Individuals vs. averages

The concluding paragraph of a recent piece in Slate:

Some will read these generalizations and cry, “Sexism!” or “Essentialism!” So let’s be clear about what these group comparisons mean. I am talking about statistical averages, not absolutes. Clearly, not all men and women embody the stereotypes of their sex. Though they are not typical, there are women who dislike homemaking and would far prefer reading Popular Mechanics over Traditional Home; and there are men who enjoy many aspects of homemaking. No doubt, there are women for whom nothing is sexier than the sight of their husbands doing the dishes. But, as the new article in the American Sociological Review reminds us, they are a distinct minority. In our search for a solution to the work/life balance conundrum, it is best to begin by telling the truth about who we are.

Given Dunbar's Number - essentially the brain's limit on the number of people one can treat as individuals - some degree of stereotyping seems more or less inevitable. Of course, only certain stereotypes seem likely to be acceptable in this day and age.