Disability stigma and traumatic brain injury

More than 5 million Americans are living with permanent TBI-related disability related to traumatic brain injury,  which can severely impact quality of life. Unfortunately, people with TBI are often socially stigmatized because of their disability. This public stigma may cause people with TBI to believe they are somehow inferior or less worthy than people without disabilities, a phenomenon known as internalized stigma. Umesh Venkatesan, PhD, a researcher at Jefferson Moss Rehabilitation Research Institute, and collaborators wanted to examine the extent to which discrimination, a type of public stigma, is internalized by people living with TBI. The study assessed the potential consequences of internalized stigma on their health and behavior.

In their recent study, Dr. Venkatesan and his colleagues administered questionnaires assessing perceived discrimination and internalized stigma to 84 adults with TBI. Their data suggest that there are different levels of stigma internalization, in that some people with TBI may be more likely than others with TBI to think and feel negatively about themselves when encountering discrimination due to their disability. Additionally, the researchers found evidence of a “why try” attitude, where people with TBI who experience high levels of internalized disability stigma may not even attempt certain tasks or engage in social activities because of a fear of failure. This process could have major health implications for people with TBI, increasingly isolating and alienating them from general society.

Although this study did not test any solutions to public or internalized disability stigma, it highlights a problem that significantly impacts the lives of people with TBI and should be addressed.

“Continued work on internalized stigma ultimately will allow us to develop interventions to help people cope with public stigma and cultivate more adaptive beliefs about themselves. Education and empowerment are critical,” says Dr. Venkatesan. He also suggests that support groups and other types of peer support networks may help those with TBI to feel a sense of community belonging and safety, buffering against harmful effects of public stigma like stigma internalization.

By Moriah Cunningham