Warmth and Competence: Stereotype Content Issues for Clinicians and Researchers

Stereotypes are often accidents of history, based on passing configurations of groups' societal interdependence and status. This article overviews our framework for understanding all this: the Stereotype Content Model, focused on two fundamental dimension of intergroup and interpersonal cognition, perceived warmth (from interdependence) and perceived competence (from relative status); then it discusses immigrant images as a case study; next, the article focuses on the toxic and potentially curative effects of each dimension.