Egosystem and Ecosystem Goals: Implications for Concealable Stigma Disclosure

Motivational and dispositional antecedents of disclosure can affect a wide range of outcomes among individuals with concealable stigmas. We examine how experimentally manipulated egosystem and ecosystem goals interact with autonomous functioning to predict affective responses following disclosure of a concealable stigma and subsequent future disclosure intentions. Participants primed with ecosystem goals report more positive affect and increased disclosure intentions compared to those primed with egosystem goals, especially if they report lower levels of autonomous functioning. Importantly, the relation between ecosystem goals and increases in future disclosure intentions is mediated, in part, by positive affective responses. These findings are among the first to demonstrate a causal role for ecosystem goals in potentiating improved disclosure experiences among individuals with concealable stigmas.