Older Workers: Defy A Stereotype
| This entry is part of a series about older workers. We’ll defy stereotypes all week!
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When the conversation turns to ‘older workers,’ or to ‘immigrants’ or to ‘Americans in Germany’ (I guess, really, I’m in all three of those groups, but I’m not that old) it’s difficult to have a fair conversation. After all, we’re talking about groups of people and. . . that means we’re speaking in stereotypes.
A stereotype is a general statement about a group of people: “Americans are fat and lazy.” “Immigrants don’t learn the language.” “Police officers are all good people.” The problem is that not all people in a group are the same, and so a stereotype can never be more than mostly true.
In this recording, we’re going to talk about stereotypes.
After You’ve Heard the Recording
What stereotypes will other people have of you? What groups do you belong to? Do you think you fulfill the stereotypes, or do you defy them? Do you defy any stereotypes intentionally?
