Racial stereotypes represent instinctive and distorted mental images that people hold about populations that belong to a specific racial group. By setting racial stereotypes, people ignore individual distinctions. At the same time, racial bias drives social exclusion and aggression towards members of specific social groupings.
The term ‘race’ is mostly linked to biology and physical features such as skin color, while ‘ethnicity’ is tied to cultural identification.
What is ‘Race’?
Defined as a group of individuals who have certain distinguishing physical features seen as common among those of shared ancestry, race is one of the main characteristics that defines a human being.
People with comparable skin tones/hair textures can be classified as distinct races and classifications have evolved through time.
What is ‘Ethnicity’?
The term ‘ethnicity’ encompasses a larger range of concepts than the term ‘race’. It is used to describe people who identify with one another based on shared characteristics that set them apart from other groups.
For example, a person may claim to be black but their ethnicity may be French, or they may claim to be white yet their ethnicity is Irish.
Not every individual can be categorized or classified
While corporations or governments may wish to gather information on a population’s race and ethnicity, there are many people who simply do not fit into the given categories.
Many people may belong to more than a single racial and ethnic group, with their ancestors coming from various ethnic backgrounds.
According to Sociology Professor, Dalton Conley, a person cannot control their race; it is race that determines how others view that person.
Conley gives an example of a friend born in a family of Koreans in Korea. When she was an infant, an Italian family adopted her and she grew up in Italy, eating Italian cuisine, speaking only Italian, and learning the country’s history. Although Korean by birth, she knows almost nothing about that country but when visiting the United States, people usually treat her racially as Asian.
Ethnic group
The term ‘ethnic group’ usually defines a social group of individuals who are tied together by racial, linguistic, national, or cultural affinities.
However, this definition varies amongst academics. Furthermore, despite its frequent use in social discourse, little is known about ordinary people’s subjective interpretation of this term.
Using an open-ended questions technique, scientists investigated this topic in cross-sectional research of 273 students from the United States, the UK, Mexico, and Poland.
The findings demonstrated cultural disparities in ‘ethnic group’ definition patterns among the four countries:
- U.S. students were most likely to associate ethnic group with race
- UK students for the most part associated it with shared culture and customs/traditions
- In Mexico and Poland, these two categories were also extremely prevalent. In Poland, many people also linked the term ethnic group with common history, religion, language, and territory
The largest ethnic group in China and in the world
The Han is the largest ethnic group in the world today, with one of the oldest histories and numerous achievements. This ethnic group accounts for 91% of the Chinese population and is the dominant ethnic group in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
However, China represents a multi-ethnic nation and there are 55 official ethnic groups aside from the Han.
There are over 1.5 billion Han people in the world, accounting for approximately 19% of the worldwide population. Aside from Jews, they boast the longest continuous written history spanning 3,000 years.
What is the largest ethnic group in Italy?
The Italians are the most populous ethnic group in Italy, accounting for 95% (almost 60 million) of the overall population. The remainder is made up of ethnicities such as Europeans (Romanians, Ukrainians), who account for 2.5%, Africans (1.5%), and a variety of other minor ethnic groups (1%).
What is the largest ethnic group in Africa?
The Hausa represents one of the largest African tribes, with a population of 75 million, the majority of whom live in Nigeria (64 million), with a large number also living in Niger, Benin, Ivory Coast, Sudan, Ghana, Chad, Togo, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Algeria. They are an ethnically heterogeneous group that speaks their own Hausa language which, along with English and French, is the most spoken.
What is the largest ethnic group in Iraq?
Iraqi Arabs are the country’s largest ethnic group, accounting for 75-80% of the population with the other two major ethnic groups being Iraqi Kurds and Iraqi Turkmen. Arabs are an ethnic group that can be found in different nations, with Arabic being the main language.
How to combat racial bias and stereotypes
Racial stereotypes represent instinctive and distorted mental images that people have about everyone who belongs to a specific racial group. By setting stereotypes, people ignore individual distinctions.
Even though race is an invented label (researchers found that most likely we are all derived from the same African ancestor tribe), racial bias drives social exclusion and aggression towards members of specific social groupings.
How can people avoid racial stereotypes?
- Firstly, we should admit that we all have racial stereotypes since we all are humans.
- We should strive to become more conscious of our thoughts and feelings and the way these influence our beliefs and behaviors.
- We should learn more facts that will invalidate our stereotypes. These facts can be gained by stepping outside of our comfort zones and interacting with individuals of different races.
- It is important to participate in honest discourse with people regarding race, even if it is challenging, risky, or makes someone feel uncomfortable at times.
- We should look for realistic and positive portrayals of diverse races in the media.
- By attending various plays, performances, and movies that promote diversity, we will be able to extend our horizons.
Final thoughts
While the term ‘race’ is used to describe people with certain physical features, ‘ethnicity’ encompasses more than that. However, it is difficult to classify all the world’s population since many people can belong to several racial and ethnic groups.
With so many races around the world, it is no surprise that racial stereotyping can occur. Through our actions and the nature of our dialogue, we can encourage people to avoid stereotyping others based on their race as we develop greater awareness regarding racial groups. In doing so, we will contribute to the creation of a society in which all races are cherished, appreciated, and accepted.
