COVID-19-related stigma profiles and risk factors among people who are at high risk of contagion

Abstract

Rationale COVID-19 is likely to be stigmatized. The people of Hubei province perceived courtesy and affiliate stigma due to the geographic linkage to COVID-19. Perceived courtesy stigma refers to the perception of stigma of people who are associated with COVID-19 (e.g., the geographic linkage). Affiliate stigma is the internalization and psychological responses of perceived courtesy stigma among the associates. Objective The current study aims to reveal different patterns of perceived courtesy and affiliate stigma among people who are at high risk of contagion of COVID-19, and to examine the possible risk factors. Method A sample including 2813 adults who located in Hubei Province, China (female: n = 2,184, 77.64%; male: n = 629, 22.36%; mean age = 37.85 years, SD = 6.61 years, range = 18–63 years) were employed in the current study, using latent profile analysis for searching stigma profiles. Results Three profiles of stigma were found: the “Denier” (35.98%), “Confused moderate” (48.13%) and “Perceiver” (15.89%) displaying the low, moderate and high level of perceived courtesy and affiliate stigma, respectively. Multinomial logistic regression analyses revealed that generally people with a high level of education, perceived threats, anxiety symptoms, and familiarity with quarantined cases have a high likelihood to be distributed into the “Perceiver”. Discussion and Conclusions Our findings highlight the issues of COVID-19-related stigma and provide evidence for launching effective health actions to promote a cohesive society and culture of health. The media can transmit scientific knowledge, promote positive interactions and social cohesion between the stigmatized group and the dominant group, and create spaces for stories that nurture group identification among the implicated people. Future studies should use more representative sample and improve the measures.

Analyzing Socioeconomic Factors and Health Disparity of COVID-19 Spatiotemporal Spread Patterns at Neighborhood Levels in San Diego County

“…The first hidden challenge is the stigma of COVID-19. Evidence suggests that COVID-19 causes significant psychological distress in the forms of anxiety, depression, and fear of uncertainty among individuals affected by COVID-19 as well as their family members and healthcare workers (Duan, Bu, and Chen 2020; Guo et al, 2020; Peprah and Gyasi 2020). Stigma of having COVID-19 is a major source of distress and a key challenge that must be overcome to implement an effective public health response.…”

“…Hence, there has been an increasing need to implement stigma-mitigation strategies and interventions. First, community engagement strategies might be effective in facilitating community residents’ participation in COVID-19 programs and enhancing social cohesion to combat stigma (Duan, Bu, and Chen 2020; Logie and Turan 2020). Second, as lack of knowledge or misinformation is often the cause of fear and stigma, implementing educational efforts to increase knowledge is important.…”

“…Media can be an effective method to reduce stigma. Providing up-to-date knowledge and debunking myths and misperceptions related to COVID-19 via use of media interventions can reduce stigma as well as promote health seeking behaviors such as COVID-19 testing in the public (Duan, Bu, and Chen 2020; Earnshaw et al 2020). Such messages need to be provided in a culturally appropriate manner, with consideration to the languages and characteristics of stigmatized groups or communities (Peprah and Gyasi 2020).…”

Factors Associated with Serious Psychological Distress during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan

“…For example, COVID-19-related stigma, which was an important risk factor for SPD among young women, was collected via a single-item questionnaire we developed, resulting in a lack of detailed stigma profiles. 42 However, our survey used the items (K-6 scale), the reliability and validity of which have been tested and verified in prior studies. 31,43 Third, given that our data were collected using an internet-based survey, respondents may be different in meaningful ways than those who were not recruited.…”

Proposal of a scale for COVID-19 stigma-discrimination toward health workers

“… 13 It is crucial to have an instrument that measures stigma-discrimination toward health professionals during the COVID-19 epidemic as negative attitudes can affect healthcare-seeking and increase COVID-19 collateral damage. 14 It also opens the possibility of stigma-discrimination persisting among professionals who work in areas with people with different types of infections. Stigma-discrimination is a stressor with a negative impact on the health of the victims.…”