De?ne the terms "listening" and "stereotyping." Explain and give an example of how stereotyping interferes

Question

with listening.

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Listening is giving thoughtful attention to what we hear. It demands we concentrate on what others say to us.
Stereotyping is placing or categorizing people, places, objects, or events into groups based on generalized
characteristics. It contributes to the way we perceive others. Our past experiences play a fundamental role in the
way we interpret information. If we depend on judging incoming information based on our frame of reference and
refuse to alter our perceptions accordingly, then it closes us off to new ideas, concepts, and situations. For example,
many who physically resemble people of Arab or Middle Eastern descent are having a dif?cult time being
stereotyped as terrorists since the September 11 attacks on the United States. To illustrate, Vincent, an
Italian-American, has olive skin, dark hair, and a beard. Since people often perceive terrorists as having the same
characteristics, Vincent is often looked at with suspicion. A frequent ?yer, he is stopped often and searched. Prior to
the attacks, he was never stopped. Vincent feels that being singled out for searches is based on his appearance. He
feels the people who question him have a dif?cult time listening to his responses because they focus instead on his
appearance. This could be based on their preconceived notion of what a terrorist should look like. We tend to close
ourselves off to information when we feel we "know" the something based our own past experiences.