usually does not focus on the perspective of the person experiencing the contact and the communicative practices people engage in when they come into contact with a person of another culture. The present study uses Sense-Making Methodology to explore how people in an intercultural contact situation encounter and deal with stereotypes about people from other cultures. It focuses on a situation where a person who holds a stereotype about a cultural other overcomes this stereotype through interacting with them. Specifically, the study examined two questions. First, how do people make sense of or interpret communicative acts in an intercultural contact situation that leads them to review a prior stereotype? Second, what role does communication play in helping people overcome a stereotype? Ten individuals who identified themselves as voluntary seekers of intercultural contact were interviewed using the Sense-Making Methodology. Participants also completed an open-ended questionnaire. Interviews were analyzed using grounded theory techniques. The findings indicated that participants engaged in a sequence of interpretive activities that helped them overcome the stereotype. First, participants interpreted an interactional trigger as meaningful, which then set them on a series of interpretive activities. Second, participants became aware of an intense emotional reaction as well as an inconsistency in the way they were thinking about the other person. Third, participants made communicative and relational moves to refocus their attention on the other person. Communicative moves included taking the other’s perspective and showing empathy whereas relational moves included seeing similarities in the other, appreciating their differences and seeing the other as an equal. Fourth, participants recalibrated their view of the other person based on the insights gained from the situation. Participants also learned about themselves, cultures and about stereotypes when they reflected on the situation. The findings also indicated that participants overcame stereotypes through engaging in communicative as well as relational moves. Communicative practices that helped participants overcome their stereotypes included open communication, listening without judgment and asking questions. The findings also point to Sense-Making Methodology as a valid way of studying contact and one that helps participants articulate their perspective on overcoming stereotypes about another. Finally, the study contributes to contact theory by explaining how both interpretive and communicative practices during a contact situation helps one overcome a stereotype and gradually reduce prejudice.
Susan Kline, PhD (Advisor)
Felicia Ross, PhD (Committee Member)
127 p.
Communication; Multicultural Education
Sense-Making; Stereotype; Qualitative; Interview; Stereotyping; Othering; Prejudice; Intercultural communication; Interpersonal Communication; Overcoming prejudice; Overcoming stereotypes; Contact Theory

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Pariyadath, R. (2009). A Sense-Making Study of How People Overcome Stereotypes about Others through Social Interaction [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1248106595

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Pariyadath, Renu. A Sense-Making Study of How People Overcome Stereotypes about Others through Social Interaction. 2009. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1248106595.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Pariyadath, Renu. "A Sense-Making Study of How People Overcome Stereotypes about Others through Social Interaction." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2009. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1248106595

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.