Weight stigma is associated with negative health outcomes across the BMI continuum. However, few studies have examined weight discrimination targeting people with low body weights. This investigation explored the presence of anti-thin bias, defined as the belief that people with low BMIs have undesirable personality characteristics. Participants were randomly assigned to read one of six vignettes about women that differed by race (White and Black) and weight status (slightly underweight, normal weight, and slightly overweight). Negative personality characteristics were more likely to be ascribed to both underweight and overweight women, compared with normal weight women. Furthermore, participants were significantly more likely to attribute underweight women’s body weight to biological factors. Results indicate that underweight women might be more stigmatized for their body weight than normal weight women. Weight bias literature should continue to research the impact of weight discrimination for individuals across the BMI spectrum.

Although findings from a pilot study indicate that caregivers of persons with dementia (PwD) report feeling stigmatized (Burgener, 2007; Burgener & Buckwalter, 2010), little research has been conducted on the effects of perceived stigma on fostering depressive symptoms among caregivers of PwD. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between perceived stigma and depressive symptoms among caregivers of PwD. The Modified Labeling Theory (MLT) developed by Link et. al. (1987; 1989) served as the organizing framework. The design of this study was a mixed methods approach including a descriptive longitudinal design with a qualitative interview. Caregivers of PwD (n=51) were interviewed regarding ethnic background, geographic location (rural and urban), knowledge of dementia, perceived stigma, depressive symptoms, and were asked to rate the extent of PwD's behavioral symptoms, while PwD (n=47) were assessed on their mental ability and disease stage. Caregivers were also asked to share their perceptions of stigma and mood change once their family members were diagnosed. Pearson product-moment correlations and a linear mixed model analysis determined the relationship between variables; for qualitative analysis, a directed approach to content analysis was applied. Findings indicated that caregivers' perceptions of stigma were significantly associated with depressive symptoms, both at baseline (r = 0.357, p = 0.0175) and over 18 months (p = 0.0045). Results also indicated that caregivers of PwD felt more depressed when they perceived additional stigma (p = 0.0019), regardless of caregiver ethnicity/race and caregivers' reactions in response to PwD memory and behavior problems. Moreover, perceived stigma minimally mediated the effect between caregivers' reactions toward the PwD's memory and behavior problems and depressive symptoms (14.4% decrease in the coefficient). Analysis of the qualitative data provided preliminary validation of the MLT and an in-depth understanding of caregivers' mood change since the diagnosis of their family member. Together our findings suggest that depressive symptoms among caregivers of PwD in response to the stresses of perceived stigma underscore the seriousness of this social problem. There is a need for effective interventions to combat caregivers' perceived stigma in order to enhance their psychological well-being.

The present study investigated perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs toward individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) of varying weight. The primary aim was to examine the associations between eating disorder symptom level and stigma toward eating disorders, perceptions of acceptability/desirability of AN, and perceptions of severity of AN. The second aim was to investigate the impact of body weight on males’ and females’ perceptions and attitudes toward AN, specifically on their stigma toward eating disorders, perception of the severity of AN, and perception of acceptability or desirability of AN behaviors and characteristics. Two-hundred fifty-seven university students (187 females, 70 males, mean age = 22.5, SD = 6.59) in undergraduate courses participated in the online study, and were randomly assigned to view one of three underweight female figures (extremely thin, moderately thin, and mildly thin). Participants read a vignette describing an individual meeting full diagnostic criteria for anorexia and completed measures assessing stigma toward individuals with AN and eating disorder symptomatology. Regarding the first aim, it was hypothesized that an inverse relationship would emerge between eating disorder pathology in participants and stigmatizing attitudes and beliefs. In support of the hypothesis, findings revealed that increased acceptability of AN and greater perceptions of AN severity were associated with higher levels of eating disorder symptoms. In contrast to the hypothesis, current self-reported eating disorder symptoms were not significantly associated with lower levels of eating disorder stigma. It was also hypothesized that female participants would perceive AN as more positive and acceptable, and as less severe than male participants. The hypothesis was partially supported in that females indicated less stigma toward EDs and reported perceiving AN to be more serious than males. Greater acceptability was not more common among women. In regard to the second aim, there was no significant group differences found in eating disorder stigma, perceived acceptance of AN, and perceived severity of AN according to weight conditions, which was contrary to expectations. Implications of the study are discussed in terms of future research.

