Construction Of Stigma Research Articles

Validation Study of the Parkinson's Disease Stigma Questionnaire (PDStigmaQuest).

Stigma is a relevant aspect of Parkinson's disease (PD). Specific stigma tools are needed to address the complex construct of stigma in PD comprehensively. To test the dimensionality and psychometric properties of the newly developed Parkinson's Disease Stigma Questionnaire (PDStigmaQuest). In this multi-center, cross-sectional study including PD patients and healthy controls, the dimensionality of the PDStigmaQuest was examined through exploratory factor analysis. Acceptability and psychometric properties were investigated. PDStigmaQuest scores of patients and healthy controls were compared. In total, 201 PD patients and 101 healthy controls were included in the final analysis. Results suggested high data quality of the PDStigmaQuest (0.0001% missing data for patients). The exploratory factor analysis produced four factors: felt stigma, hiding, enacted stigma: rejection, and enacted stigma: patronization, explaining 47.9% of variance. An optional work domain for employed patients was included. Moderate floor effects and skewness, but no ceiling effects were found. Cronbach's alpha of 0.85 indicated high internal consistency. Calculated item-total correlations met standard criteria. Test-retest reliability was high (rs = 0.83). PDStigmaQuest scores correlated significantly with other stigma measures (rs = 0.56-0.69) and were significantly higher in patients than in healthy controls and higher in patients with depressive symptoms than in those without. The patient-reported 18-item PDStigmaQuest showed strong psychometric properties of validity and reliability. Our results suggest that the PDStigmaQuest can be used to assess and evaluate stigma comprehensively in PD, which will improve our understanding of the construct of PD stigma.

The Psychosocial Consequences of Sexual Violence Stigma: A Scoping Review.

Over the past decade, scholars have explored whether the stigma associated with sexual violence (SV) represents a risk factor for psychopathology and related comorbidities following SV. We conducted a scoping review to summarize and evaluate the state of this burgeoning literature. We included studies from Pubmed, APA PsychInfo, Embase, CINAHL Plus, Social Science Premium, and Web of Science that quantified stigma related to SV. Studies were screened and abstracted in accordance with the PRISMA-SCR guidelines for scoping reviews. Our final sample contained 62 studies. We address two key questions about SV stigma. First, is SV a stigmatized status? Articles (n = 14) provided evidence for SV stigma among potential stigmatizers (e.g., individuals who may perpetuate stigma) across a range of methods (e.g., vignettes) and outcomes (e.g., desire for social distance). Additional work (n = 20) corroborates perceptions of SV stigma among targets (i.e., SV survivors). Second, what are the psychosocial consequences of SV stigma? We reviewed studies (n = 28) demonstrating that SV stigma is correlated with a range of adverse psychosocial outcomes-including anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, problematic drinking, and somatic symptoms-among individuals experiencing multiple types of SV (e.g., childhood sexual abuse and sexual assault). Thus, emerging evidence suggests that SV stigma may be a critical determinant of risk and recovery following SV exposure. However, a number of limitations were observed, including that SV stigma has not been consistently measured and that the literature has not fully incorporated stigma constructs, such as concealment and structural stigma. We offer several recommendations to advance this line of work.

Substance Use Disorder Stigma and Professional Decision Making Among Pre-Professional Healthcare Trainees.

Provider stigma toward people who have substance use disorders (SUDs) may be a barrier to effective treatment delivery. The purpose of this study was to measure provider stigma among healthcare professionals-in-training and determine whether stigma levels were associated with professional decision making. A sample of 240 participants were recruited from the following academic programs at a large university in the southeastern United States: Nursing, Social Work, Counseling, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Psychology. Through an online, anonymous survey, provider stigma and other constructs were measured. The participants were also asked to make two hypothetical professional decisions: one regarding their choice to provide treatment for an SUD patient and the other regarding their likelihood of attending a professional development event (i.e., conference session) on the topic of SUDs. Results showed that self-reported stigma toward patients with SUDs was associated with a reduced likelihood of choosing to provide treatment for a patient with SUD (compared to patients with other conditions) and a reduced likelihood of attending SUD training at an upcoming conference (compared to other conference topics). Results have potential implications for the development of training programs for pre-professional healthcare trainees.

