Opening plenary speaker Dr. Deborah Finnell who will be presenting “The Neural Pathway of Stigma.” #AMERSA2018
Objectives for the talk- #AMERSA2018 
What is stigma? “It is a relationship between an attribute and a stereotype that assigns undesirable labels, qualities, and traits.”- Finnell #AMERSA2018
It is a complex phenomenon expressed both subtly and overtly- based on nature of condition and social circumstances set them apart- they pose a danger that leads to social rejection. Blame can be part of this too. #AMERSA2018
“Among humans, stigma is a byproduct of normal human behavior” and likely was evolutionarily adaptive and protective. There is a hard-wiring for this in our brains too- Finnell #AMERSA2018
“Fear of differences is normal. How we manage that fear is critical.” -Finnell #AMERSA2018
Now presenting data on people’s attitudes towards those with Opioid use disorders showing people hold stigmatizing attitudes and general “cold” feelings. And political parties differ on these feelings too.
Now she is presenting about how evolution has also produced a balance to stigma and prejudice- we have moral emotions against harming others, empathy and caring for others. #AMERSA2018
After reviewing those parts of the brain, we learned that there requires greater effort to activate parts of the brain for empathy to counteract initial activated stigma and bias. #AMERSA2018
Empathy is a complex neural process that often requires many parts of the brain across the hemispheres to communicate with eachother. #AMERSA2018
How can we translate research evidence to address the fears and biases that people hold against people who use drugs? - BIG QUESTION #AMERSA2018
She asks “What can AMERSA do to address stigma?” And we can write our ideas on a board near the registration desk to influence policy and practices #AMERSA2018
