9. LABELLING AND STIGMA (PART 2)

Question 1

1. What kind of social relations caused Christina to feel sad?

Answer 1

• the social exclusion of her and her son
• the stigma they faced
• the derogatory terms they were a victim of
• the limits to who they could socialise with

Question 2

2. Has Christina’s son been labelled?

Answer 2

• yes
• both socially (retard, slow)
• and medically/diagnostic label (down syndrome)
• people misuse the scientific label to justify their discriminatory actions

Question 3

3. What is illness a form of?

Answer 3

• it is a form of deviance
• this means that you are drifting away from the social centre
• you are drifting away from what is socially common

Question 4

4. What are the two types of deviance?

Answer 4

1. Primary Deviance
2. Secondary Deviance

Question 5

5. What is the definition of Primary Deviance?

Answer 5

• it represents the presence of a condition
• BUT it has not yet been officially diagnosed and labelled

Question 6

6. Why do sociologists not mainly focus on Primary Deviance?

Answer 6

• there are no social effects/responses
• this absence of an official label:
  - leads to no social reactions being activated

Question 7

7. What is the definition for Secondary Deviance?

Answer 7

• it represents the presence of a condition
• it also represents the presence of an official diagnosis
  (diagnostic/medical label)
• it also means that there is a social label presents
  (this only happens when the condition becomes known to
  people)

Question 8

8. What is a social label?

Answer 8

• it is the social reaction to the disease
• this happens after the people around the patient have
  observed that they are unwell

Question 9

9. Why is a label important socially?

Answer 9

• it can lead to stigma
• it can draw boundaries between the labelled and those
  who are labelled

Question 10

10. Why do people label with regards to Secondary Deviance?

Answer 10

• they want to understand what they encounter
• people label what they do not understand
• labelling gives people the framework for action
• they take action on accordance to the label

Question 11

11. What is Stigma?

Answer 11

• it is the practical consequence of labelling

Question 12

12. For which deviance is sociological understanding necessary?

Answer 12

• for Secondary Deviance

Question 13

13. What are the three types of stigma?

Answer 13

• enacted
• felt
• courtesy

Question 14

14. What is enacted stigma?
    List some examples.

Answer 14

• it is the actual discrimination

-EG: refused employment
: social isolation
: derogatory treatment due to the condition

Question 15

15. What is felt stigma?
    List some examples.

Answer 15

• it is the internalised negative feelings that one has towards themselves
• EG: feeling useless as a result of your condition

Question 16

16. What is Courtesy stigma?
    List some examples.

Answer 16

• this is felt by a friend, relative or associate of the patient
  with the condition
• it is stigma by association
• EG: a mom feeling guilty or ashamed that her child is sick

Question 17

17. What are the three situations of stigmatisation?

Answer 17

1. Discredited
2. Obtrusiveness
3. Discreditable

Question 18

18. What is discredited stigmatisation?
    Give an example.

Answer 18

• this is when other people know about the condition of the patient
• and then stigmatise them

EG: a person with Down Syndrome is denied employment because his employer is aware of his condition

Question 19

19. What is obtrusiveness?
    Give an example.

Answer 19

• this is when different environments draw out different degrees of stigmatisation

EG: a person on a wheel-chair has a harder time attending a party than they do going to a coffee shop

• they are more likely to be stigmatised at the party
• the party includes dancing and body movements
• this emphasises the difference between the disabled and the able bodied

Question 20

20. What is Discreditable Stigmatisation?
    Give an example.

Answer 20

• other people do not know that the patient is ill
• the sufferer is afraid that they will find out
• this prompts them to take action
• and adjust their behaviour in a specific way so that people do not find out

EG: a person with HIV may be afraid to disclose their health status
- they may spread the disease

Question 21

21. What are the three main ways that sufferers respond to stigma?

Answer 21

• they change their body
  (EG: dress fashionably/differently)
• they place emphasis on other parts of themselves
  (EG: focus on their strength and capabilities)
• they present their experience as inspiring
  (EG: they change their way of thinking and approach to
  their illness. They find meaning.)

Question 22

22. How have Christina and her child been stigmatised?

Answer 22

• Enacted (discrimination):
  - the child is refused social interaction by other children
• Felt (feelings):
  - the child feels disgraced and shame
  - they have internalised negative feelings
  - they do not go out because of this
• Courtesy (stigma by association):
  - the mother is refused social interaction by other
  people
  - the mother feels guilty for what her child is
  experiencing

Question 23

23. What situations of stigmatisation do Christina and her son find themselves in?

Answer 23

• Discredited:
  - other people are aware of the son’s disability
  - they stigmatise both Christina and her son
• Obtrusiveness:
  - Christina chooses to socialise only with other
  families with children that have Down Syndrome
  - this reduces stigma
• Discreditable:
  - Christina does not want others to know about her
  son’s condition
  - she does not want them to be even more
  stigmatised

Question 24

24. How does Christina respond to the stigma?

Answer 24

• she makes a change of the body
• she began dressing her son smartly
• to style him to be the opposite of all the negative labels
  about him