Using the culture cycle to teach stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination

While social psychology is an exciting discipline to teach, there are certain topics that instructors can feel uncomfortable with, uncertain about how to approach, and/or ill-equipped to teach. One such area is stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination. In this chapter, we suggest a framework through which to discuss stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination that may ease these discussions - through the use of the culture cycle (e.g. see also Ecological Systems Theory; Bronfenbrenner, 1974; Fiske et al., 1998; Markus & Kitayama, 2010). Echoing the discipline of social psychology itself, the culture cycle highlights the interplay between ideologies, institutions, interactions and individuals’ beliefs. By describing the culture cycle and discussing different ways to teach and engage with the culture cycle at different levels of the curriculum (i.e. teaching philosophy and class activities), we hope to help instructors overcome barriers to meaningful engagement with the topics of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination.