Delegitimisation

Delegitimisation (also spelled delegitimization) is the withdrawal of legitimacy, usually from some institution such as a state, cultural practice, etc. which may have acquired it explicitly or implicitly, by statute or accepted practice. It is a sociopsychological[1] process which undermines or marginalises an entity by presenting facts and/or value judgments that are construed to withdraw legitimacy[2] and can in some cases be a self-justifying mechanism,[3] with the ultimate goal of justifying harm of an outgroup.[4]

The concept applies to a wide spectrum of social contexts ranging from disputes about political entities to chronic illnesses.[5]

  1. ^ The Oxford Handbook of Intergroup Conflict edited by Linda Tropp, p. 29
  2. ^ Clabaugh, Gary et al. (2007). Analyzing Controversy, p. 36., p. 36., at Google Books
  3. ^ Volpato, Chiara et al. "Picturing the Other: Targets of Delegitimization across Time", International Journal of Conflict and Violence (Germany). Vol. 4, No. 2 (2010), p. 273, citing Daniel Bar-Tal. (1990). "Causes and Consequences of Delegitimization: Models of Conflict and Ethnocentrism," Journal of Social Issues, Vol. 46, pp. 65-89; retrieved 2011-09-19.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Tropp31 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Arthur Kleinman, "The Social Course of Chronic Illness" in Chronic Illness: From Experience to Policy edited by S. Kay Toombs, David Barnard, Ronald Alan Carson, p. 181