Can you explain a little bit about your work on stigma?
The UCL Unit for Stigma Research (UCLUS) is a group of stigma researchers at University College London, one of the world’s leading universities. UCLUS was established in 2018 as a new hub for innovation in research and theory production in the stigma field. The work of the unit crosses traditional boundaries between stigmatised conditions, with a particular focus on stigma associated with mental health problems, ageing, and learning disabilities and autism. Our research aims to advance our understanding of stigma associated with different stigmatised attributes and to identify effective ways to challenge such stigma.
Why did stigma generally become a focal point of your research?
At the core of UCLUS are academics and clinicians in the field of psychology and clinical psychology. As researchers we recognise that adopting a stigma lense and seeking to understand the social processes and importance of power relations that affect the marginalisation of some groups in society has much to offer that is missing from more traditional psychological research on attitudes. Other than in some areas, particularly HIV/AIDS and mental health, evidence on the role of stigma is still very limited and there is much more we can learn from research regarding how to reduce social and health inequities and empower people who are positioned as ‘other’ to reach their potential.
Can you explain the petition you have launched?
#Stopstigmatisingpoverty was launched spontaneously in the aftermath of events in parliament releating to free school meals and subsequent coverage in the media and on social media. We shared the country’s outrage when in late October 2020 the Government defeated the motion to extend free school meals to holidays during the height of the coronavirus pandemic, prompted by Marcus Rashford’s #EndChildFoodPoverty.
It was the reaction of some Conservative MPs who in the face of public outcry sought to defend voting against the motion that deeply concerned us as stigma researchers. As we note in our Blog post, some of the 322 MPs who voted against the motion painted people who struggle financially in these tough times in very stigmatising ways. One Tory MP who opposed the motion, Brendan Clarke-Smith, MP for Bassetlaw, who says he was a recipient of free school meals when he was a child, justified his decision by saying “I do not believe in nationalising children, instead we need to get back to the idea of taking responsibility…This means less celebrity virtue signalling on Twitter by proxy and more action to tackle the real causes of child poverty.”
In his statement Clarke-Smith linked being eligible for free school meals with irresponsible parenting, a link that seeks to shame parents who are trying to do their best in hard times. Other MPs defended their decision to vote against the motion by suggesting that parents cannot be trusted not to swap the £15 weekly food vouchers for drugs or even more ludicrous and shaming ‘visit brothels’. Such comments show that MPs are willing to denigrate families living in poverty and stereotype them as irresponsible or even criminals in order to cover their own backs. They do untold damage in reinforcing the stigma linked to life in poverty and hence we felt we needed to use our voice to challenge such harmful discourse.
The #Stopstigmatisingpoverty petition calls on the UK Government to introduce mandatory training for MPs, a week during which they are relieved of their parliamentary duties.
The petition was inspired by an episode in the 2003 BBC series, ‘My week in the real world’, in which Tory MP Michael Portillo swapped his wealthy Westminster lifestyle for life as a single parent on benefits on a council estate on Merseyside. He had to balance the household budget of £80 as well as take on Jenny Miner’s two jobs as a classroom assistant and supermarket cashier in Asda, as well as look after her four children. However, over the course of the hour long programme viewers witnessed a powerful transformation of this confident, wealthy man into someone who talked openly about the stresses of trying to parent four children while having to get by on very little.
Why does poverty stigma matter?
Scientific research gives us a good understanding of the impact of statements and behaviours like those displayed by the Government and MPs in recent weeks and the huge harm they inflict on the millions who live in poverty. The language used often shifts the focus from societal problems and structural sources of inequality to explanations that lay the blame firmly at the door of the individual, as Carla McCormack of the Poverty Alliance has noted. If we look to scientific research, we find overwhelming evidence for the power of stigma in driving inequalities and marginalising a large section of society, be this through lack of access to employment and the financial and human rewards it can offer, or reduced access to good quality housing, education or health care. Branding them as irresponsible ensures that they do not have a voice in society and are disregarded as worthless when they do try to speak up. The dehumanising effects of stigma are most evident when a person begging in the street or on the London underground finds themselves shunned, those who have the power to help them and acknowledge their shared humanity either avoiding their gaze or moving away altogether as though being poor is an infectious disease. In turn, the effects of marginalisation and deprivation on both physical and mental health have long been understood and are summarised in the 2020 Marmot Review, published just before lockdown hit.
Not only does stigma have the effect of stacking the odds even higher against people who are already disadvantaged but it can also get under their skin. Confronted with others’ disdain and judgmental attitudes and language, many internalise others’ prejudices and experience feelings of worthlessness and shame. Such feelings not only have a corrosive effect on their self-esteem but may also deter them from claiming all of the benefits they are entitled to, thereby keeping them in a vicious cycle of poverty, as a recent study by researchers at the University of Kent shows.
What support do you hope to get for this initiative?
Through our petition we are hoping to open up debate about the need for MPs to gain a better understanding of the needs of their diverse local constituents and people across the country, with a particular focus on those living on low incomes given that most MPs come from privileged backgrounds. Based on research evidence this should take the form of both education/awareness raising of their needs and direct contact with people living in poverty.
What would be an ideal outcome?
Obviously, the introduction of the mandatory training we are calling for. At the least we’d hope for a public discussion about the need to increase MPs’ empathy with people who are struggling to get by and their awareness of what it’s like to live in poverty. We also really want to see more of a willingness among MPs from across the political spectrum to listen to people living in poverty first hand – the contact + education combination which our Blog points to as most likely to be effective in shifting attitudes.
Katrina Scior is Professor is Professor of Clinical Psychology and Stigma Studies at University College London. Along with colleagues at the UCL Unit for Stigma Research, she has launched a petition calling on the UK Government to introduce mandatory #Stopstigmatisingpoverty training for all newly elected and sitting MPs. The training will consist of 1 week spent living in social housing in their constituency on the equivalent of universal credit. During the week, members of the local constituency will lay on a programme of events to allow their MP an insight into some of the diverse concerns and stresses their constituents face, with a focus on those living in poverty.