Patrick W. Corrigan, PhD

Corrigan is a professor of psychology at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Tell us a bit about your background: What is your area of research? What is your most recent journal-editing experience?

I am a distinguished professor of psychology at the Illinois Institute of Technology and the 2022 recipient of APA’s Senior Career Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest. My research area examines the social determinants of health and wellness among diverse groups of people with psychiatric and other disabilities. I launched Stigma and Health with APA in 2016. Prior to that, I was the editor of the American Journal of Psychiatric Rehabilitation.

Why is this journal important for the field? What is its relevance to society/public health? What are the hot issues in your area right now?

Medical models of disease and physiology are not the only lenses through which one may understand why are people sick. Social determinants of health are key factors in defining health and wellness goals and in developing services meant to help people achieve these goals. Stigma is key to understanding these social determinants. Social psychologists have framed stigma as a complex mix of stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination that leads to the loss of individual opportunities (public stigma) or to shame because of a person’s illness label (self-stigma). It is interesting that stigma as a research object has its base in broader studies from sociology, anthropology, and public health. Stigma and Health is a vehicle for all behavioral and social research that explores the impact of stigma on health and wellness. In terms of hot issues, Stigma and Health is looking not only for descriptive and explanatory research but also for research that bridges disciplines, leading to the discovery of novel concepts and methods. Interventions are another hot issue for the journal. They reflect what I call “the advocates’ agenda.” Advocates will say, “Great findings, but what do they tell me about fixing the problem?” Stigma researchers need to be rooted in public interest.

Briefly, what are your main priorities? For example, how will you grow readership, what type of scholarship would you like to see in the journal, and what kind of content are you hoping to attract?

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is essential to better understanding stigma and stigma change. CBPR represents a true partnership between key stakeholders, such as people with lived experience, researchers, service providers, and other relevant groups such as families. The effect of CBPR is especially notable when people with lived experience share their felt knowledge of the issues while participating in a project, and that lived experience informs project findings that are likely to change the status quo. Studies like these are of special interest to Stigma and Health’s readership, which includes people who want to know what the latest research reveals about stigma and stigma change.

What challenges, if any, lie ahead for the field?

Four come to mind.

1. Actualizing CBPR in real-world stigma research: This requires long-term commitment to the demands of doing partner-based research with diverse groups.
2. Intersectionality: Stigma often lies at the complex intersection of health and other socioeconomic characteristics such as ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, and/or income.
3. Better understanding structural stigma: Perhaps this is more the purview of sociologists, but we psychologists need to understand how formal and informal governmental and other institutional elements worsen stigma. Structural stigma needs to become the focus of stigma-change strategies.
4. Finding ways to change stigma: We psychologists serve our constituencies only when we develop and test antistigma strategies. The goal is to not only erase the impact of stereotypes and discrimination but also replace them with affirming attitudes—recovery, hope, and self-determination—and community-based resources, supports, and accommodations.

Do you have plans for a special issue or changes to the editorial process? Have you introduced or are you planning to introduce any changes?

Currently, two sets of submissions are under review for special issues: one on stigma and intersectionality led by Nicole Else-Quest, and one examining components of stigma and time led by Valerie Earnshaw and Annie Fox-Galilis. This is in addition to the February 2021 special issue on qualitative research methods. I am especially excited by innovative, field-initiated proposals for special issues. If you have such a proposal, contact meopens in new window directly.

What advice would you offer new authors hoping to publish in your journal?

Understand that research on stigma and stigma change rests on a broad and deep literature that stems from multiple fields, including psychology, sociology, social work, anthropology, and public policy. Make sure your work is grounded in this research.

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