... defined stigmas as, 'any physical or social attribute or sign which so devalues an actor's social identity as to disqualify from full social acceptance (Dictionary of Sociology, 1999). Goffman argues that the initial meaning is extended to the application of disgrace even when there is no bodily evidence for example, having a criminal record. By looking at Erving Goffman's example of effects of institutions we can begin to see how stigmatised person's can be excluded from normal social interactions. Interactionists such as Goffman view institutions such as prisons, mental hospitals and reform schools as links in confirming the deviant nature of the individual. He examined the treatment of mental patients in institutions and found that the aims of cure and rehabilitation were not highly successful. His main focus was on mortification and how inmates are subjected to acts, which in a sense take away their identity. All their personal belongings are ...

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