Stigma activation through dis-identification: cognitive bias triggered by mass media photos of people with obesity

ABSTRACT

This study investigated how the prevalent visual depiction of obesity in the media promotes stigmatization of obese individuals. Particularly, this study proposed and tested the two sequential mechanisms which were not explicated in the previous models but indispensable in stigma research: (1) the disease avoidance response (i.e. discomfort for physical contact) and (2) dehumanizing perception. Results of two experiments overall supported the extended model: the headless photos of obese individuals triggered the disease avoidance responses, which sequentially increased the dehumanizing perception of and negative attitudes toward obese individuals. The identity trait (e.g. gender) match increased readers' level of social identification with obese people and alleviated the disease avoidance response when they saw the photo of the obese model as a whole being. By contrast, the opposite effects (i.e. disidentification and heightened discomfort) were found when the participants saw the headless photo of the obese model of the same gender.