Harmful Rhetoric, Dehumanization, and Stress: Public Insults, Xenophobia, and Their Mental Health Effects
Seed topic: Harmful rhetoric and dehumanization. Harmful rhetoric—especially dehumanizing, hateful, or inciting language shared publicly—can function as a potent, real-world stressor. While the comment itself may be dismissed as “just words,” modern behavioral science and psychoneuroimmunology recognize that social threat signals influence autonomic nervous system activity, endocrine responses, cognitive appraisal, and downstream mental health outcomes.… Read More »