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Table of Contents

Signs

Causes

Types

Impacts

Coping

A stigma is a negative attitude or idea about a mental, physical, or social feature of a person or group of people that implies social disapproval.Stigmas are a major concern because they can lead to poor treatment of groups of people, impaired mental and physical health of those groups, and other negative effects such as discrimination.

While there are many different kinds of social stigmas,mental healthstigma tends to be very common. It can be strong, and it can impact both mental and physical health outcomes in serious ways. Some impacts of stigma include social withdrawal or isolation, compromised employment and financial security, physical violence, and more.

This article will discuss what stigma is and examples and types of stigma. It also addresses the impacts and how to cope.

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Examples of Stigma

Signs of stigma may be obvious, or they may be so subtle that they go unnoticed. For example, a stigma can be presented as a joke that not everyone recognizes as a negative view.Even when stigmas go unnoticed, the effects can be damaging.

Examples of stigma include:

What Causes Stigma?

A few different theories try to explain why some people stigmatize others. These include:

Types of Stigma

The three types of stigma include mental illness stigma, physical deformation stigma, and race, ethnicity, religion, ideology, etc., stigma.Within these categories, there are additional types of stigmas.

You may have also heard the expression “stigma in health,” which can relate to physical health, mental health, or both. It occurs when someone with a physical or mental health concern is viewed negatively because of that health challenge.

Mental Health Stigma

Mental health stigma is a negative attitude or idea about a mental health feature of a person or group of people. It relates to social disapproval of the person or group based on the mental health feature.

The negative beliefs can come from a variety of sources, including the person with that mental health feature. For example, stigmas are often associated with mental illnesses such asdepression. This stigma may prevent people with depression from pursuing educational and career goals due to a belief of being less capable than people without depression.

Types of mental health stigma include:

Stigma Associated With Physical Deformation

Physical deformation stigma is a negative attitude or idea about a feature of a person or group of people related to a physical difference or disability. It relates to social disapproval of the person or group based on the physical feature or condition. This can lead to serious negative effects.

Like mental health stigma, there are different types of physical deformation stigma. Examples of this type of stigma include negative associations withdeafnessandblindness, or stigma associated with certain health conditions like HIV or sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

What Does It Mean for STDs to Be Socially Stigmatized?

Stigma Associated With Race, Ethnicity, Religion, Ideology, etc.

Stigma associated with race, ethnicity, religion, ideology, etc., is a negative attitude or idea about one of these, or similar, features of a person or group of people. It relates to social disapproval of the person or group based on the feature or features.

Like mental health stigma, there are different types of race, ethnicity, religion, ideology, etc., stigma. This type of stigma can impact generations and has influenced laws and politics throughout history.

Study: People Who Face Discrimination Have a Higher Risk of Anxiety

Effects of Stigma

Social stigma, or public stigma, occurs when society or the general public shares negative thoughts or beliefs about a person or group of people. For example, a mental health social stigma may be an association between mental illness and danger or a belief that people with mental illness lose control and hurt others.

People who are experiencing stigma and discrimination as a result of stigma can be harmed in multiple ways, both psychologically and in their daily lives. For example, someone who has been stigmatized may:

They may also experience difficulties in their work or personal life, such as:

Social stigma can also have larger problems that go beyond impacts on the individual. For example, people who have been stigmatized may become homeless or develop substance use disorders. Some may become victims of violent crime.

Stigma Can Create a StereotypeThis type of stigma and the negative effects can harm the people with the condition, people close to them such as friends, family, caregivers, community members, and people who share attributes with them but do not have the condition.It is often seen in the form of stereotypes and discrimination of those with the condition and others.For example, in addition to someone with depression being discriminated against, someone who is going through a hard time and is sad, but does not have depression, may also be discriminated against. Despite the challenges, there are ways to cope with stigmas.

Stigma Can Create a Stereotype

This type of stigma and the negative effects can harm the people with the condition, people close to them such as friends, family, caregivers, community members, and people who share attributes with them but do not have the condition.It is often seen in the form of stereotypes and discrimination of those with the condition and others.For example, in addition to someone with depression being discriminated against, someone who is going through a hard time and is sad, but does not have depression, may also be discriminated against. Despite the challenges, there are ways to cope with stigmas.

This type of stigma and the negative effects can harm the people with the condition, people close to them such as friends, family, caregivers, community members, and people who share attributes with them but do not have the condition.It is often seen in the form of stereotypes and discrimination of those with the condition and others.

For example, in addition to someone with depression being discriminated against, someone who is going through a hard time and is sad, but does not have depression, may also be discriminated against. Despite the challenges, there are ways to cope with stigmas.

What’s The Difference Between a Stigma and a Stereotype?

Coping With Stigma

It is important to understand how to cope when you are facing stigma but also how to avoid stigmatizing others.

Coping With Stigma From Others

How Are Workplace Wellness Programs Regulated?

Preventing Stigma

There are some steps you can take to support people who are experiencing stigma, to avoid stigmatizing others, and/or to avoid spreading stigmatizing ideas:

Summary

A stigma is a negative attitude or idea about a mental, physical, or social feature of a person or group of people that involves social disapproval.This issue is a significant concern for people with mental health conditions and for society as a whole. It can lead to discrimination and negatively impact mental health and overall wellbeing.

Mental illness stigma, physical deformation stigma, and race, ethnicity, religion, ideology, etc., stigma are the three primary types of stigma. Despite the negative effects of stigma, there are strategies to help cope with and overcome these challenges.