Enablers of Mental Illness Stigma: A Scoping Review of Individual Perceptions

Introduction. Stigma is noted to be one of the greatest barriers to the recovery of persons with mental health problems. Stigma has been acknowledged as both an individual and a social orchestration that has an overpowering impact on the social standing of marginalized persons in a society. This study examined the extant literature to ascertain if any evidence(s) suggested a relationship between perceived public attitudes, religious and cultural beliefs, and structural violence in perpetuating stigma against persons with mental illness. Method. We applied a five-step scoping review framework by Arksey and O’Malley to examine evidence in the literature that suggests relationships between perceptions, religious and cultural beliefs, and structural violence in perpetuating stigma. The researchers systematically conducted a literature search from six databases, including CINAHL, Ovid MEDLINE(R), ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, Sociology Collection, PsycINFO, and Sociological Abstracts, using search terms that included stigma, mental illness, perception, religious and cultural beliefs, and structural violence. Results. An initial search in six databases yielded 1223 articles. Checking in the Google Search engine yielded 30 more articles. After removing 25 duplicates, 1198 articles remained for title and abstract screening. After a full-text review, 1143 articles were removed. Overall, 30 articles were selected for data extraction. Thematic analysis of the extracted data resulted in three main themes. These include perceptions about mental illness, perceptions about stigma and discrimination, and forms of stigma perception. Conclusion. This study revealed that individual perceptions of public attitudes contributed to their construction of stigma. It is incumbent on everyone to play their part in mitigating all the negative outcomes that stigma brings, especially to persons with mental illness.

(De)construction of stigma attached to global South-South student mobility: voices from Chinese doctoral students in Malaysia

ABSTRACT Despite an emerging mobility of Chinese doctoral students to Malaysia, little is known about how this cohort perceives their study sojourn, especially in relation to a salient yet under-researched discourse widely circulating in the Chinese media that calls into question doctorates obtained from Southeast Asian universities. Utilizing a qualitative method based on 10 Chinese doctoral students, guided by a theoretical framework incorporating Whiteness and agency in mobility, this study unpacks how this cohort understands and addresses the disparaging discourse. Findings reveal that the pejorative discourse is tantamount to a process of stigmatization entrenched in the legacy of Whiteness, which is reinforced by the students’ voluntary practice of Whiteness as aspiration, investment, and malleability. Confronting this discourse, the participants established themselves as agentic actors who mobilized collective agency for contestation to rectify the erroneous conception and restore their esteem. This study ends with some implications and future research directions for international student mobility.

Doing/Undoing Stigma: The Moral Enterprise of Territorial Stigma

In this article I focus on stigma, and more specifically on territorial stigma in a Dutch suburb built in the 1970s. This publication is based on ethnographic fieldwork that lasted two and half years and which took place at the end of the 1980s. The data is reanalyzed in the light of recent developments in studies on stigma and territorial stigma, specifically how this is countered. I will use the conceptual pair—doing stigma and undoing stigma—to unpack stigma as a complex and dynamic process in which a diverse range of actors, such as inhabitants, civil servants and youth, are involved. The aim of this article is twofold: to describe and analyze the social construction of territorial stigma (doing stigma) of the neighborhood over a period of ten years and whether and how this stigma is countered (undoing stigma). This article highlights the agency of those targeted by stigma by paying attention to local narratives and using a multi-perspective ethnographic lens. The narratives show that stigma did not gain a master status because (1) the stigma producers were marginal in the social world of the targeted inhabitants and (2) it did not align with structural stigma (as in e.g., housing, health care, income, and education).

The Impact of Weight Bias and Stigma on the 24 h Dietary Recall Process in Adults with Overweight and Obesity: A Pilot Study.

