These are generalized opinions of certain social groups based on certain characteristics, such as ethnicity, age, sex, gender, profession, physical appearance, nationality, and social class, among others.
They represent qualities that are positively or negatively viewed by society; these representations do not necessarily align with the actual reality of each person. In this sense, stereotypes categorize people based on the perception of the skills or characteristics of the group they belong to.
They are sometimes used to discriminate and segregate. For example, stereotypes of young people include that they are irresponsible, that they do not think of the future, and that they are egocentric and rebellious. This creates a negative and simplistic view of youth, which hides the differences and diversity of the members of this group.