Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Using Meisenbach's Typology To Classify Stigma Management Strategies And Their Effects, Lia Marjorie Lombino, Jamie Eden Shapiro

EURēCA: Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement

Jamie Shapiro & Lia Lombino

There are certain traits people possess that lead to stigmatization and mistreatment by others. A stigma is traditionally defined as an identity discrediting mark on someone of questionable moral status (Goffman, 1963). Despite extensive research on stigma, there is an absence of research that studies the role of communication in stigma and the impact of utilizing different communicative strategies when managing stigma. The purpose of the current study is to validate Meisenbach’s (2010) typology of stigma management communication, which is based on accepting or challenging personal and private stigma. Meisenbach proposes four different stigma management …