The concept of ethnic stereotype

The concept of ethnic stereotype and its content
One of the elementary psychological formations is a stereotype. In psychology, this concept denotes a stable, emotional in its nature mental education, in a simplified form reflecting some fairly complex fact of reality.
Speaking in the named quality, stereotypes are sensually painted social images that combine social and psychological experience of communication and interrelation of people. The psychological mechanism of the emergence of an ethical stereotype in consciousness — noncritical assimilation — itself suggests the possibility of qualitatively differentiating stereotypes that may be more or less close to the truth and may be false, unrecognizably distorting the object of their reflection.
If stereotypes are measured by criteria of scientific truth and strict logic, then they will have to be recognized as extremely imperfect means of thinking. Nevertheless, stereotypes exist and are widely used by people, although they are not aware of this. Depending on the nature of the object and its place in the social structure, for example, group, professional and age stereotypes are developed.
The objects of stereotyping are often generalized and simplified images of such groups. The basis of a national or ethnic stereotype is usually formed by any noticeable feature of the appearance (skin color, eye shape, lip shape, hair type or cheekbones, head shape, height, etc.). The stereotype can be based on some typical trait in character and behavior (silence, gestures, restraint, greed, etc.).
In addition, the content of the ethnic stereotype can also include a prescription for action against people of a given nationality.