COVID-19 public stigma in the context of government-based structural stigma: A cross-sectional online survey of adults in Bangladesh.

Abstract

The state in Bangladesh has instituted a series of policies and practices during the COVID-19 pandemic that reflects structural stigma. Stigma is now considered a complex phenomenon rather than just one set of beliefs. Thus, the level and correlates of stigma toward individuals and households that have become positive with the Coronavirus are of critical interest and importance. This article describes the nature of the Bangladesh government's unusual labeling practices as a structural stigma and examines the stigma levels among Bangladeshi adults. A web-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,056 adult respondents. We used 10 Likert items (α = 0.630) to measure the level of stigmatized attitudes related to COVID-19. The data were analyzed using t-tests, ANOVA, and correlation coefficients to identify the factors associated with the dependent variable at the bivariate level. The multiple linear regression model was also fitted. The findings of the study show that 90.8% of the respondents had at least one stigmatized attitude. The regression analysis result shows that marital status, educational attainment, place of residence, risk perception, and attitudes toward COVID-19 were the most significant factors of stigmatized attitudes among the population in Bangladesh. This study suggests that state-sponsored labeling of COVID-19 positive people should be stopped immediately, and the privacy and confidentiality of the COVID-19 positive people should be appropriately maintained. Health education programs should also be adopted for all age groups to decrease negative attitudes toward this disease by increasing their knowledge and awareness for preventing COVID-19.

Public Stigma of COVID-19 and Its Correlates in the General Population of China

“…Misconceptions and lack of knowledge about COVID-19, along with high fear levels of COVID-19, have been confirmed to be associated with more stigmatizing attitudes towards people associated with the context of COVID-19, such as healthcare providers and Asians in the United States [ 18 , 19 , 20 ]. A national online survey in Bangladesh reported that stigmatizing attitudes related to COVID-19 in the general population was significantly associated with marital status, educational level, living conditions, and perception of risk [ 21 ]. Research on public stigma posited that individuals’ perceptions of stigmatized conditions were associated with their cognitive attributions and affective responses [ 22 ].…”

The scar that takes time to heal: A systematic review of COVID-19-related stigma targets, antecedents, and outcomes

“…First, certain demographics of stigmatizers are associated with less stigmatizing attitudes toward (suspected) patients and survivors because they reflect higher knowledge about COVID-stigmatizing attitudes toward COVID-19 patients compared with the general population. Another study 70 found that individuals in Bangladesh with lower education backgrounds have higher levels of stigmatizing attitudes toward COVID-19 patients. Studies in Jordan 68 and China 73 also support this conclusion.…”

“…Demographics. Stigmatizers' demographics have been investigated in the literature 67,68,69,70,71,72,73 . We identified two aspects highlighting the influence of stigmatizers' demographics: (1) certain demographics of stigmatizers are associated with less stigmatizing attitudes toward (suspected) patients and survivors because they reflect higher knowledge about COVID-19 (e.g., higher education, and healthcare occupations versus general public), and (2) certain demographics of stigmatizers are associated with more stigmatizing attitudes toward (suspected) patients and survivors because they reflect lower resources (e.g., rural versus urban residence) and higher risk of COVID-19 infection (e.g., regions close to the origin location of COVID-19, and old age).…”

“…For example, one study 70 found that participants living in the rural and urban (excluding city corporation, i.e., "highly urbanized areas mostly in divisional headquarters" 70 ) areas of Bangladesh tend to report higher stigmatizing attitudes toward people who tested positive for COVID-19 compared with participants living in city corporation areas. One study 69 found that living in central China, which is close to the early epicenter of the pandemic, is associated with higher levels of discrimination against COVID-19 survivors.…”

“…Cognition. Both stigmatizers' general cognition (e.g., feeling of resource scarcity, and trust in public officials 74 ) and COVID-19-related cognition (e.g., perceived risk/harm of COVID-19 69,70 , and vaccine attitudes 69 ) affect their stigmatizing attitudes toward (suspected) patients and survivors. Stigmatizers' general cognition influences their stigmatizing attitudes because stigmatizers who perceive low sense of control (e.g., feeling of resource scarcity, and low trust in public officials) tend to stigmatize (suspected) patients and survivors to restore their sense of control.…”