What is Stigma?

Stigma is all around us; often invisible, but deeply felt. It thrives in silence and shame. But what exactly is it?

One of the first scholars to define stigma was sociologist Erving Goffman (1963). He wrote:

In other words, stigma takes a personal trait, like race, gender, nationality, or a health decision, and turns it into a negative social label. It changes how others see us and how we see ourselves. It doesn’t just affect individuals; it shapes how entire communities and institutions operate.

Importantly, stigma is not something we’re born with; it cultivates through social interactions, cultural traditions, and political ideologies. What’s considered shameful in one society might be normal in another.

As scholars Crocker, Major, and Steele (1998) and Hebl & Dovidio (2005) argue, stigma is socially constructed and emerges through interaction. That’s why it can be challenged, changed; and eventually dismantled.