 When consumers are just beginning to get to know each other, they have very little information regarding their consumption partner’s preferences and expectations for the interaction.Consumers use stereotypes as a resource to help inform their choices because stereotypes are socially shared and provide information about social groups based on easily identified qualities (e.g., race, gender), they may prove useful in inferring the preferences and anticipating the behavior of one's consumption partner.When consumers wish to create a relationship with their consumption partners but have little information about them, they will rely on stereotypes to anticipate their consumption partner's responses.