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Please join us for our Showcase Symposium, 

Negotiating Status and Stigma: A Rhetorical Approach

Monday, August 7 from 1:15 - 2:45PM at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis in Lobby L402

Panelists:

Giuseppe Delmestri, WU Vienna U of Economics and Business 
Simona Giorgi, Boston College 
Madeline Toubiana, University of Alberta
Maxim Voronov, Brock University

Kisha Lashley & Christi Lockwood (Organizers), University of Virginia

Scholars have widely acknowledged that issues of status and stigma are both highly consequential and virtually unavoidable in social and organizational life. In general, researchers view status and stigma as ascribed to actors based on audiences' evaluations and emphasize the nearly automatic reproduction of status orders and the stickiness of stigma. Such work implies that actors can do little to negotiate or change status conferral or stigmatization once established. At the same time, scholars also agree that actors can agentically manage and change related social evaluations about themselves through use of rhetoric, i.e., persuasive language. However, we are only beginning to understand when and how actors can use rhetoric to negotiate status or stigma in manners that benefit them.

Bringing together scholars conducting research in these areas, we take up this topic in our AOM Showcase Symposium. With a facilitated discussion and audience Q&A, we draw from work in multiple areas to examine status and stigma, explore their link with rhetoric, and note their relationships with one another. We anticipate a thoughtful and spirited session that inspires and informs novel research on these topics. We hope to see you there!

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McIntire School of Commerce, University of Virginia