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Abstract

Health promotion programs have become increasingly common in U.S. workplaces, yet little research has examined the unintended and potentially negative consequences of these initiatives. Overweight and obese employees face widespread prejudice and pervasive discrimination in employment settings, and this study investigates whether workplace health promotion may lead to more negative outcomes for these workers. Using an experimental design, the author finds that overweight and obese employees are rated more negatively and receive lower hiring recommendations when evaluated for companies with health promotion programs. These findings suggest that health promotion increases the salience and perceived legitimacy of negative fat stereotypes that facilitate weight-based discrimination.

Keywords

workplace health promotion weight-based discrimination anti-fat bias prejudice justification

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Healthism and Weight-Based Discrimination

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