You Don't Define Me: Coping and Well-being Among People in Marginalized Groups with Dr. Steven Mock

 

Social integration is fundamental for health and well-being. However, research demonstrates that the rejection and isolation that can be caused by being stigmatized by others hinders the basic processes and benefits associated with social integration. The negative effects of stigmatization for health and well-being (characterized as minority stress by Meyer, 2003) have been studied in the context of diverse marginalized identities (e.g., race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation).  Despite stigmatization and a sometimes hostile or ambivalent policy climate, many marginalized people, such as sexual minority adults (e.g., gay men, lesbians, bisexual men and women) manage to cope, experience well-being, and meet their social and developmental needs. In this presentation, Dr. Mock will give an overview of the minority stress model and present research on the ways in which people from marginalized groups, such as sexual minorities, cope, adapt, and find supportive social contexts, thus highlighting the potential to enhance well-being among people with stigmatized identities of various types. This presentation will be of interest to people from marginalized groups, those who work with or manage people from marginalized populations, and anyone interested in the research in the coping mechanisms associated with well-being.

 

More about our speaker:

 

Steven E. Mock received his degree in developmental psychology from Cornell University and is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies at the University of Waterloo.  Dr. Mock's research is in the area of life span development with a focus on the social nature of coping and decision making, coping with stigmatized identities, and leisure as a coping resource.