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Conquering Stereotypes in Research on Race and Gender
Author(s) -
Bryson Bethany P.,
Davis Alexander K.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
sociological forum
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.937
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1573-7861
pISSN - 0884-8971
DOI - 10.1111/j.1573-7861.2009.01163.x
Subject(s) - sociology , race (biology) , argument (complex analysis) , stereotype (uml) , scholarship , racism , individualism , gender studies , masculinity , term (time) , epistemology , social psychology , psychology , law , political science , biochemistry , chemistry , physics , philosophy , quantum mechanics
In responding to Epstein’s essay “On Boundaries,” we argue that the stereotypes that Epstein identifies as an ongoing component of racism served as the foundation of sociological scholarship a mere century ago. Today, we argue, it is the continued use of the term stereotype that serves as our “car window” and can hold us back from truly understanding race and gender. The use of the term stereotype is not (nor has it ever been) a useful analytic tool because the term invokes a individualistic and psychological argument where a sociological mechanism might be more fruitfully employed.