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Ethnicity and self‐reported experiences of stigma in adults with intellectual disability in C ape T own, S outh A frica
Author(s) -
Ali A.,
Kock E.,
Molteno C.,
Mfiki N.,
King M.,
Strydom A.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of intellectual disability research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.941
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1365-2788
pISSN - 0964-2633
DOI - 10.1111/jir.12158
Subject(s) - ethnic group , stigma (botany) , psychology , clinical psychology , intellectual disability , developmental psychology , psychiatry , sociology , anthropology
Background Studies have shown that individuals with intellectual disability ( ID ) are aware of stigma and are able to describe experiences of being treated negatively. However, there have been no cross‐cultural studies examining whether self‐reported experiences of stigma vary between ethnic groups. Method Participants with mild and moderate ID were recruited from a number of different settings in C ape T own, S outh A frica. Self‐reported experiences of stigma in three ethnic groups were measured using the S outh A frican version of the P erceived S tigma of I ntellectual D isability tool, developed by the authors. One‐way anova was used to test whether there were differences in the total stigma score between the ethnic groups. Regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with stigma. Results A total of 191 participants agreed to take part; 53 were B lack, 70 were of mixed ethnicity and 68 were C aucasian. There were no differences in the levels of stigma reported by the three groups but the B lack A frican ethnic group were more likely to report being physically attacked and being stared at, but were also more likely to report that they thought they were ‘the same as other people’. There was an interaction effect between ethnicity and level of ID , with participants with mild ID from the B lack A frican group reporting higher levels of stigma compared with those with moderate ID . Younger age was the only factor that was associated with stigma but there was a trend towards ethnicity, additional disability and socio‐economic status being related to stigma. Conclusion Interventions should target the B lack A frican community in S outh A frica and should include the reduction of both public stigma and self‐reported stigma.