The (un)controlled body: A grounded theory analysis to conceptualise stigma for women with gestational diabetes mellitus
Open accessAbstract
Health-related stigma is associated with adverse outcomes including depression, stress and reduced engagement in health behaviours which are particularly harmful in pregnancy and the postpartum. Women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) report negative psychosocial experiences and may be at risk of stigma related to the condition. We aimed to understand women’s experiences of GDM-specific stigma. Individual interviews were conducted with n = 53 women living in the UK with a current or past (within 4 years) GDM. Grounded theory methodology was used to analyse the data. Four themes were identified: (1) Preconceptions and misconceptions; (2) Locating, regaining, and negotiating agency; (3) Tension about and resisting the dominant discourse of stigma; and (4) Reclaiming control over the body. GDM-specific stigma was diverse and far reaching and may have broader implications for perinatal mental health and postnatal wellbeing. It is pertinent to investigate possible prospective associations between GDM-specific stigma, and biomedical and mental health outcomes.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Qualitative evidence from women with GDM indicates that limited pre-diagnosis knowledge of GDM is associated with greater psychological distress and increased feelings of stigma following diagnosis.
“Qualitative evidence from women with GDM indicates that limited pre‐diagnosis knowledge of GDM is associated with greater psychological distress and increased feelings of stigma following diagnosis [25].”
From Preconception Perceptions, Knowledge and Behaviours of Women With Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: A Qualitative Study (2026) · cites this paper as [25]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Vasileiou, K., Barnett, J., Thorpe, S., & Young, T. (2018) · BMC Medical Research Methodology · doi:10.1186/s12874-018-0594-7 · Cited by 3,115 · see citing works
Stigma as a fundamental cause of population health inequalities
Hatzenbuehler, M. L., Phelan, J. C., & Link, B. G. (2013) · American Journal of Public Health · doi:10.2105/ajph.2012.301069 · Cited by 2,674 · see citing works
Stangl, A. L., Earnshaw, V. A., Logie, C. H., van Brakel, W., C. Simbayi, L., Barré, I., & Dovidio, J. F. (2019) · BMC Medicine · doi:10.1186/s12916-019-1271-3 · Cited by 1,603 · see citing works
Wang, H., Li, N., Chivese, T., Werfalli, M., Sun, H., Yuen, L., Hoegfeldt, C. A., Elise Powe, C., Immanuel, J., Karuranga, S., et al. (2022) · Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice · doi:10.1016/j.diabres.2021.109050 · Cited by 1,260 · see citing works
Bracketing in Research: A Typology
Gearing, R. E. (2004) · Qualitative Health Research · doi:10.1177/1049732304270394 · Cited by 546 · see citing works
15. Management of Diabetes in Pregnancy: <i>Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes—2022</i>
American Diabetes Association Professional Practice Committee (2022) · Diabetes Care · doi:10.2337/dc22-s015 · Cited by 504 · see citing works
Kane, J. C., Elafros, M. A., Murray, S. M., Mitchell, E. M. H., Augustinavicius, J. L., Causevic, S., & Baral, S. D. (2019) · BMC Medicine · doi:10.1186/s12916-019-1250-8 · Cited by 324 · see citing works
Weight stigma in maternity care: women’s experiences and care providers’ attitudes
Mulherin, K., Miller, Y. D., Barlow, F. K., Diedrichs, P. C., & Thompson, R. (2013) · BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth · doi:10.1186/1471-2393-13-19 · Cited by 193 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Weight stigma is well-studied (Wu and Berry, 2018), and there has been increasing attention paid to weight stigma among pregnant and postpartum women (Heslehurst et al., 2022; Incollingo Rodriguez et al., 2019, 2020; Mulherin et al., 2013).”
Integrating time into stigma and health research
Earnshaw, V. A., Watson, R. J., Eaton, L. A., Brousseau, N. M., Laurenceau, J.-P., & Fox, A. B. (2022) · Nature Reviews Psychology · doi:10.1038/s44159-022-00034-2 · Cited by 107 · see citing works
The erosion of a method: examples from grounded theory
Greckhamer, T., & Koro‐Ljungberg, M. (2005) · International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education · doi:10.1080/09518390500298204 · Cited by 95 · see citing works
The stigma associated with gestational diabetes mellitus: A scoping review
Davidsen, E., Maindal, H. T., Rod, M. H., Olesen, K., Byrne, M., Damm, P., & Nielsen, K. K. (2022) · eClinicalMedicine · doi:10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101614 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 38
- Akyirem S Ekpor E Namumbejja Abwoye D, et al. (2023) Type 2 diabetes stigma and its association with clinical, psychological, and behavioral outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice 202: 110774. 37307898
- Annells M (1996) Grounded theory method: Philosophical perspectives, paradigm of inquiry, and postmodernism. Qualitative Health Research 6(3): 379– 393.
