There are two main forms of stereotyping. The first and most recognized form comes from the tendency of people with similar interests to stick together. This stereotype is portrayed often in pop culture; a well-known example is the sequence in “Mean Girls” when the new girl is familiarizing herself with the school’s social groups. Individual personalities seem to mesh into one group mentality. A reason for this is because it is easier for people to attribute a blanket personality to each person in a group than it is to meet each person individually. Thus, a social group becomes a joined persona. Each specific group stereotype is formed on the basis of the group’s connection and propelled forward by portrayal in pop culture. Although seeded in high school, these stereotypes, to some degree, hold merit through the rest of our lives; people will always flock to those with similar interests, and such groups will always carry some number of preconceived notions about them.
The second branch of stereotyping takes place on a more personal level and stems from convenience. In this case, the stereotype takes form as a single characteristic or personality trait. It is common to boil one’s personality down to a single characteristic; this is not done to depreciate a personality but as a means of communicating what really stands out about a particular person. In this way, a friend may be introduced with brief context into their personality. For example, one may introduce a friend as “funny” or “nice” or “smart.” This type of stereotyping has its place in society and can be helpful in determining common interests between people. The problem stems when these defining characteristics become exactly that: defining characteristics. In high school especially, this way of ingrained thinking can dominate a personality. A friend group may unknowingly assign roles to each friend: the funny one, the nice one, the smart one, etc. The expectation to live up to each role can suffocate one’s competing character traits and squash the dynamic nature of a personality.
In high school, this may not be noticeable as one has less time to explore their own personality. Yet when the time comes to move on and one begins to gain independence, it can become increasingly clear that too much time was spent developing a single character trait. One might feel as if they have nothing to offer the world besides the one characteristic. This can lead to a feeling of disillusionment and plays into the common trope of “finding yourself.” Only by exploring one’s interests and learning to live for oneself can a person overcome this.