In Australia the homeless population has become more diverse over the last 20 years with more young people, women and families experiencing homelessness. It is also evident that there is considerable variation in the length of time people remain homeless. How these changes relate to movements into and out of the homeless population is not well understood. This research asks: 'Is there a connection between how people become homeless, how long they remain homeless and how they 'get out' of homelessness?' A review of the literature identified two gaps directly relevant to the issue of movement in and out of homelessness. First, it is not well understood why people experience homelessness for different lengths of time when they face similar structural conditions. Second, the prevalence of substance use and mental illness reported in the homeless population has led some to conclude these factors cause homelessness. However, researchers have generally been unclear about whether such problems precede or are a consequence of homelessness. In addition, research has generally presumed a relationship between the amount of time a person is homeless and patterns of behavioural and cognitive adaptation to a homeless way of life. Yet recent research suggests that people's biographies play a significant role in the duration of homelessness. How these different findings relate to each other remains unclear. This thesis investigates these issues through a longitudinal study of homeless households. Data was gathered in two rounds of semi-structured interviews. In the first round 103 interviews were conducted. Approximately one year later 79 of these households were re-interviewed. The process of, and connections between becoming, being and exiting the homeless pathway are analysed using the 'pathways' concept. While on these pathways homeless people actively produce and reproduce social structures including both embracing and rejecting the stigma and subculture associated with homelessness. This complex world of homelessness is then analysed by extending the pathways concept by distinguishing five ideal type pathways based on the main reason for becoming homeless. They are a mental health pathway, a domestic violence pathway, a substance use pathway, a housing crisis pathway and a youth pathway. The research indicates that people on each pathway respond to the experience of homelessness differently and this has implications for the amount of time they spend in the homeless population. People on the substance use and youth pathways commonly describe themselves as 'homeless', focus on the 'here and now', use the welfare service system, are very mobile, and over time, many start to sleep rough. Their embrace of the homeless subculture commonly 'locks' them into the homeless population for long periods of time. In contrast people on the domestic violence and housing crisis pathways generally do not identify themselves as homeless and resist involvement with other homeless people. These homeless careers tend to be shorter. Then there are those who enter homelessness on the mental health pathway. They were frequently exploited in the early stages of their homeless careers and most sought to avoid exploitation by isolating themselves which then increased their marginalisation. These were the longest homeless careers. The use of the pathways concept also helps to understand how the circumstances of homeless people can change while they are homeless. The research found that some homeless people changed pathways. In particular the study found that two thirds of the people who reported substance use problems developed these problems after they became homeless. Most of these people entered the homeless population on the youth pathway. The research also found that three quarters of the people with mental health issues developed these issues after they became homeless, and that for some this was also connected to drug use. Overcoming homelessness is never easy and individuals manage the process in different ways. Again the pathways concept proved useful to understanding how homeless people accomplished this. The findings show that people travelling the different pathways require different levels and types of assistance to resolve their homelessness. The research concludes that the process of re-integration can take a long time but, given the right social and economic support, every homeless career can end.

