Contemporary Pagans and Stigmatized Identity
Issue: Vol 18 No. 1 (2016)
Journal: Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies
Subject Areas: Religious Studies
Abstract:
This quantitative study investigates Pagans as having a concealable stigmatized identity and is based on data from a large-scale national survey of Pagans, Witches and Heathens in the United States (N=3318) that was conducted by the author. Following the thought of Goffman and his successors, this study provides a quantitative snapshot of the ways stigma affects contemporary Pagans in the following domains: personal and household relationships; the workplace; social institutions; and with the public at large. Particular attention is paid to the fear that Pagans will suffer false accusations. This study provides data about the prevalence of reported adverse events that the participants attribute to prejudice against their stigmatized Pagan identity. Participants’ perceptions of risks of negative outcomes arising from stigma are also analyzed. Individuals with a concealable stigmatized identity must make information management choices concerning whether or not to employ a “passing” strategy or to disclose their stigmatized identity, each strategy bearing different costs. This phenomenon is colloquially known within Paganism as the “broom closet.” The relationships between the “broom closet” and adverse events and perceived risk are analyzed. Numerous areas for further research are suggested.
Author: Gwendolyn Reece
References :
American Time Use Survey. Accessed May 26, 2015, http://www.bls.gov/TUS/CHARTS/home.htm.
Atkinson, Rowland, and John Flint. “Sampling, Snowball: Accessing Hidden and Hard-to-Reach Populations.” In The A-Z of Social Research, edited by Robert I. Miller and John D. Brewer, 274–81. London: SAGE Publications, 2003.
Baker, James W. “White Witches: Historic Fact and Romantic Fantasy.” In Magical Religion and Modern Witchcraft, edited by James R. Lewis, 171–92. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1996.
Barner, Stefanie E., Faith and Magick in the Armed Forces: A Handbook for Pagans in the Military. Woodbury, Minnesota: Llewellyn Publications, 2008.
Barner-Barry, Carol. Contemporary Paganism: Minority Religions in a Majoritarian America. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/9781403973382.
Beals, Kristin P., and Letitia Anne Peplau. “Disclosure Patterns within Social Networks of Gay Men and Lesbians.” Journal of Homosexuality 51, no. 2 (2006): 101–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J082v51n02_06.
Beals, Kristin P., Letitia Anne Peplau, and Shelly L. Gable. “Stigma Management and Well-Being: The Role of Perceived Social Support, Emotional Processing, and Suppression.” Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 35, no. 7 (2009): 867–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0146167209334783.
Berger, Helen A. “Are Solitaries the Future of Paganism?” Patheos, August 23, 2010. Accessed January 21, 2014, http://www.patheos.com/Resources/Additional-Resources/Solitaries-The-Future-Of-Paganism.html
——. A Community of Witches: Contemporary Neo-Paganism and Witchcraft in the United States. Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina Press, 1999.
——. “Solitary Practitioners in the United States.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Religion, Baltimore, November 26, 2013.
Berger, Helen A., Evan A. Leach, and Leigh S. Shaffer. Voices from the Pagan Census: A National Survey of Witches and Neo-Pagans in the United States. Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina Press, 2003.
Bernstein, Mary. “Celebration and Suppression: The Strategic Uses of Identity by the Lesbian and Gay Movement.” American Journal of Sociology 103, no. 3 (1997): 531–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/231250.
Cain, Roy. “Stigma Management and Gay Identity Development.” Social Work 36, no. 1 (1991): 67–73.
Chaudoir, Stephanie R., and Jeffrey D. Fisher. “The Disclosure Process Model: Understanding Disclosure Decision Making and Postdisclosure Outcomes Among People Living with a Concealable Stigmatized Identity.” Psychological Bulletin 136, no. 2 (2010): 236–56. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0018193.
Clair, Judith A., Joy E. Beatty, and Tammy L. Maclean. “Out of Sight but Not Out of Mind: Managing Invisible Social Identities in the Workplace.” The Academy of Management Review 30, no. 1 (2005): 78–95. http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/AMR.2005.15281431.
Clifton, Chas S. “Fort Hood’s Wiccans and the Problem of Pacifism.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Religion, Nashville, November 20, 2000. Accessed May 29, 2015, http://www.chasclifton.com/papers/hood.html.
Davy, Barbara Jane. Introduction to Pagan Studies. Lanham, Md.: AltaMira Press, 2007.
DeJordy, Rich. “Just Passing Through: Stigma, Passing, and Identity Decoupling in the Work Place.” Group & Organization Management 33, no. 5 (2008): 504–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1059601108324879.
Evans, Rhonda D., Craig J. Forsyth, and Rachel A. Foreman. “Psychic Accounts: Self-legitimation and the Management of a Spoiled Identity.” Sociological Spectrum: Mid-South Sociological Association 23, no. 3 (2003): 359–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02732170309202.
Frable, Deborrah E. S., Linda Platt, and Steve Hoey. “Concealable Stigmas and Positive Self-Perceptions: Feeling Better Around Similar Others.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 74, no. 4 (1998): 909–22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.74.4.909.
Fuller, Craig B., Doris F. Chang, and Lisa R. Rubin. “Sliding Under the Radar: Passing and Power among Sexual Minorities.” Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling 3 (2009): 128–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15538600903005334.
Goffman, Erving. Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity. New York: Simon & Schuster Inc., 1963.
Johnson, Sherri. “Black Innocence and the White Jury.” Michigan Law Review 83, no. 7 (1985). http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1288969.
Jones, Kristen P. and Eden B. King. “Managing Concealable Stigmas at Work: A Review and Multilevel Model.” Journal of Management 40, no. 5 (2014): 1466–94. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0149206313515518.
