Social stigma

"Research on stigmatized groups has historically focused on people’s attitudes toward group members whose visible traits distinguish them from other individuals (Dienstbier, 1970; Dion, 1989). “Visible” traits (Dion & Kawakami, 1996) are physical characteristics immediately identifiable by sight, such as a person’s race or sex. In contrast, “invisible” traits, such as political orientation or religion, are not immediately identifiable from one’s physical appearance (Goffman, 1963). While research has primarily focused on prejudice toward visible marginalized groups, there is relatively little difference between prejudice toward visible and invisible minorities, a finding which has recently been replicated in studies of fan groups (e.g., Leshner, Reysen, Plante, Chadborn, Roberts, & Gerbasi, 2018; Reysen, Plante, Roberts, & Gerbasi, 2017). Fan identity, like political orientation or religion, is an “invisible” trait, as it is rare for a person’s physical traits to convey their fan interest. As such, unlike visible traits, fan identity can be shown at will, such as a sport fan choosing to wear a cap with their team’s logo or a music fan wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with their favorite band’s members."