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Different medically based constructions of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have been around since 'mental restlessness' in 1798, evolved through the 20th century with 'minimal brain dysfunction' and distinctions between Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and ADHD (DSM-III), to current presentations of ADHD (DSM5). As new insights and knowledge have become available, the meaning and labels attached to ADHD have changed, and so they are malleable. This piece will explore two different labels (or frameworks for meaning) for the cluster of behaviours and difficulties associated with the phenomenon known as ADHD; that is, the disorder label and the diversity label. These labels will be explored in terms of accuracy and consequences, particularly their impact on human dignity. Problems inherent in the disorder label will be critically considered, particularly how accurate it is given that psychobiological differences should not be viewed as disorder, may not ‘cause’ functional deficits, and may be understood as strengths. These problems call the disorder label into question, and suggest that ADHD-type behaviours could be understood as traits. This piece will also call into question taken-for-granted social structures that could contribute to or be responsible for the difficulties associated with ADHD, in particular, the stigmatisation of the ADHD label and socio-cultural norms and expectations around ADHD-type behaviours. An alternative diversity label, the neurodiversity framework (or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Diversity) will be explored, in terms of whether it applies to ADHD and the opportunities it offers for empowerment of people and the protection of their fundamental human dignity. In essence, this piece is a socio-political debate about identity; about the labels that can inadvertently harm human dignity and prevent other human rights. It is also about people's right to choice and autonomy in their identity and ways of being in this world. Thes

This study focuses on how Roma communities are represented in the Lithuanian online media. The aim is to answer the question of how news about the Roma is embedded in the broader practices of neoliberalism and racist discourses. Representation of the Roma in the media is inseparable from constructivism, power and influence. Roma communities have little opportunity to make their voices heard in society, i.e., their voice is not heard or represented in the media. Political representation of the Roma is particularly important due to the weak opportunities to participate in the formulation and decision-making of certain political decisions, both in the national and international context. It is assumed, that the negative and even stereotypical portrayal of the Roma in the media encourages a negative public attitude towards this ethnic group and has an impact on the (in)successful integration of the Roma into society. The aim of the research is to find out how Roma are represented on the online news portals 15min.lt and Lrytas.lt and to reveal how stereotypes are formed in relation with this national minority. The following tasks are used to reveal the aim of the work: to present the history of the Roma and the problems of their identity, to analyze the concept of Romaphobia, to present the theory of social constructivism and the role of the media in shaping social reality; to perform a qualitative analysis of the content of the news portals 15min.lt and Lrytas.lt: comparing how Roma perceptions are formed on these news portals and how different groups of actors contribute to constructing and maintaining stereotypes in the media/society. The qualitative analysis of the content revealed that the information, provided in the media, aims to portray the Roma as a threat to public security and to the local population, who experience socio-economic exclusion, who have different values and are reluctant to integrate. However, Roma are not given the right to self-representation b

In Austria, 12% of all students in higher education report a disability that, at least somewhat, limits their study activities. As they still face many barriers throughout their studies, support services play a key part in their academic success. However, data from the Austrian Student Social Survey demonstrate that every second student with a disability is reluctant to contact fellow students, lecturers, or institutional support in case of study-related difficulties. One in four students with disabilities does not seek any assistance because of stigmatisation fear. With respect to these tendencies, our article examines factors that promote or inhibit the reluctance of students with disabilities to seek support due to fear of stigmatisation. For this purpose, we construct a binary indicator of stigma fear, which encompasses items concerning social isolation or drawbacks to academic opportunities, inhibitions about contacting people or disclosing one’s disability. In a regression model, we identify influential factors such as noticeability of disability and degree of study-related limitations as well as social factors like the feeling of anonymity and sense of belonging.

Objective: To understand the social representations of leprosy for the former patient of the Getúlio Vargas Colony Hospital, Bayeux/PB/Brazil. Method: Study of qualitative and representational approach. Results: The habitus was defined through the long and the experienced times in the building of situational behaviors and diversities. The asylum context is reveled through the time. In the realm of religiousness, their illness is understood as a heritage of a divine punishment. The contact with the society as a charity aspect did not reduce the feeling of being excluded by the prejudice and stigma that pervade the patient bearer of leprosy. Conclusion: We could infer that, when retelling their lives, the subjects lived a quasi-experimental condition, by recalling striking histories at that context.

