8 - A focus on persons with a deviant condition II: socio-economic status, self-esteem and well-being

Summary

Introduction

In the previous chapter, we have described that persons with a deviant condition even in the modern Western world, in comparison with other persons, are confronted with a greater number and also more specific problems in life. We also described how those persons cope with their problems. From those descriptions it will have become clear that these problems are often difficult to solve and may leave their marks, be they tangible or psychological, in the lives of those persons. In this chapter, again concentrating on people with deviant conditions in the Western world, we will discuss three highly important marks or outcomes. One of them is more concrete and tangible and refers to socio-economic status, which indicates people's social position in society. The other two are psychological and refer respectively to self-esteem and subjective well-being. These two psychological variables are, as we will note later, empirically highly correlated. Because of, in part, distinct literatures and perspectives, we will treat them separately. Thus, we will attempt to determine whether persons with a deviant condition experience losses in socio-economic status, self-esteem and subjective well-being.

The various coping responses and strategies described in the previous chapter may solve in part problems related to the deviant condition. If people cope well, the effects of their condition may be less strong. Other factors that may mediate the effects of the deviant condition on outcomes can, however, make these effects stronger.