Lewis, James R. Witchcraft Today: An Encyclopedia of Wiccan and NeoPagan Traditions. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio, 1999.
Link, Bruce G., and Jo C. Phelan. “Conceptualizing Stigma.” Annual Review of Sociology 27 (2001): 363–85. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.27.1.363.
Link, Bruce G., Elmer L. Struening, Michael Rahav, Jo C. Phelan, and Larry Nuttbrock. “On Stigma and Its Consequences: Evidence from a Longitudinal Study of Men with Dual Diagnoses of Mental Illness and Substance Abuse.” Journal of Health and Social Behavior 38, no. 2 (1997): 177–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2955424.
Luhtanen, Riia K. “Identity, Stigma Management, and Well-Being.” Journal of Lesbian Studies 7, no. 1 (2002): 85–100. http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J155v07n01_06.
Magliocco, Sabina. “Ritual is my Chosen Art Form: The Creation of Ritual as Folk Art among Contemporary Pagans.” In Magical Religion and Modern Witchcraft, edited by James R. Lewis, 93–119. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1996.
Marvasti, Amir. “Being Middle Eastern American: Identity Negotiation in the Context of the War on Terror.” Symbolic Interaction 28, no. 4 (2005): 525–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/si.2005.28.4.525.
Newheiser, Anna-Kaisa and Manuela Barreto. “Hidden Costs of Hiding Stigma: Ironic Interpersonal Consequences of Concealing a Stigmatized Identity in Social Interactions.” Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 52 (2014): 58–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2014.01.002.
O’Brien, John. “Spoiled Group Identities and Backstage Work: A Theory of Stigma Management Rehearsals.” Social Psychology Quarterly 74, no. 3 (2011): 291–309. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0190272511415389.
Oppenheimer, David B. “Verdicts Matter: An Empirical Study of California Employment Discrimination and Wrongful Discharge Verdicts Reveals Low Success Rates for Women and Minorities.” UC Davis Law Review 37, no. 2 (2003).
Pachankis, John E. “The Psychological Implications of Concealing a Stigma: A Cognitive-Affective-Behavioral Model.” Psychological Bulletin 133, no. 2 (2007): 328–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.133.2.328.
Pinel, Elizabeth C. “Stigma Consciousness: The Psychological Legacy of Social Stereotypes.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 76, no. 1 (1999): 114–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.76.1.114.
Poindexter, Cynthia Cannon, and R. Andrew Shippy. “HIV Diagnosis Disclosure: Stigma Management and Stigma Resistance.” Journal of Gerontological Social Work 53 (2010): 366–81. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01634371003715841.
Quinn, Diane M., and Stephenie R. Chaudoir. “Living with a Concealable Stigmatized Identity: The Impact of Anticipated Stigma, Centrality, Salience, and Cultural Stigma on Psychological Distress and Health.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 97, no. 4 (2009): 634–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0015815.
Rachlinski, J. J., S. L. Johnson, A. J. Wistrich, and C. Guthrie. “Does Unconscious Racial Bias Affect Trial Judges?” Notre Dame Law Review 84, no. 3 (2009): 1195–246.
Ragins, Belle Rose. “Disclosure Disconnects: Antecedents and Consequences of Disclosing Invisible Stigmas Across Life Domains.” Academy of Management Review 33, no. 1 (2008): 194–215. http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/AMR.2008.27752724.
Reece, Gwendolyn. “Impediments to Practice in Contemporary Paganism,” The Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies 16, no. 2 (2014): 150–77. http://dx.doi.org/10.1558/pome.v16i2.27020.
——. “Prevalence and Importance of Contemporary Pagan Practices,” The Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies 16, no. 1 (2014): 35–54 http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1558/pome.v16i1.20231.
Reid, Síân. “Renovating the Broom Closet: Factors Contributing to the Growth of Contemporary Paganism in Canada.” The Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies 7, no. 2 (2005): 128–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.1558/pome.2005.7.2.128.
Rosario, Margaret, Eric W. Schrimshaw, and Joyce Hunter. “Disclosure of Sexual Orientation and Subsequent Substance Use and Abuse among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youths: Critical Role of Disclosure Reactions.” Psychology of Addictive Behaviors 23, no. 1 (2009): 175–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0014284.
Rosenfeld, Lawrence B. “Self-Disclosure Avoidance: Why I Am Afraid To Tell You Who I Am.” Communication Monographs 46 (1979): 63–74. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03637757909375991.
Ryan, Louise. “Muslim Women Negotiating Collective Stigmatization: ‘We’re Just Normal People.’” Sociology 45, no. 6 (2011): 1045–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0038038511416170.
Stewart, Brandford S. “Opening the Broom Closet: Recognizing the Religious Rights of Wiccans, Witches, and Other Neo-Pagans.” Northern Illinois University Law Review 32 (2011): 136–203.
“Table 75: Self-Described Religious Identification of Adult Population: 1990, 2001, and 2008.” In Statistical Abstracts of the United States. Accessed January 21, 2014, http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s0075.pdf
Tejeda, Manuel J. “Skeletons in the Broom Closet: Exploring the Discrimination of Pagans in the Workplace.” Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion (2014): 1–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14766086.2014.933710.
Van Dam, M.A. “Lesbian Disclosure, Social Support, and Depression: A Geopolitical Perspective.” Sexuality Research and Social Policy 11 (2014): 233–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13178-014-0160-y.
Wright, Stuart A. “Satanic Cults, Ritual Abuse, and Moral Panic: Deconstructing a Modern Witch-Hunt.” In Witchcraft and Magic: Contemporary North America, edited by Helen A. Berger, 120–36. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005. http://dx.doi.org/10.9783/9780812201253.120.