Social Stigma and Sexual Epidemics

Bronwen Lichtenstein draws on cases around the world to illustrate how sexual epidemics continue to be shaped by powerful forces of race, gender, and the lingering consequences of history. Illuminating the continuity of ideas and dynamics that affect both individual behavior and public health responses, Lichtenstein reveals a vicious interplay between the stigmas of social status and the prevalence of sexually transmitted infection (STI). She also shows how the consequences of that interplay spread beyond the stigmatized to affect all social groups. Her insights suggest alternative approaches for understanding, as well as slowing, the spread of STIs.