How do people become prejudiced?
Several theories provide insight as to why prejudice occurs. These sources are categorized into factors that are psychological, cognitive, interpersonal, and intergroup in nature. Psychological contributions include the concept of ego-defense. This theory suggests that some people feel threatened and uncertain about their own worth. Because of this, they reject people unlike themselves (the outgroup). Another psychological source of prejudice stems from the belief that people will blame frustration and setbacks on others. This “scapegoating” can be a way of venting frustrations. Cognitive causes of prejudice stem from the tendency for people to categorize others into groups; particularly groups of “us” and “them”. This categorization is then effected by several biases and errors. Ingroup-Outgroup Bias (aka the ultimate attribution error) is the idea that we favor our own group, its members, and products and reject the outgroup, its members, and its products. Outgroup Homogeneity Bias i
