The Stigma Discourse-Value Framework

What is it about?

This paper examines the way that individuals talk about different types of stigma: race/ethnicity, disability, and weight. Based on interviews with people and past literature, we find similarities between how people think about race/ethnicity, disability, and weight. Specifically, all three types of stigma are viewed as: (1) deficits—something negative, (2) forms of diversity—something that is neither good nor bad, or (3) sources of pride—something positive. By using the same words to describe these different kinds of stigma, we can compare how people think and talk about different stigmas. We find that although all types of stigma that we examine (race/ethnicity, disability, and weight) are described as deficits, forms of diversity, and/or sources of pride. We also find that some forms of stigma, like weight, are described using more negative terms than other forms of stigma, like race/ethnicity.

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