These stereotypes can be found across cultures in television, literature, art and public opinion.[2][3][4][5] Not all of the stereotypes are equally popular, nor are they all restricted to Americans; and although most can be considered negative, a few assign neutral, positive or admiring qualities to the stereotypical American citizen.[6] Many of the ethnic stereotypes collide with otherwise unrelated political anti-Americanism.[7][8]
Stereotypes with positive use
Trait
Description
Generosity
According to American William Bennett, a positive stereotype of Americans is that they are very generous. The United States sends aid and supplies to many countries, and Americans may be seen as people who are charitable or volunteer.[9]Alexis de Tocqueville first noted in 1835 the American attitude towards helping others in need. A 2010 Charities Aid Foundation study found that Americans were the fifth most willing to donate time and money in the world at 55%.[10] Total charitable contributions in 2010 were higher in the US than in any other country.[11]
Optimism
Americans may be seen as very positive and optimistic people.[12][13][14] Optimism is seen as the driving force behind achievement of the American Dream.
Hardworking nature
Americans may be stereotyped as hardworking people, whether in their jobs or other matters.[8][15]
Frontier mentality
Traits such as engaging in risky exploration to secure food and territory favored early Americans, as well as the willingness to move one's life in pursuit of goals such as personal freedom and economic affluence. These traits may have distilled over time into an individualism characterized by toughness and self-reliance.[16][17] The frontier mentality is reflected in the American voyages of exploration and the U.S. space program.
Friendliness
Americans have been seen as friendly, talkative and open to conversation.[18]
The United States has a historical fondness for guns, and this is often portrayed in American media. A considerable percentage of Americans own firearms, and the United States has some of the developed world's highest death rates caused by firearms.[2][19][20][21] A 2018 article attributed the high death rates to mass shootings or inner city violence, but the murder rate in America was then on a decline, and it appeared that suicide by firearm is a large contributor to the "gun-deaths" statistic.[22] The international media often report American mass shootings, making these incidents well known internationally despite the fact that these kind of killings account for an extremely small portion of the firearms death rate.[23][24][25][26] In 2007, the United States was ranked number one in gun ownership with a rate of 88.8 guns per 100 residents.[27] In 2017, the United States again ranked number one in gun ownership with a rate of 120.5 guns per 100 citizens.[28]
Materialism, over-consumption, and extreme capitalism
A common stereotype of Americans is that of economic materialism and capitalism.[citation needed] They may be seen as caring most about money, judging all things by their economic value, and scorning those of lower socioeconomic status,[2][7] despite the fact that, as noted above, Americans are also highly charitable by global standards.[29] Total charitable contributions in 2010 were higher in the United States than in any other country.[11]
Lack of cultural awareness
Americans may be stereotyped as ignorant of countries and cultures beyond their own.[7][30] This stereotype shows them as lacking intellectual curiosity, thus making them ignorant of other cultures, places, or lifestyles outside of the United States.[3] The stereotype of a decline in cultural awareness among American students is attributed by some critics to the ostensible declining standards of American schools and curricula.[31]
Racism and racialism
Racism had a significant presence in American history throughout the 18th, 19th, and early to mid 20th centuries. However, following the emancipation of Black slaves after the American Civil War and the civil rights movements of the 1950s and 1960s, Americans of all races achieved the same freedoms and legal protections as the white-majority population, and discrimination against people of minority races due to their race is now illegal - though examples of racial discrimination do continue into the present, they are statistically rare. In a 2017 survey, 58% of Americans are concerned about structural racism.[32][citation needed]
Environmental ignorance
