stigmatization

Background. Emotional adversities and social context may influence romantic relationships and psychological well-being, especially within the LGBTQ+ community. However, the present study does not directly measure stigmatization. Aim. The study aimed to evaluate the interplay between attachment styles, relationship satisfaction, and psychological well-being, while considering the distinctions between LGBTQ+ individuals and their heterosexual counterparts. Methods. A quantitative correlational methodology was employed for the study, utilizing a stratified sample of 100 participants: 40 LGBTQ+ individuals and 60 heterosexuals. Standardized instruments were utilized to assess attachment styles, relationship satisfaction, and psychological well-being (ECR-S, RSI, PWB). Statistical processing included MANOVA, correlation and regression analysis. Results. The findings revealed significant disparities in the distribution of attachment styles between groups. The LGBTQ+ group showed higher rates of anxious attachment (35% vs. 23%; p=0.046) compared to the heterosexual group. Secure attachment was positively correlated with both relationship satisfaction (r=0.72) and well-being (r=0.65), whereas avoidant and anxious-avoidant styles exerted a detrimental effect on these indicators. Discussion. The obtained results underscore the critical importance of secure attachment in fostering emotional stability and harmony within relationships. This is kept but moved slightly later and presented as a cautious interpretation, not a finding. Conclusion. The study emphasizes the significance of cultivating a secure attachment style by ensuring emotional safety and adaptive strategies in relationships. The findings contribute to the enhancement of psychological support programs aimed at enhancing relationship quality and well-being across diverse social groups.

Abstract We investigated public beliefs about the extent to which mental disorders are perceived to be part of the true self, that is, the set of traits and behaviors that compose one’s core character. We conducted three quantitative vignette-based studies (total n = 601) in UK general public samples, considering seven disorders (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anorexia nervosa, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)). For each disorder, participants rated how much the disorder reflects the vignette character’s true self, along with perceived causes of the disorders (studies 1 and 2), perceived severity, age of onset, duration, probability of recovery (study 2), and stigmatization (study 3). Disorders differed sharply in the extent to which they were judged to be part of the true self: ADHD, ASD, and OCD received higher true self ratings than major depressive disorder, anorexia nervosa, and schizophrenia, with bipolar disorder intermediate. A disorder was rated more ‘true self’ when it was: perceived as more “biologically” caused; less “psychologically” caused; less severe; and recovery was perceived as less likely. Although the extent of stigmatization also varied across disorders, true self ratings did not predict stigmatization. Our results show that the public thinks about different mental disorders in quite different ways, suggesting that different disorders should not be lumped together when considering attitudes and their consequences.

Gender inequality in higher education remains a concern in rural Pakistan, where women’s education opportunities are shaped by social expectations concerning mobility, family responsibilities, and appropriate gender roles. This study examined how social stigmatization associated with staying at home and performing domestic roles is experienced by rural females and how public and self-stigma relate to their participation in higher education. A qualitative descriptive phenomenological design was employed. Data were collected by semi-structured interviews from 30 participants in rural Pakistan, including eight female students and nine female family members, and 13 male family and community members. Thematic analysis identified four interrelated themes: restricted mobility and chaperonage, conditional educational and career aspirations, internalized domestic identity, and protectionist concerns surrounding coeducation. The findings indicate that female education was generally valued, but support was often conditional on family approval, proximity to home, supervision, and conformity with socially accepted roles as daughters, wives, and mothers. Public stigma was reflected in shared expectations that restricted women’s mobility, educational location, and career choices. While self-stigma through self-censorship became apparent when some female students anticipated these judgments and adjusted their educational aspirations accordingly. These findings suggest that educational inequality in the setting examined is associated not only with material and institutional barriers but also with social judgments and their internalization. By applying a stigma perspective, the study provides a context-specific account of how public stigma, self-stigma, and self-censorship may interact with gendered expectations to narrow higher education opportunities for rural females.