People with overweight and obesity tend to both underreport dietary energy intake and experience weight stigma. This exploratory pilot study aimed to determine the relationship between weight bias and weight stigma and energy intake reporting accuracy. Thirty-nine weight-stable adults with BMI ≥ 25 completed three 24 h dietary recalls; indirect calorimetry to measure resting metabolic rate; a survey measuring weight stigma, psychosocial constructs, and physical activity; and a semi-structured qualitative interview. Multiple linear regression was used to determine if weight bias internalization, weight bias toward others, and experiences of weight stigma were predictive of the accuracy of energy reporting. A thematic analysis was conducted for the qualitative interviews. Weight stigma was reported by 64.1% of the sample. Weight stigma constructs did not predict the accuracy of energy intake reporting. People with obesity underreported by a mean of 477 kcals (p = 0.02). People classified as overweight overreported by a mean of 144 kcals, but this was not significant (p = 0.18). Participants reported a desire to report accurate data despite concerns about reporting socially undesirable foods. Future research should quantify the impact of weight stigma on energy reporting in 24 h recalls using a larger, more diverse sample size and objective measures like doubly labeled water for validation.

Exploring individuals' experiences of hope in mental health recovery: Having a sense of possibility.

WHAT IS KNOWN ON THE SUBJECT?: Mental health recovery is acknowledged as a process of transformation and a way of living a meaningful life despite the presence of mental ill-health. Experiencing hope has been articulated as intrinsic to service users experience of a meaningful life. The social construction of mental illness and stigma are recognised as barriers to experiencing hope. Mental health professionals have responsibility to positively influence the experience of hope. WHAT THIS ARTICLE ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: Individuals in mental health recovery experience hope as the embodiment of having a sense of possibility in life. Individuals' sense of possibility in life is underpinned by a belief and confidence that they will be ok. This belief is informed by 'feeling safe' and 'feeling connected'. This article generates an increased understanding of the dynamic relational processes that unpin hope generation. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR MENTAL HEALTH NURSING PRACTICE?: Mental health stakeholders need to be more explicit in exploring 'hope' and uncovering its therapeutic potential. Mental health practitioners need skill in enabling individuals to feel safe and connected while understanding its role in cultivating hope. ABSTRACT: Introduction The experience of hope is widely acknowledged and empirically supported as a key catalyst of mental health recovery. Lived experience accounts of hope are critical in accessing data on what has been termed a nebulous concept. This article is the second presentation of data from this study and provides further context to improve understanding of hope and optimise its therapeutic potential. Aim To explore how individuals describe and make sense of their experience of hope in mental health recovery. Method A qualitative Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) approach was used. Results This article explores the second of three experiential group themes: Hope as Having a sense of possibility 'I will be ok' which is informed by feeling safe and feeling connected. Discussion Having a sense of possibility is easier when basic needs are met and people feel connected to self, others and the universe. The use of creativity as a pathway to the imagination is positively experienced. The role of family, friends and healthcare professionals as hope reservoirs is critical. Finally, the framing of medication use emerged as significant. Implications for Practice It is important that all stakeholders appreciate the interpretation of hope and use the understanding and skill in harnessing its therapeutic potential.

Shame on me: the individual whitewash of a social stigma underpinned by language ideologies

Abstract Language ideologies are a powerful way of perpetuating inequalities, as peripheralized speakers who have internalized the lack of legitimacy attributed to them often end up reproducing censure rather than resisting it. Foregrounding the affective dimension, this paper explores the role of shame as a fulcrum articulating the individual with the collective in the perpetuation of linguistic stigma. To do so, it presents excerpts of autobiographies written by university students that reveal the impact of language idealization on the subjectivities of those who, by deviating from the norm, forge subaltern identities. As victims of language shaming are often unaware that their suffering is due to ideologies, but instead blame it on personal failings, rather than challenge the linguistic vigilantes who harass them, they silence themselves. The paper discusses how the inherently social nature of the construction of otherness and stigma is obscured by the individuality of shame and presents an educational intervention with which to scaffold students to overcome language shame.

Parkinson's Disease Stigma Questionnaire (PDStigmaQuest): Development and Pilot Study of a Questionnaire for Stigma in Patients with Idiopathic Parkinson's Disease.