Objective: Understand the perception of leprosy patients about the stigma and prejudice experienced in prisons. Method: A qualitative, descriptive and exploratory research. The participants were five men and two women incarcerated. Data was collected through the Association Free Word Test and semistructured interview and processed by content analysis. Results: Using the Test emerged the categories Treatment, Prejudice, Symptoms and Feelings. From the interviews emerged the following categories: Leprosy from the perspective of patients and family relations; Stigma of leprosy, the impact of the diagnosis and their feelings; Refusing leprosy and Resorting to divine faith to tackle the disease. Conclusion: Negative feelings, prejudice and stigma were present in the speeches of subjects. Research and monitoring of leprosy patients become indispensable for nursing actions and for spaces of care in relation to social aspects of leprosy.

"Drawing on longitudinal qualitative research in Brazil involving participant observation and narrative interviews with young homeless persons, and semi-structured interviews with middle class residents, local businesses, and patrolling police officers, three overlapping yet contradictory dimensions of inclusion and exclusion are developed. First the hegemonic exclusionary discourse that tends to produce stigmatizing labels on poor people in general, and boys and young men on the street in particular, is mapped out. Second, socio-spatial exclusionary mechanisms involving architectural measures, surveillance cameras and violent policing, guarding the neighbourhood from stigmatised 'others' are examined. Third, the less recognised but equally important inclusionary mechanisms, facilitating street life and enabling a sense of belonging among young homeless people are explored. A simplistic and unidimensional conceptualisation of social exclusion is critiqued while demonstrating the multifaceted, intertwined, and contradictory character of homeless people's social relationships with middle class residents, businesses, and police. Furthermore, the exclusion/inclusion dualism that is vivid in the existing literature is questioned. It is suggested that a nuanced picture is vital to increasing our understanding of the everyday lives of homeless populations and that further investigation and theorization of their exclusion as well as inclusion is needed." (author's abstract)

Este artigo tem por objetivo apresentar o resultado de um estudo desenvolvido em Palmas, capital do estado do Tocantins, sobre a construção do estigma e preconceito presentes nas relações entre a população oriunda do Estado do Maranhão e os habitantes da nossa capital, no sentido de compreender a construção do estigma de "maranhense", atribuído geralmente às pessoas consideradas inferiores ou com alguma dificuldade no desempenho de suas atividades. Para tanto, são levados em consideração os conceitos de identidade no contexto da migração, tendo em vista que a cidade de Palmas conta com uma população que comporta pessoas das mais variadas regiões do país que para aqui se deslocaram em busca de melhores condições de vida. A metodologia utilizada contemplou primeiramente a revisão da literatura e, em seguida, uma pesquisa qualitativa através da aplicação de questionários abertos e entrevistas direcionadas aos maranhenses residentes em Palmas. Foram aplicados 37 questionários para ambos os sexos, sendo 19 para sexo feminino e 18 para o sexo masculino., This article aims to present the results of a study conducted in Palmas, capital of Tocantins state, on the construction of stigma and prejudice present in the relations between the population coming from the Maranhão State and the inhabitants of our capital, in order to understand building the stigma of "Maranhã" generally attributed to people considered inferior or some difficulty in carrying out their activities. Therefore, they are taken into account the identity concepts in the context of migration, given that the city of Palmas has a population comprising people from various regions of the country that here went in search of better living conditions. The methodology used included the first literature review and then a qualitative research through the application of open questionnaires and interviews directed to residents maranhenses Palmas. They were applied 37 questionnaires to both sexes, and 19 for females and 18 for males., Este artículo tiene como objetivo presentar los resultados de un estudio llevado a cabo en Palmas, capital del estado de Tocantins, en la construcción del estigma y los prejuicios presentes en las relaciones entre la población procedente del Estado de Maranhão y los habitantes de nuestra capital, con el fin de entender la construcción del estigma de "Marañón" generalmente atribuida a personas consideradas inferiores o ciertas dificultades para llevar a cabo sus actividades. Por lo tanto, se tienen en cuenta los conceptos de identidad en el contexto de la migración, dado que la ciudad de Palmas tiene una población que comprende a personas de diferentes regiones del país que aquí fue en busca de mejores condiciones de vida. La metodología utilizada incluyó la primera revisión de la literatura y después de una investigación cualitativa mediante la aplicación de cuestionarios y entrevistas abiertas dirigida a los residentes Maranhenses Palmas. Se aplicaron 37 cuestionarios a los dos sexos, y 19 para las mujeres y 18 para los varones.

