Incorporating structural stigma into network analysis

A rich literature has explored the modeling of homophily and other forms of nonuniform mixing associated with individual-level covariates within the exponential family random graph (ERGM) framework. Such differential mixing does not fully explain phenomena such as stigma, however, which involve the active maintenance of social boundaries by ostracism of persons with out-group ties. Here, we introduce a new family of statistics that allows for such effects to be captured, making it possible to probe for the potential presence of boundary maintenance above and beyond simple differences in nomination rates. We demonstrate these statistics in the context of gender segregation in a school classroom, and introduce a framework for understanding the associated coefficients via network perturbation.     

The experience of Jordanian care leavers making the transition from residential care to adulthood: The influence of a patriarchal and collectivist culture

The problems faced by young people leaving care to join the adult world are well-known. The present study adds to the current body of research on the subject by exploring the post-care experiences of young Jordanian care leavers. Forty two care leavers were interviewed, thirteen of whom also took part in a focus group. The interview data were analysed qualitatively. Jordanian care leavers described many experiences similar to those reported by young people leaving care in other countries including struggles to continue education, find accommodation, secure employment, and cope financially. Of particular interest was the more specific finding that the cultural values of patriarchy, family life, and collectivism characteristic of all Arab countries had a deeply pervasive impact on many of the care leavers' post-care experiences. The reasons that brought the young people into care, and the lack of family that most experienced upon leaving care, increased the risk of them being stigmatised. For many, managing their post-care identity in a patriarchal, family-based culture proved difficult and stressful. Although some care-leavers did receive exceptional, albeit informal support from friends and employers, the challenges faced by the care leavers were often exacerbated by the cultural values explicit in a society that is patriarchal, family-based and honour-bound. The policy and practise implications of these findings are briefly acknowledged.     

Changing cultural stigma: A pilot study of LGBT and mental illness organizations

This study examines how an LGBT advocacy organization and a mental illness advocacy organization influence cultural byproducts that result in stereotypes. Burke's (1989) redemption ritual is adapted as a framework for conceptualizing the process that occurs when an advocacy organization expresses discontent with a cultural producer's byproducts.     

Racial Differences in Attitudes Toward Professional Mental Health Treatment: The Mediating Effect of Stigma

Stigma associated with mental illness continues to be a pervasive barrier to mental health treatment, leading to negative attitudes about treatment and deterring appropriate care seeking. Empirical research suggests that the stigma of mental illness may exert an adverse influence on attitudes toward mental health treatment and service utilization patterns by individuals with a mental illness, particularly African Americans. However, little research has examined the impact of stigma on racial differences in attitudes toward seeking mental health treatment. This study examined the hypothesis that stigma partially mediates the relationship between race and attitudes towards mental health treatment in a community-based sample of 101 African American and White older adults. Multiple regression analyses and classic path analysis was utilized to test the partial mediation model. Controlling for socio-demographic factors, African American older adults were more likely to have negative attitudes toward mental health treatment, and they also reported more public and internalized stigma than their White counterparts. As hypothesized, the relationship between race and attitudes toward mental health treatment was partially mediated by internalized stigma, suggesting that internalized stigma may cause older adults to develop negative attitudes about mental health treatment. The partial mediation model was not significant for public stigma, however. Implications for social work research and practice are discussed.     

The stigma of mental illness in the labor market

Mental illness labels are accompanied by devaluation and discrimination. We extend research on reactions to mental illness by utilizing a field experiment (N = 635) to test effects of mental illness labels on labor market discrimination. This study involved sending fictitious applications to job listings, some applications indicating a history of mental illness and some indicating a history of physical injury. In line with research indicating that mental illness leads to stigma, we predicted fewer callbacks to candidates with mental illness. We also predicted relatively fewer callbacks for applicants with mental illness when the jobs involved a greater likelihood for interpersonal contact with the employer. Results showed significant discrimination against applicants with mental illness, but did not indicate an effect of potential proximity to the employer. This contributes a valuable finding in a natural setting to research on labor market discrimination towards people with mental illness.     

