[glok]

“Taking the line of least resistance, we lump the most different people together under the same heading. Taking the line of least resistance, we ascribe to them collective crimes, collective acts and opinions. "The Serbs have massacred…", "The English have devastated…", "The Jews have confiscated…", "The Blacks have torched", "The Arabs refuse…". We blithely express sweeping judgments on whole peoples, calling them "hardworking" and "ingenious", or "lazy", "touchy", "sly", "proud", or "obstinate". And sometimes this ends in bloodshed." – Amin Maalouf "On Identity”

ster·e·o·type (str--tp, stîr-)
n.
1. A conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified conception, opinion, or image.
2. One that is regarded as embodying or conforming to a set image or type.
3. Printing A metal printing plate cast from a matrix molded from a raised printing surface, such as type.
tr.v. ster·e·o·typed, ster·e·o·typ·ing, ster·e·o·types
1. To make a stereotype of.
2. To characterize by a stereotype: "Elderly Americans are the neglected sector of the fashion industry, stereotyped by blue hair and polyester pantsuits" (American Demographics).
3. To give a fixed, unvarying form to.
4. To print from a stereotype. stereotype - definition of stereotype by The Free Dictionary

Stereotyping has its pros and cons:

Stereotypes | Simply Psychology
Defining Stereotypes as Inaccurate Is Common and Irrational | Psychology Today
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/op...reat.html?_r=0

So, is stereotyping good or bad?

Why stereotypes are bad even when they're 'good' | Oliver Burkeman | Comment is free | theguardian.com
The Pain of Positive Stereotypes | Psychology Today

I dislike stereotypes because there are always individual exceptions to the generalizations employed.

[IchbinkeinTeufel]

I can't say I've ever put that much thought into it, to be honest. Stereotyping will probably always be around, so long as there are people that create it, as it were. For example, so long as so many geeks have glasses, someone like me will be labeled a geek. I just don't take them overly seriously. I make blonde jokes, I call myself a geek or a nerd; honestly just doesn't bother me. I don't see a stereotype as a factual term. Maybe I've missed something, but I can't says it bothers me that much... there's perhaps two that often bug me:

1. Everyone with OCD is a "germaphobe".
2. ...can't remember the other one. -.-

[H3rmit]

As per the definition, stereotypes are "conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified." This can be useful in some circumstances, but each of those words carries a lot of obvious negative aspects. A stereotype sometimes captures a trend within a group, but many of us commit the fallacy of applying that trend or average to every individual, forgetting about individual variation. The "sweeping judgments on whole peoples" to me describe trends. Fair enough, but again we confuse trends and data points. For me, the solution is to use careful language. To say "American women are X" is shorthand that results in stereotyping. To talk about cultural trends within a group is a safer approach. Of course some people won't pick up on this distinction and will continue to think in stereotypes.

It's basic science education, which is weak in many places in the world. In science, it's called the ecological fallacy, though it's not restricted to ecology:

Ecological fallacy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Fuzzybear]