The study documents the association between safety-net program participation and experiences of welfare stigma and perceived discrimination, providing evidence for GiveCare's anti-stigma design priority.
Stigma is identified as a barrier to program uptake independent of eligibility, informing GiveCare's approach to framing benefits as earned entitlements rather than charity in its SMS messaging.
Participants reported that application processes themselves can be stigmatizing, shaping GiveCare's design principle of dignity-preserving intake and eligibility screening.
The research finds that stigma varies by program type and demographic context, supporting GiveCare's personalized, context-aware approach to benefits language and framing.
Negative government perceptions among safety-net participants suggest that trust must be actively built, reinforcing GiveCare's approach of leading with caregiver identity rather than program enrollment as the entry point.