- Bellamy L Casas J-P Hingorani AD, et al. (2009) Type 2 diabetes mellitus after gestational diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet 373(9677): 1773– 1779. 19465232
- Benton M Bird J Pawlby S, et al. (2023) The impact of gestational diabetes mellitus on perceived mother-infant bonding: A qualitative study. Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology 43(2): 487– 500. 37493446 PMC11854049
- Craig L Sims R Glasziou P, et al. (2020) Women’s experiences of a diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus: A systematic review. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 20(1): 76. 32028931 PMC7006162
- Diane F Mark S Maria B, et al. (2017) Treatments for gestational diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open 7(6): e015557. PMC5734427 28647726
- Draffin CR Alderdice FA McCance DR, et al. (2016) Exploring the needs, concerns and knowledge of women diagnosed with gestational diabetes: A qualitative study. Midwifery 40: 141– 147. 27553869
- Elton L (2022) Knowledge, community and care: Digital biocitizenship in gestational diabetes. Sociology of Health & Illness 44(9): 1408– 1426. 35972378
- Emmer C Bosnjak M Mata J (2020) The association between weight stigma and mental health: A meta-analysis. Obesity Reviews 21(1): e12935. 31507062
- Ge L Wikby K Rask M (2017) Lived experience of women with gestational diabetes mellitus living in China: Aqualitative interview study. BMJ Open, 7(11): e017648. PMC5719331 29187411
- Heslehurst N Evans EH Incollingo Rodriguez AC, et al. (2022) Newspaper media framing of obesity during pregnancy in the UK: A review and framework synthesis. Obesity Reviews 23(12): e13511. PMC9788256 36268693
- Hill B Incollingo Rodriguez AC (2020) Weight stigma across the preconception, pregnancy, and postpartum periods: A narrative review and conceptual model. Seminars in Reproductive Medicine 38(6): 414– 422. 33728621
- Holton JA Walsh I (2016) Classic Grounded Theory: Applications With Qualitative and Quantitative Data. London: Sage. 27641701
- Incollingo Rodriguez AC Dunkel Schetter C Brewis A, et al. (2019) The psychological burden of baby weight: Pregnancy, weight stigma, and maternal health. Social Science & Medicine 235: 112401. 31323540
- Incollingo Rodriguez AC Nagpal TS (2021) The WOMBS framework: A review and new theoretical model for investigating pregnancy-related weight stigma and its intergenerational implications. Obesity Reviews 22(12): e13322. 34288364
- Lessard LM Puhl RM Himmelstein MS, et al. (2021) Eating and exercise-related correlates of weight stigma: A multinational investigation. Obesity 29(6): 966– 970. 34029444
- Levers M-J (2013) Philosophical paradigms, grounded theory, and perspectives on emergence. SAGE Open 3(4): 1– 6.
- Liu NF Brown AS Folias AE, et al. (2017) Stigma in people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Clinical Diabetes 35(1): 27– 34. 28144043 PMC5241772
- McCallin A M (2003) Designing a grounded theory study: Some practicalities. Nursing in Critical Care 8(5): 203– 208. 14653527
- McIntosh MJ Morse JM (2015) Situating and constructing diversity in semi-structured interviews. Global Qualitative Nursing Research 2: 1– 12. PMC5342650 28462313
- McNaughton D (2011) From the womb to the tomb: Obesity and maternal responsibility. Critical Public Health 21(2): 179– 190.
