Cognitive Affective Behavioral Model, Essay Example

Question: Do individuals who have stigma that can be concealed face psychological difficulties and how can the problem of concealed stigma be addressed?

It is often assumed that people afflicted by a latent stigma—meaning traits that are devalued that can by hidden from the public–circumvent the various difficulties and challenges that individuals who suffer from a conspicuous stigma do. Recent research, however, demonstrates that even people who are able to conceal their stigma are also confronted by a litany of psychological challenges and stressors. The uncertainty of various social situations in addition to the threat that one’s hidden stigma can be discovered renders an individual who has a hidden stigma placed in a difficult quandary.  There is burgeoning corpus of literature on stigmas that are able to be concealed, which calls for a the integration of pertinent finding within a cohesive model. Pachankis (2007) proffers a cognitive-affective-behavioral process model for better comprehending the psychological indications of cloaking one’s stigma. This model provides possible points of intervention in addition to avenues for future research with regards to the efficacy of the proffered model. The issue of disclosure plays an interesting role in this discussion. Pachankis uses the example of someone who has the HIV that is undisclosed and their romantic encounters. Disclosing one’s HIV status causes them great anxiety that might make them appear socially awkward. Such persistent vigilance is not central to their concerns, yet the threat of disclosure causes immense psychological anxieties.

Comments on paper

Your paper raised a number of interesting points about stigmatization. I really enjoyed your discussion of Pachankis article regarding how the threat of disclosure is central to the concerns of those with concealable stigmas. Incurring a stigmatized identity is an overwhelming problem, which is why individuals do not seek help because they fear further discrimination and/or rejection. I liked how you discussed the differences as well as the similarities between VSI’s and CSI’s in a very cogent manner. I feel that the  problem is that you ignored the nuance proffered by the weeks’ articles. That discussion would have enhanced your argument and the need for future research regarding this fascinating