About this Research Topic
Judith Butler compellingly argued in favor of fluid gender identity, which, when interpreted, indicates the eternal human struggle for adjusting the self around the dominant norms. A little slip results in being labeled as the (stigmatized) ‘other’. Individuals tend to cope continuously with such norms and sometimes modify and conceal their identities. Thus, identity is not often limited to a psycho-social concept but rather evolves into a political concept, which acquires such political connotation precisely through the decisions of the powerful few. Concealment of identity, in present state of literature, needs more exploration and we offer to highlight the same in this Research Topic.
Erving Goffman sensitized us to stigma as disgraceful and unacceptable characteristic (socially held or self-imposed) of an individual which demeans her social position. Stigma results in public avoidance, aversion, devaluation, discrimination, identity threat, and dehumanization and other deleterious consequences for the individual. Though the bulk of extant literature deals with stigmatization, much more attention still needs to be given to the research on stigmatized identity and identity concealment. The pathway to concealment of identity is little understood. How one imbibes such identity and how one may transcend it needs to be comprehended. With a revamped era of “redefined” marginalized self, it is very intriguing to delve deeper into stigmatized identity concealment research.
We invite scholars from multiple disciplines to contribute Original Research explore areas of the topics related to stigma and identity concealment and contribute to, but are not limited to, the following:
1) Stigmatized identity in sexually marginalized individuals
2) Systematic Literature review of the topical issues
3) Methods (Quantitative and Qualitative) in stigma research
4) Concealable and un-concealable stigmatized occupational identity
5) Diversified concealable stigmatized identity and well-being
6) Diversified un-concealable stigmatized identity and well-being
7) Identity stigma and concealment in the material world
8) Institutional implications with special reference to the Global South
On our end, we welcome empirical and conceptual pieces, especially with a rich, novel, and diversified data sources, contexts, cases, and interpretations with interdisciplinary analyses.
Erving Goffman sensitized us to stigma as disgraceful and unacceptable characteristic (socially held or self-imposed) of an individual which demeans her social position. Stigma results in public avoidance, aversion, devaluation, discrimination, identity threat, and dehumanization and other deleterious consequences for the individual. Though the bulk of extant literature deals with stigmatization, much more attention still needs to be given to the research on stigmatized identity and identity concealment. The pathway to concealment of identity is little understood. How one imbibes such identity and how one may transcend it needs to be comprehended. With a revamped era of “redefined” marginalized self, it is very intriguing to delve deeper into stigmatized identity concealment research.
We invite scholars from multiple disciplines to contribute Original Research explore areas of the topics related to stigma and identity concealment and contribute to, but are not limited to, the following:
1) Stigmatized identity in sexually marginalized individuals
2) Systematic Literature review of the topical issues
3) Methods (Quantitative and Qualitative) in stigma research
4) Concealable and un-concealable stigmatized occupational identity
5) Diversified concealable stigmatized identity and well-being
6) Diversified un-concealable stigmatized identity and well-being
7) Identity stigma and concealment in the material world
8) Institutional implications with special reference to the Global South
On our end, we welcome empirical and conceptual pieces, especially with a rich, novel, and diversified data sources, contexts, cases, and interpretations with interdisciplinary analyses.
Keywords: sexual marginalization, concealed stigmatized identity, un-concealable stigmatized identity, quantification
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
