Essay: What stereotypes do people have about the United States and its role as a world power?

What stereotypes do people have about the United States and its role as a world power?  To ask the question in a forward and blunt manner is to deny any chance of an honest and meaningful answer.  To answer the main question of this essay, I interviewed twelve people of my acquaintance.  By asking non-directive, open-ended questions, I was able to gain insight into the stereotypes my respondents may not be aware they have.

I did not mention stereotypes at all during the interviews, so as not to inspire my respondents to censor themselves.  I also took steps to ensure that I did not influence their answers.  Unfortunately, this is an election year, so some bias could no be avoided.  After gaining consent for the interviews, I sent my respondents written copies of the questions I planned to ask them about living in America, so that they had time to think about their answers before talking to me.  Some of those from whom I requested interviews were unable to comply, so I have less variance and diversity in the interviewed population than I wanted.  My respondents include: two immigrants from India, two African-American female single parents, two school aged children, three males, two non-heterosexuals, and a retired soldier.

What do you like most about living in America?  The children answered that they enjoyed the freedom, food, and fun.  When asked, they revealed that they believed children who lived outside the U.S. were deprived of these things, as shown in the ads "Feed the Children," "Save the Children," and other such media releases.  Interestingly, the African-American women and Indian immigrants valued the number of industrial and career opportunities most, while the Caucasian women over the age of twenty-one valued personal freedom above all else.

What do you like least about living in America?  The men and the children agree that watching political conventions on television is their least favorite part of American life.  The females also spoke out against politics, but half of them cited policies of lending support to other nations when our own citizens are suffering, while the rest were disgruntled by the personalities and views of individual politicians.  Not one of my respondents compared the U.S. system of government to the government of another country.

What does America mean to you?  The children answered "freedom" and did not elaborate.  Both men polled refused to answer this question; I am still unsure what that means.  The women's answers were variations on the theme of 'freedom of choice'.  When further questioned, the women revealed a common belief that true freedom and independence was only available in this country.  They also unanimously supported any foreign policy that lead to freedom of choice for other women.

The results of my interviews were not what I expected.  People of my own race and gender were more willing to talk to me than those who were not, although I have known most of them for the same amount of time.  The children gave me the answers that they were socialized to give, by teachers and media biased in favor of America.  The women interviewed were united by their value of personal freedoms, but their views on politics and the U.S. as a world power were divided along racial lines.  The Caucasian women supported inroads to the spread of democracy, while the African-American women favored concentration on domestic issues.  Part of what makes this so surprising to me is that the women live similar lifestyles, economically and geographically; yet, their answers in the individual interviews deviated in exactly the same places.