On 7 May 2012, the Cologne regional court ruled that circumcising young boys was a form of previous bodily harm (körperverletzung). Although both Muslims and Jews circumcise infant boys as a religious practice, the Cologne court found that the child's "fundamental right to bodily integrity" was more important than the parents’ rights, leaving Muslim and Jewish parents under suspicion of causing bodily harm to their children. After heated public discussions and an expedited legal process, legal authorities permitted the ritual circumcision of male children under a new law. However, the German debates on religious diversity are not yet over. On the third anniversary of the Court decision in 2015, thirty- five civil society organisations organised a rally in Cologne for "genital autonomy", calling for a ban on ritual male circumcision. In this article, I will focus on religious diversity, which is undergoing changes through minority and immigrant claims for religious accommodation. Analysing the ongoing controversies of ritual male circumcision in Germany, I argue that this change is best observed with Muslim and Jewish claims for practicing their religion. By using political debates, news reports and information provided by lawyers and medical doctors who were involved in the public debate, I show that religious diversity debates are a litmus test for social inclusion: Muslims and Jews, in this context, are both passive subjects of social inclusion policies and active participants in creating a religiously diverse society in Germany. (author's abstract)

Research suggests Australian childless women are at risk of pronatalism-driven social exclusion. This exploratory, mixed methods, cross-sectional study described and explored the social exclusion of Australian childless women aged 25 to 44 years, and asked: what are the nature and extent of social exclusion of childless women; and do the nature and extent of exclusion vary for different types of childless women? A total of 776 childless female Australian residents aged 25 to 44 years completed a self-administered questionnaire. Quantitative data were collected on childlessness types, indicators of exclusion and perceived stigmatisation and exclusion due to being childless. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, One Way ANOVAs and Kruskal Wallis Analysis of Ranks. Qualitative data on childless women’s experiences were inductively thematically analysed. Findings suggest societal-level pronatalism drives exclusion of Australian childless women. While exclusion occurs in all domains of life, childless women experience more exclusion, and perceive more exclusion due to being childless, in the social and civic domains than the service and economic domains. Circumstantially and involuntarily childless women, followed by voluntarily childless women, perceive more exclusion due to being childless than undecided and future childed women. Experiences are influenced by the nature of women’s ‘deviance’ from pronatalism. (author's abstract)

This paper describes experiences of living and belonging from the perspectives of Ugandan children with spina bifida and their siblings and parents. We explored belonging at micro, meso and macro level taking into consideration African Childhood Disability Studies, central concepts of family, cultural conceptions of disability, poverty, and the notion of ‘ubuntu’, and using child-friendly culturally adjusted interview methods including play. Whilst children with spina bifida had a strong sense of belonging at household level, they experienced more difficulties engaging in larger social networks, including school. Poverty and stigma were important barriers to inclusion. We propose strengthening the network at family level, where the environment is more enabling for the children to find a place of belonging and support, and expanding investment and awareness at community and national level. (author's abstract)

To advance understandings of how religion manifests in subtle, nuanced ways in secular institutions, we examine student religiosity and spirituality at an elite liberal arts school marked by a strong intellectual collective identity. Using mixed research methods, we examine how the college’s structures and dominant culture influence students’ religiosity and spirituality. Despite an institutional commitment to promoting students’ self-exploration and inclusion of social “diversity,” we found both campus structures and mainstream culture deterred open spiritual and religious exploration and identification. The structure of the college and its dominant secular, intellectual culture reinforced: (1) a widespread stigma against religious and spiritual expression, (2) a lack of dialogue about the sacred, (3) discreetness in exploring and adhering to sacred beliefs and practices, and (4) a large degree of religious and spiritual pluralism. Our findings additionally illustrate that early exposure to the campus culture’s critical regard for religion had a long-lasting impact on students’ religiosity. A majority of students kept their religious and spiritual expressions hidden and private; only a marginalized minority of students embraced their expressions publically. To increase students’ comfort with religious and spiritual exploration, we propose that colleges foster intentional peer dialogues early in the college experience. Furthermore, we recommend that campus communities prioritize religious and spiritual literacy and respect. (author's abstract)

Tolerance and equality are widespread norms in the official policy of many European countries. The educational system is an arena which even more than others is meant to foster equal opportunities by giving individuals the opportunity to strive for social mobility through their educational performance. Despite this, young people from ethnic minority backgrounds experience different forms of stigmatization in school and higher education, ranging from feeling marked as different to experiencing more explicit racism. This article analyses young people's coping strategies in order to combat or avoid such stigmatization. We will analyse the possible reasons why young people choose a particular strategy in a given situation, how successful that choice is, and changes in their choice of strategies over time. We will discuss how earlier experiences of support, encouragement and respect (or the lack there of) inform the extent to which young people choose more approaching than avoiding strategies as a response to perceived ethnic stigmatisation in the educational setting. The empirical basis of the article is a sample of 50 biographical interviews with young people of ethnic minority backgrounds living in Norway.