Biddle and Hamermesh (1998) had participants rate lawyers based on attractiveness and competency and found that those with physical disabilities were rated lower than their counterparts. Overall findings revealed that people who are rated more attractive are often seen as more intelligent, interesting, outgoing, sociable, and competent compared to those that are viewed as less attractive.

Biddle and Hamermesh  Effect of Attractiveness

Aesthetic-Sexual Aversion refers to the societal opinion on if a person is “visually pleasing” or not.

Gettysburg College

People with Visible and Invisible disabilities face differerent stigmas within the employment space that impact ability to obtain, maintain, and perform in jobs due to these stigmas. These stigmas vary across disabilities and personal experiences and impact each employee differently within the employment space, however research has found various overlaps across diagnoses and experiences. 

Employment and Stigma around Visible and Invisible Disabilities

Stigmas specific to those with visible disabilities
- spread phenomenon
- aesthetic-sexual aversion

Visible Disabilities and Employment Stigma

Aesthetic-Sexual Aversion

Spread Phenomenon refers to when people without disabilities assume that a PWD also has a lower IQ (Wright, 1983)

Spread Phenomenon

People with invisible disabilities often feel that there is a challenge to prove they have a disability. It is suggested that individuals need to defend their diagnoses and prove that it exists. 

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