The exclusion and bullying targeting minority groups--including sexual minorities, individuals with disabilities, and orphans--have become observable social phenomena in Chinese campus settings. This review examines, from a social psychological perspective, how the herd effect operates within physical campus environments to trigger, amplify, and consolidate prejudice and discrimination held by majority groups toward minority students. Adopting a literature review methodology, this paper synthesizes Asch's conformity experiments, behaviorist theory, Freudian individual unconscious, Jungian collective unconscious, and empirical studies on school bullying and peer conformity published over the past two decades. The central argument proposes a "three-tiered ladder" through which the herd effect function: first, linguistic stigmatization transforms neutral identity labels such as "gay" and" Tang"(a colloquial abbreviation for Down Syndrome in Chinese, used similarly to offensive slurs like "mong" in English) into tools of humiliation; second, social isolation dismantles the victim's support network; and third, peer pressure escalates into physical violence and property damage. This mechanism is significantly amplified within the Chinese collectivist educational context, where the physical inseparability of fixed-class systems extends conformity pressure from temporary behavior into chronic survival anxiety.

Stigmatisation can undermine participation, belonging and well-being in higher education. This study examined how students represent stigmatisation and connect it to diversity, inclusion and perceived institutional responsibility. Grounded in social representations theory, it used a cross-sectional qualitative textual design. A non-probabilistic snowball sample of 519 students from one Spanish university completed an online free-association task based on the Grid Elaboration Method, providing four words and brief explanations in response to “stigmatisation”. Spanish-language responses were analysed in IRaMuTeQ using similarity analysis and descending hierarchical cluster analysis (Reinert method). Seven classes formed two broader branches. The first constructed stigmatisation as categorisation and discrimination affecting LGBTQ+ people, migrants, and people with mental health conditions or functional diversity, with perceived consequences including emotional suffering and academic harm. The second connected stigmatisation to unmet support needs, rigid assessment practices and insufficient institutional responsiveness. By mapping spontaneous associations across multiple forms of difference, the study shows how social marking, psychosocial and educational consequences, and perceived institutional responsibility are organised within a shared representational field. The findings suggest that responses to stigmatisation may benefit from combining awareness-raising with attention to support provision, pedagogical and assessment practices, staff preparation, and communication about inclusion initiatives.

انگ‌زنی می‌تواند مشارکت، تعلق و بهزیستی را در آموزش عالی تضعیف کند. این مطالعه بررسی کرد که دانشجویان چگونه انگ‌زنی را بازنمایی می‌کنند و آن را به تنوع، شمول و مسئولیت نهادی ادراک‌شده مرتبط می‌سازند. این پژوهش مبتنی بر نظریه بازنمایی‌های اجتماعی و با طراحی کیفی متنی مقطعی انجام شد. نمونه‌گیری غیرتصادفی گلوله‌برفی شامل ۵۱۹ دانشجو از یک دانشگاه اسپانیایی بود که یک تکلیف تداعی آزاد آنلاین مبتنی بر روش Grid Elaboration را تکمیل کردند و در پاسخ به «انگ‌زنی» چهار واژه و توضیحات کوتاهی ارائه دادند. پاسخ‌های به زبان اسپانیایی با استفاده از نرم‌افزار IRaMuTeQ و از طریق تحلیل شباهت و تحلیل خوشه‌ای سلسله‌مراتبی نزولی (روش Reinert) تحلیل شد. هفت طبقه دو شاخه کلی را شکل دادند. شاخه اول، انگ‌زنی را به‌عنوان دسته‌بندی و تبعیض علیه افراد LGBTQ+، مهاجران و افراد دارای شرایط سلامت روان یا تنوع عملکردی بازنمایی کرد که پیامدهای ادراک‌شده آن شامل رنج عاطفی و آسیب تحصیلی بود. شاخه دوم، انگ‌زنی را به نیازهای حمایتی برآورده‌نشده، شیوه‌های ارزیابی سخت‌گیرانه و پاسخ‌گویی ناکافی نهادی مرتبط دانست. با ترسیم تداعی‌های خودجوش در زمینه اشکال مختلف تفاوت، این مطالعه نشان می‌دهد که نشانه‌گذاری اجتماعی، پیامدهای روانی‌اجتماعی و آموزشی و مسئولیت نهادی ادراک‌شده چگونه در یک میدان بازنمایی مشترک سازمان می‌یابند. یافته‌ها حاکی از آن است که پاسخ به انگ‌زنی ممکن است از ترکیب آگاهی‌بخشی با توجه به ارائه حمایت، شیوه‌های آموزشی و ارزیابی، آمادگی کارکنان و اطلاع‌رسانی درباره ابتکارات شمول سود ببرد.