This thesis explored gay male carers’ experience of caring for their partner, brother or friend who had HIV/AIDS. Through using phenomenological methodology (van Manen, 1990), the day-to-day caring experiences were uncovered. The data gathered were then analysed through a nursing ‘lens’, with the concept of stigma as an anchoring point. The dual stigmas of homophobia and AIDS phobia impacted on the daily lives of these men as they cared for their loved one. The research identified six themes. These were: 1) the relationship; 2) coping with HIV and AIDS; 3) the corporal impact of HIV/AIDS; 4) experiences of carers including the absence of others; 5) living daily with the virus: Demands of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA); and 6) saying goodbye, but wanting to keep the memory alive. The caring these men undertook, for which they were frequently unprepared, was intensive and complex, but because of their commitment and love they battled on. Because of a sense of shame associated with AIDS phobia on the part of the PLWHA, the carer often had to undertake this care in isolation, without support from family, friends or home health care agencies. The carers struggled with not only the demands of day-to-day care, but also with non-acceptance from family, both of the nature of the relationship with their partner and of their homosexuality. Family members were forced, often with great difficulty, to acknowledge the close commitment the men had to each other. Recognition that one had a terminal disease, HIV/AIDS was also required. The fear of potential transmission was high among carers, friends and family members. Notably, there was an absence of blame on the part of the carer towards his partner for contracting HIV/AIDS. The physical decline and marking of the body further stigmatised the PLWHA, which added to carers’ burdens. They endeavoured to minimise the physical decline in their partner, so he could continue to pass as healthy, and attempted to make the day-to-day living as normal as possible. The methods of combating weight loss and opportunistic infections meant frequent medical appointments, complex intensive medical procedures and help with personal care, which was undertaken at home largely without support from health care staff. Carers frequently struggled also with their partner’s denial of being ill. One strategy all carers used was to escape with their partners from their everyday life in Melbourne and attempt metaphorically to leave the HIV/AIDS behind; this was a time when they could rekindle their life together as it was before HIV/AIDS came into their lives. Some carers chose to holiday without their partner, to give themselves a break from the day-to-day caring, while others planned and took holidays with their partner. The decline of the health in the PLWHA meant that family members had to recognise and accept both the nature of the relationship and the presence of the disease. This recognition and acceptance often came only when the partner was very ill, even at the point of dying. Carers and their partners discussed the potential use of euthanasia, as a means of ending the final phase of life with some dignity. One carer and his partner used euthanasia, despite its illegal status. The main concern for all carers was providing comfort and a reduction in the pain associated with HIV/AIDS for the partner. The widespread grief associated with HIV/AIDS was evident amongst these carers. All had known other gay men who had died, some carers own partner had died, or was about to die. There was an overwhelming sense of grief, which at times was repressed as a means of coping day-to-day. All carers felt it was important and necessary to remember those lost to HIV/AIDS through the various public memorials, as they did not want their partner to be just another faceless person lost to this disease. This phenomenological study of carers’ experience highlights the need for health care workers to be aware of the differing strategies that gay men use to cope with HIV/AIDS. While it may seem that the carers are coping with care of their partner, the outer façade is not always an accurate portrayal of the true situation. Health care workers should enquire as to the assistance these carers need from health care services in order to continue to care for their loved one. Such assistance can be the simple recognition of the partner and acceptance of them as part of the PLWHA’s network; this inclusion and acceptance is half the battle.

<p> </p><p>I vår studie har vi valt att undersöka om manliga missbrukare, som genomför en behandling på en institution i Mellansverige, anser att de blir stämplade och vilka de anser att det är som utför den. Om det är nära och kära, myndigheter och/eller dem själva. Vi vill belysa vilka känslor och tankar de intervjuade personerna har kring ämnet stämpling. Vi har sett på faktorer som, hur de skulle definiera begreppet missbrukare och hur de är i relation till det begreppet. Vi har även undersökt om de har eller har haft några strategier för att undanhålla och/eller mörka sitt missbruk.</p><p> </p><p>Vi valde att göra tematiskt strukturerade intervjuer där vi utgick från teman. Utifrån dessa utförde vi sedan en hermeneutisk tolkning och analys av de empiriska data vi fick fram.</p><p> </p><p>Resultaten visar på att alla respondenter känner sig stämplade på ett eller flera sätt. Alla ser sig själva som missbrukare, vilket innebär att alla stämplar sig själva. Vad det gäller stämpling från nära och kära är det endast hälften av respondenterna som anser sig vara stämplade därifrån och att denna stämpling är den mest känslomässigt jobbiga. Majoriteten anser sig även bli stämplade av myndigheter, men denna stämpling upplevs inte lika känslomässigt jobbig. Alla respondenter uppger sig använda olika strategier för att undanhålla och mörka sitt missbruk för omgivningen. Strategierna kan även användas för att berättiga missbruket för dem själva, vilket är en typ av självstämpling. De flesta av de resultat vi kommit fram till utifrån tolkningarna av de empiriska data vi fått fram, stämmer överrens med vår förförståelse vi hade innan denna undersökning inleddes.</p>

