Can Dignity Appeals Overcome Stigma? Evidence from a Facebook Field Experiment

• In Event: Experiments on Social Media, the Internet, and Political Engagement

Abstract

Can appeals to the shared value of "human dignity" motivate support for stigmatized and vulnerable groups? The very definition of the concept of dignity is that humans are equally worthy and in turn, this implies that they deserve respect, and to not feel humiliated in their daily lives. In recent years, an increasing number of leaders, organizations, and institutions around the world have explicitly advanced dignity as a core value to be emphasized and protected. Since the signing of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), which highlighted the value of human dignity, the concept has been at the center of human rights law and practice. The term appears in over 160 national constitutions. And recent years have witnessed the increasing prevalence of various ``dignity movements,'' including those that seek to advance the status of people of color, indigenous groups, the LGBTQ+ community, those facing disabilities, the incarcerated and others. In turn, various leaders and organizations routinely invoke dignity as a core principle around which they are organized.

We investigate whether such appeals actually influence attitudes and behaviors towards those who might be otherwise ignored or neglected were it not for an explicit reminder of this important human value. Using the digital advertising platform on Facebook, we randomly assign ads to adult American users to estimate the effects of dignity appeals on their likelihood of content engagement in one of two campaigns, also randomly assigned -- one with respect to people facing homelessness and another with respect to incarcerated people. The approach allows us to test the effect of dignity appeals in a realistic setting that mirrors how many advocacy organizations, philanthropic groups, and political actors seek to increase engagement with their ideas. Our findings will generate evidence evaluating whether dignity appeals can galvanize support for vulnerable groups, and if these effects can persist across different populations of beneficiaries.

Authors

• Blair Read

• Evan S. Lieberman, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

• Will Kymlicka, Queens University

• Paige Bollen, Ohio State University