Dancing with discrimination: managing stigma and identity

Fans are a group that are stigmatized and discredited, at least to some degree, by their “deviant” and common form of symbolic consumption. At stake in the process of stigmatization is the very identity of the individual fan, and their symbolic and emotional well‐being. This paper reports on an empirical study of one particular group of fans—Star Trek fans (or “Trekkies”)—and explores the complex identity issues articulated by them as they “manage” their problematic public identity. Drawing upon interviews conducted with 18 Trekkies, the article describes how this stigmatic identity is organized within a disciplinary matrix that operates at a micro level through two key processes: humour and self‐surveillance. In particular, we highlight their struggle with the dilemmas of exposing their private “fandom” in a public context, and the highly ambivalent manner in which they seek to escape stigmatization.     

Stigma Consciousness Concerns Related to Drug Use and Sexuality in a Sample of Street-Based Male Sex Workers

Abstract

Measurement of, and response to, three different stigmas and their exposure (homosexual behavior, sex work, and drug use) were studied a group of 90 key-informant recruited male sex workers in Houston, Texas who were over 18 and had exchanged sex for money in the previous 7 days. Respondents reported on self-identified sexual orientation and were interviewed, including providing responses on a measure of perceived stigma relating to sexual behavior and drug use. Two thirds were white, almost all had used drugs (many in the past week), and half had ever injected. A fifth identified as heterosexual, with the remainder split between gay and bisexually-identified men. There was a high level of homelessness and contact with the criminal justice system for drug and property offences. Consciousness about drug-related stigma was moderately associated with concerns about drug-related exposure and sensitivity to rejection as a drug user, but not to exposure as homosexual or as a sex worker. Drug-using status is related to greater concern about exposure as a sex worker. Data suggest that stigma is domain-specific and that there are different patterns of response to different stigmata in the same individual. Measurement of stigmata and concern about exposure and rejection need to be specific to stigmatized behaviors, and not generalized to other stigmatized behaviors since the data suggest that they are minimally related.     

Breaking the silence: parentally suicide-bereaved youths’ self-disclosure on the internet and the social responses of others related to stigma

‘Suicide stigma’ contributes to the silencing of parental suicide within family and social networks. This article departs from a narrative theoretical framework on grief and identity to analyse suicide-bereaved youths ‘breaking the silence’ through self-disclosure in self-initiated chat threads on the Internet, which is their way of actively seeking social support, telling of their experiences and opening up space for a renegotiation of the meanings around suicide. The article investigates which narrative frameworks for the interpretation of suicide are operating in these contexts, and whether and, if so, how stigma is reproduced or counteracted. Two frameworks are identified: ‘Who is to blame for suicide?’; and ‘What caused the suicide?’. The former is utilized by the newly bereaved chat-initiators, who attribute blame for suicide to the parent and/or themselves in accordance with stigmatizing discourses. These are reproduced in the responses first and foremost of the non-suicide-bereaved, who construct a dichotomy between the deceased parent as ‘perpetrator’ and the child as ‘victim’ in order to relieve blame. A lack of contact with other suicide-bereaved youths can reinforce feelings of otherness. Identities, however, can potentially be de-stigmatized by the meanings drawn from the latter framework.     

Qualitative evaluation of HIV/AIDS IEC activities in Madagascar

UNICEF commissioned a qualitative evaluation of a program in which two partners conducted prevention activities concerning HIV/AIDS and STIs amongst youth in Madagascar. The evaluation assessed project activities and conducted a practical exercise in focus group methodology, following a workshop on evaluation techniques. Information was collected from a wide range of people, including 441 participants in 46 focus groups in nine sites. Six sites were areas of project activities and three sites were targeted for future activities. Clubs that integrated HIV/AIDS and STI information into their regular activities were most successful in their information, education and communication activities. A more participatory approach is recommended, to achieve a better match between target groups and messages delivered, and to foster trust and support. Another challenge remaining is to address fears and stigma through advocacy for the care and support of affected people.     

进城农民工子女污名化问题的社工介入

进城农民工子女陷入“被污名化”的困境,是当前这一特殊群体面临的一个突出问题。将社会工作以人为本、全面发展的理念及其个案工作方法、小组工作方法、社区工作方法引入进城农民工子女的污名化研究,有助于激发他们内在的潜能,促使其自觉地接受和适应这个社会并最终被这个社会接纳的理念,有助于进城农民工子女形成健康良好的心理和人格修养,更好地融入社会。