<p>Denna uppsats handlar om arbetshandikappkodning som är det system arbetsförmedlingen använder sig av för att möjliggöra vissa arbetsmarknadspolitiska åtgärder för personer med nedsatt arbetsförmåga. Uppsatsens syfte var att synliggöra hur denna kodning inverkat på individens liv på väg till arbete, men också hur kodningen har påverkat övriga livet, positivt eller negativt. För att få svar på våra frågor genomförde vi fem temabaserade intervjuer. Respondenterna var alla män mellan 30 och 50 år och alla hade en eller fler koder. Som underlag för analysarbetet använde vi oss av Erving Goffmans stigmateori. Studien visade att arbetshandikappkodningen har inverkat på individens väg till arbete på så sätt att det har lett till ett arbete anpassat efter personernas förmåga. Kodningen upplevdes dock som ett hinder att göra sig gällande på den öppna arbetsmarknaden. När det gäller den andra frågeställningen kunde vi märka en viss påverkan på det övriga livet. Däremot kunde vi inte se om denna inverkan berodde på kodningen i sig eller det bakomliggande funktionshindret </p>

<p>Studien grundar sig på kvalitativa intervjuer med åtta kvinnliga informanter. Syfte med studien är att undersöka hur en grupp nyblivna mödrar eller gravida, själva beskriver egna och andras krav på att återgå till den ursprungliga kroppsformen eller det "ideal" som basuneras ut genom olika budskap via media, efter sina graviditeter.diskursen om kvinnokroppens ideal ...</p><p> </p>

<p><strong> </strong></p><p>Syfte med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur romer upplever sin integration i Malmö. Vi har använt oss av den kvalitativa metoden då vi har genomfört sammanlagt åtta intervjuer med män och kvinnor med romsk bakgrund. Vi har utgått från två sociologiska teorier: Pierre Bourdieus två begrepp, <em>habitus</em> och <em>kapital och</em> Erving Goffmans teori om <em>stigma</em> samt att arbetet präglas genomgående av begreppet <em>integration. </em>Dessa teorier anser vi vara relevanta för vårt valda ämne där habitus och de olika kapitalen har som syfte att förklara hur våra intervjupersoner betraktar sin integration i Malmö genom de olika möjligheter de har. När personer upplever svårigheter med integration kan detta på olika nivåer associeras till Goffmans teori som handlar om stigmatisering. Begreppet integration används i syfte för att jämföra vad integrationsbegreppet i sig innefattar och intervjupersoners egna åsikter om vad begreppets innebörd.</p><p>Frågeställningar vi har utgått från är <em>Vad innebär integration för våra intervjupersoner? </em>samt <em>Hur upplever våra intervjupersoner att de är integrerade i Malmö?</em></p><p>Genom våra intervjupersoners åsikter har det framkommit att integration för dem är en avgörande process för deras tillvaro i Malmö. Intervjupersoners medvetenhet om vilka möjligheter som krävs för att bli en del en av gemenskapen överensstämmer med vad begreppet integration egentligen innebär. Tidigare studier visar att romer i stor utsträckning har varit i utanförskap på arbetsmarknaden, skolan och i bostadsfrågan. Det framkommer även att romer har uppfattats som <em>främlingar</em> samt att de har varit utsatta för diskriminering. Resultatet av denna studie skiljer sig från tidigare studier i den mån att det visade sig att de flesta av våra intervjupersoner känner sig integrerade i Malmö. Dock framkommer det att somliga av våra intervjupersoner är ambivalenta när det gäller deras upplevelse av integration p.g.a. bemötelsen de får av andra samhällsmedborgare. Deras gemensamma upplevelse av att vara integrerade förklaras genom deras långa vistelse i Malmö. Även om våra intervjupersoner tillhör en minoritetsgrupp i Sverige, med samma rättigheter och skyldigheter som alla andra samhällsmedborgare, framkommer det i vårt resultat att de inte känner sig socialt accepterade av andra människor i samhället p.g.a. de fördomar allmänheten har om romer.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D. (Community Psychiatric Nursing))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.