Emerging Patterns of Stigma Management Communication Strategies Among Burn Survivors and Relational Partners

Despite recent theorizing on stigma management relevant to interpersonal settings and health communication, few studies have considered how people make sense of and discursively manage stigma in daily interaction. Burn survivors and relational partners present a unique population of potentially stigmatized individuals. Using in-depth interviews from participants across the United States, this study used Meisenbach’s stigma management communication model to explore the stigma management experiences of both burn survivors and relational partners. Results indicated that survivors managed stigma using four patterns of strategies: Accepters, Situational Adopters, Challengers, and Dissembling Challengers. Relational partners employed a distinct fifth pattern of strategies to manage their partner’s burn stigma. Furthermore, survivors made strategic choices about stigma management strategies based on relational and contextual factors, including prior stigma exposure or compounding stigmas. Overall, these findings have implications for the practical management of stigma, advancement of the stigma management communication model, and consideration of the interpersonal context.