Stigma is significant in Parkinson's disease (PD). However, no specific tool is available to assess stigma in PD comprehensively. This pilot study aimed to develop and test a stigma questionnaire specific to PD patients (PDStigmaQuest). Based on a literature review, clinical experience, expert consensus, and patients' feedback, we developed the preliminary, patient-completed PDStigmaQuest in German language. It included 28 items covering five stigma domains: uncomfortableness, anticipated stigma, hiding, experienced stigma, and internalized stigma. In this pilot study, 81 participants (PD patients, healthy controls, caregivers, and health professionals) were included to investigate the acceptability, feasibility, comprehensibility, and psychometric properties of the PDStigmaQuest. The PDStigmaQuest showed 0.3% missing data points for PD patients and 0.4% for controls, suggesting high data quality. Moderate floor effects, but no ceiling effects were found. In the item analysis, most items met the standard criteria of item difficulty, item variance, and item-total correlation. Cronbach's alpha was > 0.7 for four of five domains. PD patients' domain scores were significantly higher than healthy controls' for uncomfortableness, anticipated stigma, and internalized stigma. Feedback to the questionnaire was predominantly positive. Our results indicate that the PDStigmaQuest is a feasible, comprehensive, and relevant tool to assess stigma in PD and helps to understand the construct of stigma in PD further. Based on our results, the preliminary version of the PDStigmaQuest was modified and is currently validated in a larger population of PD patients for use in clinical and research settings.

Longitudinal associations between weight stigma and disordered eating across the weight spectrum

Weight stigma reflects discrimination or stereotyping based on weight, and this construct is associated with body dissatisfaction, low self-esteem, and eating pathology. Recent research suggests that internalizing weight stigma (i.e., endorsing negative stereotypes about one's weight) mediates associations between experienced weight stigma and disordered eating. However, much of this research has been cross-sectional and limited data exist on associations between weight stigma constructs and eating pathology across the weight spectrum. The current study explored whether internalized weight stigma differentially mediates the relationship between experiencing weight stigma and disordered eating symptoms over time in higher-weight versus non-higher-weight individuals. Undergraduate students (N = 661, 80 % Female, 28.5 % higher weight) completed surveys at three time points over six months. Multigroup path analyses tested whether the effects of experienced weight stigma and internalized weight stigma on binge eating, food restriction, and body dissatisfaction differed between the higher-weight and non-higher-weight groups. All models showed improved fit when path estimates were allowed to vary between groups. Mediation analyses indicated a significant indirect effect of experienced weight stigma on binge eating via internalized weight stigma among the higher-weight group but not the non-higher-weight group. Only internalized weight stigma was directly associated with body dissatisfaction across weight status. A direct effect of experienced weight stigma on restriction was found in the non-higher-weight group. Findings suggest that, in general, weight stigma negatively affects body image and eating behavior, although specific effects may vary depending on one's weight.

Community Perceptions of HIV Stigma, Discriminatory Attitudes, and Disclosure Concerns: A Health Facility-Based Study in Selected Health Districts of South Africa.

Research data about HIV stigma perceptions and discriminatory attitudes among the general population are limited. Furthermore, the willingness of HIV-negative individuals to engage with HIV prevention and disclosure interventions has not been established in South Africa. The study investigated community perceptions of stigma as well as discriminatory attitudes towards HIV disclosure to understand if and how these perceptions might influence the uptake of disclosure interventions. This facility-based study used a validated questionnaire to measure the four constructs of HIV stigma among 670 adults recruited from health districts of two provinces of South Africa. Of these, 72% were female, 87% had ever been tested for HIV, and 31% knew someone who has HIV. Stigma towards people living with HIV (PLHIV) is widespread in the general population. A high proportion (75%) endorsed disclosure concerns, 75% perceived stigma to be common, and 56% endorsed negative statements indicating perceived stigma in communities. Fear, moral and social judgement, and rejection underlined their perceptions about PLHIV. Almost half (45.7%) were unwilling to care for family members sick with AIDS, suggesting negative distancing reactions and discriminatory attitudes towards PLHIV. The widespread discriminatory attitudes and the perceived stigma that is evident in the general population might heighten the disclosure concerns endorsed, promote non-disclosure, and increase HIV transmission. To design interventions, it is crucial to be cognisant of disclosure concerns, discriminatory attitudes, and perceived stigma evident in communities. Thus, the findings underscore the need to increase efforts to challenge and reduce community drivers of negative discriminatory attitudes and perceived stigma.