Americans may be seen as reckless and imprudent regarding the preservation of the environment. They may be portrayed as lavish, driving high polluting SUVs and unconcerned about climate change or global warming.[citation needed] The United States (whose population is 327 million) has the second-highest carbon dioxide emissions after China (whose population is 1.4 billion),[33] is one of the few countries which did not ratify the Kyoto Protocol, and one of three countries to refuse to participate in the Paris Agreement.[34][35][36][37] In the context of stereotyping, it is perhaps more relevant to look at CO2 production per capita; the USA compares favorably with oil-producing nations in the Middle East, with Qatar at 40.3 metric tons per capita versus the United States' 17.6 metric tons per capita, though they are behind most European countries. Germany, for instance, emits only 9.1 metric tons per capita.[38] However, the United States has reduced their energy-related greenhouse gas emissions by 12% from 2005 to 2018 while, in the same time period, the world's energy-related emissions have increased by 24%.[39]
Arrogance and nationalism
Americans are often stereotyped as arrogant. They are frequently depicted in foreign media as excessively nationalistic and obnoxiously patriotic, believing the United States is better than all other countries and patronizing foreigners.[7][40] Americans may be seen by people of other countries as arrogant and egomaniacal.[41][42] In 2009, then-U.S. president Barack Obama said that the United States has "shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive" towards its allies.[20][43]
While the stereotype of hard-working Americans is often a positive one, the United States has also been criticized in recent years as a workaholic culture.[44][45][46] In The Huffington Post, Tijana Milosevic, a Serbian who had traveled to Washington, D.C. for a degree, wrote, "In fact my family and friends had observed that I shouldn’t have chosen America, since I would probably feel better in Western Europe — where life is not as fast paced as in the US and capitalism still has a 'human face.'" She noted that "Americans still work nine full weeks (350 hours) longer than West Europeans do and paid vacation days across Western Europe are well above the US threshold."[47] Researchers at Oxford Economics hired by the US Travel Association estimated that in 2014 "about 169m [vacation] days, equivalent to $52.4bn in lost benefits", went unused by American workers.[48] Professor Gary L. Cooper argued Americans "have a great deal to learn from Europeans about getting better balance between work and life" and wrote:[45]
The notion that working long hours and not taking holidays makes for a more productive workforce is, in my view, a managerial myth, with no foundation in organizational or psychological science. The human body is a biological machine, and like all machines can wear out. In addition, if employees don't invest personal disposal time in their relationships outside, with their family, loved ones and friends, they will be undermining the very social support systems they may need in difficult and stressful times
Obesity
A very common stereotype of Americans, attested across the globe, is that they are overweight or obese.[49][50][51] The "fat American" trope usually goes hand-in-hand with stereotypes of consumerism, but geopolitically, it has also been associated with expansionism and cultural imperialism.[52] In 2017, a study found that overweight Asians were more likely to be seen as "American" than non-overweight Asians, though the same was not true for other ethnicities.[53]
Americans are seen to be over-reliant on personal automobiles, while neglecting other forms of transport such as biking or public transport.[54] They are also seen to be easily confused by roundabouts.[55][56]
↑ Todd D. Nelson, ed. (February 2009). The unbearable accuracy of stereotypes in Handbook of prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination. Psychology Press. ISBN978-0-8058-5952-2.
↑ Cooper, Charlotte (2009). "39. Maybe It Should Be Called Fat American Studies". In Rothblum, Esther; Solovay, Sondra (eds.). The Fat Studies Reader. New York University Press. pp.327–333. doi:10.18574/nyu/9780814777435.003.0044.
↑ Nguyen, Hanh Thi; Kellogg, Guy (Spring 2010). "I Had a Stereotype That American Were Fat": Becoming a Speaker of Culture in a Second Language". The Modern Language Journal. 94 (1): 56–73. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.2009.00983.x.
↑ Forth, Christopher E. (2018). "France and the fattened American: animality, consumption and the logic of gavage". Food, Culture & Society. 21 (3): 350–366. doi:10.1080/15528014.2018.1451041.
↑ Forth, Christopher E. (2020). "The Fat Imaginary in Trump's America: Matter, Metaphor, and Animality". Cultural Politics. 16 (3): 287–407. doi:10.1215/17432197-8593578.
↑ Handron, C.; Kirby, T. A.; Wang, J.; Matskewich, H. E.; Cheryan, S. (2017). "Unexpected Gains: Being Overweight Buffers Asian Americans From Prejudice Against Foreigners". Psychological Science. 28 (9): 1214–1227. doi:10.1177/0956797617720912.
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