11 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Psychological Association.Stigma.Hart J, Richman S.Why do we joke about killing ourselves? Suicide, stigma, and humor.Modern Psychological Studies. 2020;25(2).Bhanot D, Singh T, Verma SK, Sharad S.Stigma and discrimination during COVID-19 pandemic.Front Public Health. 2021;8:577018. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.577018Harvard University.Stigma.Dilkov D, Dimitrova M, Marinova Y, Ulchar M.Investigation of attitudes/stigma/towards people with mental illness and opportunities to access psychiatric health care.Int J Surg Med. 2020;6(6):42-. doi:10.5455/ijsm.stigma-mental-illnessNational Alliance on Mental Illness.Overcoming stigma.White S.From Bowers to Obergefell: The US Supreme Court’s erratic, yet correct, jurisprudence on gay rights. J Philos Polit Econ.2022;4(1):111-125.Yanos PT, DeLuca JS, Roe D, Lysaker PH.The impact of illness identity on recovery from severe mental illness: A review of the evidence.Psychiatry Res. 2020;288:112950. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112950American Psychiatric Association.Stigma, prejudice and discrimination against people with mental illness.Wogen J, Restrepo MT.Human rights, stigma, and substance use.Health Hum Rights. 2020;22(1):51-60.World Health Organization.A guide to preventing and addressing social stigma associated with COVID-19.

11 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Psychological Association.Stigma.Hart J, Richman S.Why do we joke about killing ourselves? Suicide, stigma, and humor.Modern Psychological Studies. 2020;25(2).Bhanot D, Singh T, Verma SK, Sharad S.Stigma and discrimination during COVID-19 pandemic.Front Public Health. 2021;8:577018. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.577018Harvard University.Stigma.Dilkov D, Dimitrova M, Marinova Y, Ulchar M.Investigation of attitudes/stigma/towards people with mental illness and opportunities to access psychiatric health care.Int J Surg Med. 2020;6(6):42-. doi:10.5455/ijsm.stigma-mental-illnessNational Alliance on Mental Illness.Overcoming stigma.White S.From Bowers to Obergefell: The US Supreme Court’s erratic, yet correct, jurisprudence on gay rights. J Philos Polit Econ.2022;4(1):111-125.Yanos PT, DeLuca JS, Roe D, Lysaker PH.The impact of illness identity on recovery from severe mental illness: A review of the evidence.Psychiatry Res. 2020;288:112950. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112950American Psychiatric Association.Stigma, prejudice and discrimination against people with mental illness.Wogen J, Restrepo MT.Human rights, stigma, and substance use.Health Hum Rights. 2020;22(1):51-60.World Health Organization.A guide to preventing and addressing social stigma associated with COVID-19.

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

American Psychological Association.Stigma.Hart J, Richman S.Why do we joke about killing ourselves? Suicide, stigma, and humor.Modern Psychological Studies. 2020;25(2).Bhanot D, Singh T, Verma SK, Sharad S.Stigma and discrimination during COVID-19 pandemic.Front Public Health. 2021;8:577018. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.577018Harvard University.Stigma.Dilkov D, Dimitrova M, Marinova Y, Ulchar M.Investigation of attitudes/stigma/towards people with mental illness and opportunities to access psychiatric health care.Int J Surg Med. 2020;6(6):42-. doi:10.5455/ijsm.stigma-mental-illnessNational Alliance on Mental Illness.Overcoming stigma.White S.From Bowers to Obergefell: The US Supreme Court’s erratic, yet correct, jurisprudence on gay rights. J Philos Polit Econ.2022;4(1):111-125.Yanos PT, DeLuca JS, Roe D, Lysaker PH.The impact of illness identity on recovery from severe mental illness: A review of the evidence.Psychiatry Res. 2020;288:112950. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112950American Psychiatric Association.Stigma, prejudice and discrimination against people with mental illness.Wogen J, Restrepo MT.Human rights, stigma, and substance use.Health Hum Rights. 2020;22(1):51-60.World Health Organization.A guide to preventing and addressing social stigma associated with COVID-19.

American Psychological Association.Stigma.

Hart J, Richman S.Why do we joke about killing ourselves? Suicide, stigma, and humor.Modern Psychological Studies. 2020;25(2).

Bhanot D, Singh T, Verma SK, Sharad S.Stigma and discrimination during COVID-19 pandemic.Front Public Health. 2021;8:577018. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.577018

Harvard University.Stigma.

Dilkov D, Dimitrova M, Marinova Y, Ulchar M.Investigation of attitudes/stigma/towards people with mental illness and opportunities to access psychiatric health care.Int J Surg Med. 2020;6(6):42-. doi:10.5455/ijsm.stigma-mental-illness

National Alliance on Mental Illness.Overcoming stigma.

White S.From Bowers to Obergefell: The US Supreme Court’s erratic, yet correct, jurisprudence on gay rights. J Philos Polit Econ.2022;4(1):111-125.

Yanos PT, DeLuca JS, Roe D, Lysaker PH.The impact of illness identity on recovery from severe mental illness: A review of the evidence.Psychiatry Res. 2020;288:112950. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112950

American Psychiatric Association.Stigma, prejudice and discrimination against people with mental illness.

Wogen J, Restrepo MT.Human rights, stigma, and substance use.Health Hum Rights. 2020;22(1):51-60.

World Health Organization.A guide to preventing and addressing social stigma associated with COVID-19.

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