title: "Discredited" Versus "Discreditable": Understanding How Shared and Unique Stigma Mechanisms Affect Psychological and Physical Health Disparities.
abstract: In his classic treatise, Goffman (1963) delineates between people who arediscredited-whose stigma is clearly known or visible-and people who arediscreditable-whose stigma is unknown and can be concealable. To what extent has research in the past 50 years advanced Goffman's original ideas regarding the impact of concealability on stigma management strategies and outcomes? In the current article, we outline a framework that articulates how stigma can "get under the skin" in order to lead to psychological and physical health disparities. Further, we consider when and to what degree concealability moderates these effects, creating divergent outcomes for thediscreditedanddiscreditable. Does the stigmatized individual assume his differentness is known about already or is evident on the spot, or does he assume it is neither known about by those present nor immediately perceivable by them? In the first case one deals with the plight of thediscredited, in the second with that of thediscreditable. This is an important difference.- Goffman (1963, p. 4).
authors.affiliation: College of the Holy Cross.
authors.forename: Stephenie R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Chaudoir
authors.forename: Valerie A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Earnshaw
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Andel