Measuring public attitudes towards people living with chronic diseases in Arabic-speaking populations: adaptation and development of the Social Stigma Scale of Chronic Diseases (SSS-CD)

BackgroundA large proportion of the population in Arab countries suffer from chronic diseases. According to the statistics by the Global Health Estimates, chronic illnesses contribute by 71% to total deaths in the Arab region. While chronic illnesses have been demonstrated to carry high levels of social stigma, it is only recently that little research attention has been given to this topic in the Arab world. It is well-established that the social stigma construct is culturally-dependent. Therefore, the lack of an Arabic measure highlighted the urgent need for developing a culturally adapted and valid instrument to assess social stigma toward people living with chronic diseases. In this study, we aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Arabic translation, adaptation and development of “the Social Stigma Scale of Chronic Diseases” (SSS-CD).MethodFifteen items derived from the literature and assessing social stigma towards chronic diseases have been administered to 570 Arabic-speaking adults from the Lebanese general population (aged 24.59 ± 6.75years; 68.6% women). Items were translated into Arabic using a forward-backward translation method. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using a principal-axis EFA on the first split-half subsample, followed by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) tested on the model extracted from the EFA on the second split-half subsample, were conducted to examine the construct validity of the SSS-CD. Fit indices were deemed adequate if the normed model chi-square (χ²/df) ≤ 3, the Steiger-Lind root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) ≤ 0.08, the Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) and the comparative fit index (CFI) ≥ 0.90.ResultsFindings revealed that the 10-item SSS-CD has a unidimensional factor structure, with the following fit indices: χ2/df = 92.95/34 = 2.73, RMSEA = 0.077 (90% CI 0.059, 0.096), SRMR = 0.062, CFI = 0.939, TLI = 0.919. A good internal consistency was demonstrated by a McDonald’s omega value of 0.73 for the total score. Findings also supported invariance across gender, with men exhibiting higher levels of social stigma attached to chronic diseases than women. All three dimensions of stigmatization (social, psychological and evolutionary stigmatization) were positively correlated with SSS-CD scores (Social self-interest [r = .40; p < .001], Evolutionary self-interest [r = .37; p < .001], Psychological self-interest [r = .42; p < .001]), demonstrating relatively strong convergent validity.ConclusionOur findings suggest that the SSS-CD has robust psychometric qualities. We thus preliminarily suggest that the scale is valid, reliable and suitable for use among Arabic-speaking people from the general population to measure public attitudes towards people living with chronic diseases. Providing this psychometrically sound measure will hopefully enable to foster research in this area in order to draw a clear overview of the prevalence and characteristics of social stigma attached to chronic diseases in Arabic-speaking communities. However, given that this was the first study to examine the psychometric properties of the SSS-CD, the present findings and conclusions should be considered tentative pending future cross-national validation studies.

Stigma, social and structural vulnerability, and mental health among transgender women: A partial least square path modeling analysis.

Existing literature suggests that transgender women (TW) may be at high risk for adverse mental health due to stress attributed to combined experiences of stigma and complex social and structural vulnerabilities. Little research has examined how these co-occurring experiences relate to mental health. We aimed to test a theoretically driven conceptual model of relationships between stigma, social and structural vulnerabilities, and mental health to inform future intervention tailoring. Partial least square path modeling followed by response-based unit segmentation was used to identify homogenous clusters in a diverse community sample of United States (US)-based TW (N = 1418; 46.2% White non-Hispanic). This approach examined associations between latent constructs of stigma (polyvictimization and discrimination), social and structural vulnerabilities (housing and food insecurity, unemployment, sex work, social support, and substance use), and mental health (post-traumatic stress and psychological distress). The final conceptual model defined the structural relationship between the variables of interest within stigma, vulnerability, and mental health. Six clusters were identified within this structural framework which suggests that racism, ethnicism, and geography may be related to mental health inequities among TW. Our findings around the impact of racism, ethnicism, and geography reflect the existing literature, which unfortunately shows us that little change has occurred in the last decade for TW of color in the Southern US; however, the strength of our evidence (related to sampling structure and sample size) and type of analyses (accounting for co-occurring predictors of health, i.e., stigma and complex vulnerabilities, reflecting that of real-world patients) is a novel and necessary addition to the literature. Findings suggest that health interventions designed to offset the negative effects of stigma must include anti-racist approaches with components to reduce or eliminate barriers to resources that contribute to social and structural vulnerabilities among TW. Herein we provide detailed recommendations to guide primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention efforts. This study demonstrated the importance of considering stigma and complex social and structural vulnerabilities during clinical care and design of mental health interventions for transgender women who are experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder and psychological distress. Specifically, interventions should take an anti-racist approach and would benefit from incorporating social support-building activities.

