About Stereotyped Thinking and the Collapse of High Hopes

Abstract

What is the role of stereotypical thinking and does it have a single mechanism? This article proposes a theoretical framework and an explanation of why thinking in stereotypes has become one of the biggest obstacles to achieving progress and building a just society in Bulgaria, as well as in other countries in transition from socialism to capitalism. Today’s party ideologies, media messages and mass expectations are woven from stereotypes, and that is why the topic is important. This type of thinking is present when the generic concept is identified with one of its species. This analysis also emphasizes the role of stereotypical thinking in dissociating with the great hopes of Bulgarian people for change and a better future, which were strong at the beginning of the transition, but today are on the verge of freezing. They were also the basis of the belief in the civilizational values coming from the West, which were supposed to replace the old backward socialist values of the planned economy and authoritarian socialism. The dream of them and the disappointment that they came to Bulgaria too slowly or even at all caused about 1/5 of the population, mostly young and active people, to look for sustenance and prosperity in the West. At the same time, poverty, social inequalities, and corruption settled in the country.