Goffman described how some people seek to avoid stigma by trying to become “normal”—a person stigmatized for a facial deformity, for example, might undergo plastic surgery. For the homeless, one obvious way of managing stigma is to acquire some form of street address, which means not having to identify as homeless to the doctor or to a prospective employer. And this need for a positive identity is essential. Psychologist Abraham Maslow theorized that people need to satisfy their basic needs first—shelter, food, water, etc.—before they could fulfill their psychological and self-fulfillment
...more
