There is increasing appreciation that group memberships can have both beneficial and damaging impacts on health. In collaboration with Nepal Leprosy Trust (NLT), this longitudinal study explores a group-based approach to stigma reduction among people affected by leprosy in rural Nepal (N = 71)-a hard to reach and underrepresented non-WEIRD population. Informed by the 'social cure' literature, and the progressive model of self-stigma, we use a longitudinal design. We found that a sense of belonging to a self-help group can facilitate education in terms of health literacy, and over time these two factors also have impacts on participants stigma. Specifically, self-help group belonging predicted improvements in health literacy, leading to reduced endorsement of negative stereotypes and thus less stigma-related harm among people affected by leprosy. The study offers promising evidence that group-based interventions, which support health education, can reduce the harmful impact of stigma in very challenging contexts.
BT - Health & social care in the community C1 -https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35224816
DA - 02/2022 DO - 10.1111/hsc.13771 J2 - Health Soc Care Community LA - eng N2 -There is increasing appreciation that group memberships can have both beneficial and damaging impacts on health. In collaboration with Nepal Leprosy Trust (NLT), this longitudinal study explores a group-based approach to stigma reduction among people affected by leprosy in rural Nepal (N = 71)-a hard to reach and underrepresented non-WEIRD population. Informed by the 'social cure' literature, and the progressive model of self-stigma, we use a longitudinal design. We found that a sense of belonging to a self-help group can facilitate education in terms of health literacy, and over time these two factors also have impacts on participants stigma. Specifically, self-help group belonging predicted improvements in health literacy, leading to reduced endorsement of negative stereotypes and thus less stigma-related harm among people affected by leprosy. The study offers promising evidence that group-based interventions, which support health education, can reduce the harmful impact of stigma in very challenging contexts.
PY - 2022 T2 - Health & social care in the community TI - Health literacy among self-help leprosy group members reduces stereotype endorsement and stigma-related harm in rural Nepal. UR - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/hsc.13771 SN - 1365-2524 ER -