“Не такі, як всі”? Відносини транснаціональних сімей з рідним суспільством – між стигмою та діалогом

The study discusses whether and how Ukrainian and Moldovan migrant parents, some of whom had to leave their children behind in the care of other adults, are faced with a disapproving public discourse while also facing strong pressure both in their relationship with the public authorities and at the level of society, community, and family. Through this approach, we aim to answer the following question: Are Ukrainian and Moldavian transnational family members subjected to a process of stigmatization at the level of society and their immediate social environment? In this view, we develop a qualitative inquiry based on in-depth interviews with respondents from Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. Our main research objective is to examine the attitudes encountered by members of transnational families in society, their relations with the representatives of the authorities, as well as in their close social environment, community, and family. Specific research topics are explored, such as reasons for migration, trust in public authorities, local community, migrants’ community, trust in the host country’s state and society, the attitudes towards the most important key stakeholders involved in the migration process, as well as the support measures proposed by migrants and their families. The findings concerning the attitudes, level of trust, and proposals suggest the presence of a certain degree of stigmatization of parents from transnational families. Our study underlines the need for transnational transfer of good practices and real-life experiences, such as those of migrants, to not remain an empty imitation. This experience can only be transferred through dialogue, trust, and acceptance – which is not the case at the time of our research. Therefore, it is imperative to continue dialogue-based fieldwork with primary stakeholders, the families themselves, to deconstruct and prospectively avoid the structural construction of stigma.

‘Private sector’ Emiratisation: social stigma’s impact on continuance intentions

ABSTRACT This study examines the continuance intentions of the small number of nationals working in the United Arab Emirates’ ‘private sector’. The analytical framework is informed by job satisfaction measures alongside the Arabian Gulf Social Contract and Social Stigma constructs. A survey of 653 individuals was conducted and found that the nature of the job, pay and benefits and career development opportunities enhanced continuance intentions. However, perceived negative societal sentiment towards such jobs, vis-à-vis classic public sector jobs, reduced these intentions. Recommendations for further research to be conducted on the format of university mandated internship programmes and government-funded workplace training programmes are made, as both were found to help normalise private sector career paths. While this paper is the first to specifically canvas this cohort on their vocational intentions and sectoral preferences, its applied element was limited by being cross-sectional in nature.

Stigmatizing Monkeypox and COVID-19: A Comparative Framing Study of The Washington Post's Online News.

Stigma relating to health can result in a broad range of vulnerabilities and risks for patients and healthcare providers. The media play a role in people's understanding of health, and stigma is socially constructed through many communication channels, including media framing. Recent health issues affected by stigma include monkeypox and COVID-19. This research aimed to examine how The Washington Post (WP) framed the stigma around monkeypox and COVID-19. Guided by framing theory and stigma theory, online news coverage of monkeypox and COVID-19 was analyzed to understand the construction of social stigma through media frames. This research used qualitative content analysis to compare news framings in The Washington Post's online news coverage of monkeypox and COVID-19. Using endemic, reassurance, and sexual-transmission frames, The Washington Post predominantly defined Africa as the source of monkeypox outbreaks, indirectly labeled gays as a specific group more likely to be infected with monkeypox, and emphasized that there was no need to worry about the spread of the monkeypox virus. In its COVID-19 coverage, The Washington Post adopted endemic and panic frames to describe China as the source of the coronavirus and to construct an image of panic regarding the spread of the virus. These stigma discourses are essentially manifestations of racism, xenophobia, and sexism in public health issues. This research confirms that the media reinforces the stigma phenomenon in relation to health through framing and provides suggestions for the media to mitigate this issue from a framing perspective.