- Nagpal TS Nippert KE Velletri M, et al. (2023) Close relationships as sources of pregnancy-related weight stigma for expecting and new mothers. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine 30(2): 297– 303. 35486351
- Nagpal TS Tomiyama AJ Incollingo Rodriguez AC (2021) Beyond BMI: Pregnancy-related weight stigma increases risk of gestational diabetes. Primary Care Diabetes 15(6): 1107– 1109. 34275770 PMC11457956
- Nielsen KK Courten MD Kapur A (2012) The urgent need for universally applicable simple screening procedures and diagnostic criteria for gestational diabetes mellitus–lessons from projects funded by the World Diabetes Foundation. Global Health Action 5(1): 17277. PMC3409336 22855644
- Parsons J Sparrow K Ismail K, et al. (2018) Experiences of gestational diabetes and gestational diabetes care: A focus group and interview study. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 18(1): 25. 29325518 PMC5765597
- Pearl RL Wadden TA Hopkins CM, et al. (2017) Association between weight bias internalization and metabolic syndrome among treatment-seeking individuals with obesity. Obesity 25(2): 317– 322. 28124502 PMC5300503
- Puhl R Suh Y (2015) Health consequences of weight stigma: Implications for obesity prevention and treatment. Current Obesity Reports 4(2): 182– 190. 26627213
- Roberts JM (2014) Critical realism, dialectics, and qualitative research methods. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour 44(1): 1– 23.
- Scambler G Hopkins A (1986) Being epileptic: Coming to terms with stigma. Sociology of Health & Illness 8(1): 26– 43.
- Silverio SA Gauntlett W Wallace H, et al. (2019) (Re)discovering grounded theory for crossdisciplinary qualitative health research. In: Clift BC Gore J Bekker S, et al. (eds) Myths, Methods, and Messiness: Insights for Qualitative Research Analysis. Claverton Down, Bath: The University of Bath, pp. 41– 60.
- Stotz S Charron-Prochownik D Terry MA, et al. (2019). Reducing risk for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) through a preconception counseling program for American Indian/Alaska Native girls: perceptions from women with type 2 diabetes or a history of GDM. The Diabetes Educator 45(2): 137– 145. 30602351
- Tarozzi M (2020) What Is Grounded Theory? Bloomsbury.
- Topolovec-Vranic J Natarajan K (2016) The use of social media in recruitment for medical research studies: A scoping review. Journal of Medical Internet Research 18(11): e286. PMC5118584 27821383
- Vounzoulaki E Khunti K Abner SC, et al. (2020) Progression to type 2 diabetes in women with a known history of gestational diabetes: Systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ 369: m1361. PMC7218708 32404325
- Wainrib B (1992) Gender Issues Across the Life Cycle. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.
- Wilson CA Newham J Rankin J, et al. (2020) Is there an increased risk of perinatal mental disorder in women with gestational diabetes? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Diabetic Medicine 37(4): 602– 622. 31693201 PMC7154542
- Wu YK Berry DC (2018) Impact of weight stigma on physiological and psychological health outcomes for overweight and obese adults: A systematic review. Journal of Advanced Nursing 74(5): 1030– 1042. 29171076
- Ye W Luo C Huang J, et al. (2022) Gestational diabetes mellitus and adverse pregnancy outcomes: Systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ 377: e067946. PMC9131781 35613728
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Payne, E., Schoenaker, D., Turner, K., Murphy, H. R., Skouteris, H., Ismail, K., Silverio, S. A., & Benton, M. (2026) · Health Expectations · doi:10.1111/hex.70617 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Qualitative evidence from women with GDM indicates that limited pre‐ diagnosis knowledge of GDM is associated with greater psychological distress and increased feelings of stigma following diagnosis [25].”
Self-citation
- Authors
- Benton, M., Hotung, N., Bird, J., Ismail, K., & Silverio, S. A.
- Affiliations
- King's College London (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Benton, Madeleine
- Venue
- Journal of Health Psychology
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2024-04-16
- Volume
- 30
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 871-886
- ISSN
- 1359-1053 (ISSN-L)
- 1461-7277
- PMC
- PMC11977814
- OpenAlex
- W4394873806
- Cited by
- 15
- References
- 11
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 3
- FWCI
- 8.31
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Health Psychology (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Liverpool John Moores University (submittedVersion)
- Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- King’s Together Multi and Interdisciplinary Research Scheme Wellcome Trust Institutional Strategic Support Fund. (204823/Z/16/Z)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Obstetrics and Gynecology › Gestational Diabetes Research and Management
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Diabetes Management and Education
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Pharmacy › Obesity and Health Practices
- Keywords
- gestational diabetes mellitus, health stigma, women's experiences, body control, agency, stigma resistance, perinatal mental health, misconceptions, pregnancy
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Female, United Kingdom, Humans, Interviews as Topic, Pregnancy, Diabetes, Gestational, Qualitative Research, Young Adult, Social Stigma, Grounded Theory
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
