When an acquired disability was described in a nonessentialist way, people were more stigmatized through increased blame. This is because non-essentializing an acquired disability makes it seem less fundamentally different and potentially more controllable, increasing disability acquisition threat and blame.

State University of New York at Binghamton

- Essentializing an Acquired Disability
- Non-essentializing an Acquired Disability
- Implications for Reducing Disability Stigma

Essentialism's Impact on Acquired Disability Stigma

Bogart, K. R., Rosa, N. M., & Slepian, M. L. (2018). Born that way or became that way: Stigma toward congenital versus acquired disability. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 22(4), 594-612. https://doi.org/10.1177/1368430218757897 (Original work published 2019)

Reference: Stigma Towards Congenital Versus Acquired Disability

Essentializing an acquired disability reduced blame and subsequently reduced stigma. This is because essentializing makes the acquired disability seem more distinct and less likely to happen to the observer, thereby reducing blame and the need for self-protection.

Stigma when Essentializing an Acquired Disability

Stigma when Non-essentializing an Acquired Disability

For groups whose conditions might be perceived as controllable and blameworthy (e.g., people with acquired disability, chronic illness like HIV, LGBTQ people, obese people), increasing essentialism may actually reduce blame and therefore stigma.

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