Stigma, Cladding, and Modular Housing: Resident Experiences of Dublin’s “Rapid Build” Scheme

ABSTRACT This paper focuses on how stigma is constructed and deconstructed through linguistic and aesthetic dimensions of “Rapid Build” housing in Dublin, Ireland. Through analyses of in-depth interviews and focus groups with residents and stakeholders, we explore how the nomenclature and brick-clad modular construction of the builds influenced residents’ experiences of stigma. Emphasizing the importance of the symbolic dimensions of housing materialities in mediating stigma, we argue resident experiences reflect the importance of understanding relationships between social housing construction and stigma power in three interrelated ways. First, the nomenclature and materiality of housing has a profound effect on social imaginaries of residents and their self-perceptions. Second, stigmatized groups are not devoid of agency within constructions of stigma, and are both actors in the embedding of, and resistance to, its production. Third, engaging with residents’ experiences is integral to better understanding, and resisting, the role of architecture in the “stigma machine”.

Abstract B068: Social determinants, racial discrimination, knowledge of HBV, and HBV-related stigma among patients with chronic hepatitis B

Abstract Background. HBV-related Stigma has a detrimental impact on health outcomes of people living with HBV. Studies show that consequences of stigma include admission to school or loss of employment, impediment to marriage/having children, and barriers to accessing health services. Few studies focused on factors associated with Stigma. We examined social determinants, racial discrimination, knowledge of HBV transmission, and HBV-associated stigma among Korean American chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients 18 years and older. Methods. As a part of ongoing project in the period of August 2021– April 2022, 291 CHB patients completed the entry survey either in Korean (n=238) or English (n=53) at two clinics in East Coast and California. The 6-question of hepatitis B quality of life (HBQOL) – stigma (n=6, alpha = .93) was administered. The construct of stigma was categorized as low/medium and high. Participants’ age, gender, marital status, employment, education, having family history of HBV infection, knowledge of HBV transmission, and racial discrimination were included. A descriptive and multivariable logistic regression analysis were used. Results. The average age of patients was 59.70 years (SD 10.34; range 24-84 years). 54% were males. The mean years of CHB diagnosis was 26.92 (SD 10.19; range 5 -52 years). The measure of racial discrimination (n=9, alpha = .87) was categorized into low, medium, and high. Multivariable logistic regression showed that gender and racial discrimination were associated with HBV-related stigma: Females had higher level of stigma than males (aOR=2.46, 95% CI: 1.42-4.27). Those with high level of racial discrimination were more likely to have stigma than those with low racial discrimination (aOR=2.27, 95% CI: 1.14-4.51). In addition, age was not linearly related to HBV stigma (see graph): Those younger than 45 years old reported the increased stigma, while those between 46 and 65 had the decreased stigma. Conclusion. This study indicates that racial discrimination and gender are important predictors of stigma in this CHB patient cohort. Future studies will identify other psychosocial factors to develop effective intervention programs to reduce stigma in consideration of younger age group. Citation Format: Hee-Soon Juon, Hie-Won Hann, SoHye Park, Ho Bae, Mimi Chang, Ann Klassen. Social determinants, racial discrimination, knowledge of HBV, and HBV-related stigma among patients with chronic hepatitis B [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 15th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2022 Sep 16-19; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr B068.

Reconceptualizing Stigmas in Aged Care: A Typology of Stigmatizing Discourses in the Aged-Care Context.

Stigmatizing discourses surrounding aged care is complex. The stigma associated with people working in aged care is often conflated with negative evaluations about older adults who receive care and/or the institutions and systems that provide these services. This lack of nuance hampers productive dialogue in gerontology required for making sense of the stigmas attached to entities and systems. We propose that an interdisciplinary approach drawing on gerontology, psychology, and linguistics would facilitate a greater understanding of the stigma of aged care. Specifically, a discourse approach underpinned by Stigma Theory and Systemic Functional Linguistics can clarify the different stigmatizing discourses associated with aged-care entities and systems, and inform priorities for interventions targeting each discourse category identified. APPRAISAL, a linguistics framework, was employed to analyze evaluative language in 660 submissions published in the Australian Royal Commission into Aged Care. Through applying predefined language-based criteria, we distinguished between multiple stigmatizing discourses that were interrelated but conceptually distinct in terms of attitude types and targets. Twelve categories of stigmatizing discourses derived from the linguistic analysis established a typology. This typology conceptualized different ways stigma can be meaningfully understood in the aged-care context. By employing this typology, 12 intervention priorities were also identified. This interdisciplinary approach enabled us to examine the diversity and complexity of the social construction of stigma in the public domain. We argue that understanding these linguistic patterns can assist with designing targeted aged-care interventions and policies.