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In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people.[2] It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for example, an expectation about the group's personality, preferences, appearance or ability. Stereotypes make information processing easier by allowing the perceiver to rely on previously stored knowledge in place of incoming information. Stereotypes are often faulty, inaccurate, and resistant to new information.[3] Although stereotypes generally have negative implications, they aren't necessarily negative. They may be positive, neutral, or negative. They can be broken down into two categories: explicit stereotypes, which are conscious, and implicit stereotypes, which are subconscious.
The funny thing is, the whole cop and doughnuts thing is completely out of date – today, an officer could just as easily swing through a McDonald's drive through as he could a Krispy Kreme. Yet, the stereotype endures, even though police aren't seen at doughnut shops in nearly the numbers they used to have been. In a way, it's become a stereotype of itself, which is pretty meta.
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