Does Stigmatization Have Any Silver Lining? Explore!

November 24, 2015 Vicent Nemeyimana No Comments Life and Health, Thoughts and Opinions

Truly, it is going to look so unusual but stigmatization in some situations may do well than harm. Robert Kagan and Jerome (1993) cited that the segregation of smokers portrayed a great message that, in effect, discouraged people from taking on the habit. It is not a surprise that the public health approach in the 90s included tough restrictions and marking of public smoking as unwanted behavior. What happened? Some fell into more depression of being marked as unwanted and others had to quit.

However, other researchers (for example, Omosanya et al, 2014; Corrigan and Watson, 2002; Turan et al., 2018) have, on the hand, showed that stigmatization and sidelining of people with behaviors commonly seen as unacceptable may do more harm than good. While this is true, i do not think it entirely makes sense for even when a behavior is termed as harmful in scientific books and those advocating for health. In case the behavior is harmful to the practitioners themselves and others, what kind of eyes do you expect us to use while looking at people of such behaviors? Of course, segregating eyes!

Besides, most studies, including the ones I quoted above are for scenarios regarded by most societies as normal or unavoidable, for example, HIV and mental illnesses!

Considering the above scenario, some stigmatization maybe helpful though may not be formally legalized or get supported by policy. This is because policy-recognized stigma may be too much or go out of hand. Actually, Bayer (2008) writes, “It is precisely because policy-induced stigma imposes burdens that those responsible for public health bear a special responsibility to provide case-appropriate assistance that may enhance the prospect of behavioral change”. However, by mere marking some behaviors as harmful and not good for people, stigmatization is implied and acceptable!

Take an example: Homosexuality is regarded by most societies as unacceptable and abnormal. This is one way of saying, homosexuals should be stigmatized. This applies to any behavior that is publicly marked as bad; theft, drunkenness, prostitution, and others. In all these, stigmatization is inevitable!

Way forward:

While stigmatization is bad in almost all situations, we cannot pretend that, directly or indirectly, it is not responsible for positive changes among us concerning many unacceptable behaviors in the community. Yeah, I agree with the government and public health law on the issue of not enforcing stigmatization as a tool because it (stigma) would shoot out of hand and do more harm than good, but a little regulated sidelining of people with harmful behaviors is really welcome.

Read this: The Right to Homosexuality is an Illusion

No, look into Bayer’s conclusion: there may be circumstances when public health efforts that unavoidably or even intentionally stigmatize are morally defensible. Whether it would be wise to do so in a particular case should be a matter of debate, one that should be framed by evidence and the utilitarian ethics that underpin the mission of public health.

I agree. And indeed, this should be case-sensitive. Every case or individual suffering or performing the undesirable behavior should be stigmatized or side-lined based on that individual’s own circumstances. For example, a sex worker who was forced into it by harsh conditions or slavery should be spared. On the other hand, a sex worker (actually, a prostitute) who is doing it just for the sake of it or fun might need to be sidelined to an extent, a way of saying, come on, you can really do better!

Summary

Stigmatization, segregation, sidelining or some kind of bad remarking about certain behaviors that are harmful to one’s health and that of the public is really welcome. Also, it can create havoc if stigmatization is recognized as a helpful tool in public health interventions; people must practice it ‘illegally’ so it remains under control.

The questions that remain are: Which behaviors are wrong or harmful so they can be discriminated? And on what basis should we judge that behavior A or B is unacceptable? And what level of stigmatization or sidelining is not harmful? Maybe these are some of the haunting questions that make us avoid stigmatization altogether.

What do you think?