There is only a little research on anticipated stigma in the general population, despite evidence of negative consequences with regard to underutilisation of medical testing or treatment. While a lot of instruments focus on the interpersonal dimension of public stigma (i.e., societal attitudes), fewer assess the intrapersonal dimension of anticipated stigma, a belief that stigmatising attitudes will be directed at the self in the future. The objective of this study was to test the applicability and the psychometric properties of an anticipated stigma scale in a population survey on beliefs about irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Analyses are based on telephone interviews in a random population sample of 1205 adult individuals in Germany. They were presented with a vignette describing a person with symptoms suggestive of IBS, followed by 10 items assessing anticipated stigma based on a modified version of the Perceived Stigma Scale of IBS.

Results indicate that individuals expected others not to have enough knowledge about symptoms and may ascribe their aetiology to personal behaviour. A first exploratory factor analysis (EFA) yielded two factors. Examination of scree plot and content considerations justified a second EFA specifying a one-factorial solution with Cronbach’s α of 0.80 and satisfactory discriminatory power and mean inter-item correlations.

The applicability of the scale to assess anticipated IBS stigma in the general population using a vignette design was demonstrated. Such assessments can be used as the basis for tailored anti-stigma measures, for example, the communication of specific facts about the development of IBS symptoms.