DESTIGMATIZACIJA OSOBA S ISKUSTVOM OVISNOSTI O OPIJATSKIM SUPSTANCAMA - IMPLEMENTACIJA SURADNIČKE RADIONICE SA STUDENTIMA PEDAGOGIJE
DESTIGMATIZATION OF PERSONS WITH EXPERIENCE OF OPIATE ADDICTION - IMPLEMENTATION OF A COLLABORATIVE WORKSHOP WITH PEDAGOGY STUDENTS

Summary/Abstract: Stigma towards people with the experience of opioid addiction represents a significant social and public health issue, as it hinders help-seeking, reduces trust in institutions, and contributes to social isolation and discrimination. Addressing this issue within the education of future professionals is particularly important, as they will be involved in the education, guidance, and support of diverse social groups throughout their professional careers. This paper particularly emphasises the role of educational professionals, specifically pedagogy students, and aims to present the development of the educational intervention “Society Without Stigma”, designed as a collaborative workshop focused on reducing prejudice and fostering empathy towards people with the experience of addiction. The intervention was developed in response to the need for greater social engagement and tolerance among students and is grounded in the theoretical frameworks of stigma, prejudice, the biopsychosocial model of addiction, and active and collaborative learning. As a starting point for the workshop design, the authors relied on a needs assessment conducted among pedagogy students, which revealed ambivalent attitudes towards addiction, as well as on a previous student research project conducted by the authors on active citizenship, which identified a discrepancy between positive attitudes towards volunteering and actual civic engagement. In addition to the theoretical framework, the paper presents the structure of the workshops and the evaluation of those implemented to date. The contribution of this paper lies in the development of a theoretically grounded and practically applicable educational intervention intended for students in social sciences, a group of future professionals whose role in the destigmatisation of people with the experience of addiction is rarely addressed explicitly.

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