The Stigma of Opioid Addiction

When an individual is found to have an attribute that is incongruous with our stereotype of what they should be, and moreover when this attribute is undesirable, they become discredited. They are reduced in our minds from a normal and whole person to a tainted and discounted one. This is how Erving Goffman explains the concept of stigma in his initial articulation of it in the early 1960s. Drawing on his work, this thesis explores the multiple facets of stigma as it pertains to opioid abuse, ranging from prescription pills to heroin. In the midst of a nationwide epidemic, Americans are currently seeing opioid addiction affect thousands of people of all different demographics. This thesis examines how stigma affects different categories of people impacted by opioid addiction, including addicts themselves, their families and friends, and professional personnel battling the epidemic in the field. Furthermore, it considers how the recent shift from the criminalization of opioid abuse to a public health agenda exemplify the ability and tendency of stigma to change over time.