Abstract
This thesis builds on previous research regarding stigma management and atheists as a stigmatized group in the United States. While surveys and demographic research indicate that atheists represent a growing and diversifying segment of the nonreligious population, their quantity and heterogeneity does not free them from the mark of a moral failing. I draw on qualitative data collected from semi-structured interviews with seven self-described atheists in Northern California to address the question of how atheists manage and negotiate stigma to self and to others. Data analyses indicate that interview participants use a combination of previously documented stigma management strategies, but in unique ways, that compare to previous studies. In line with the concept of identity talk, atheists engage in a process of verbally asserting moral identities by both rhetorically challenging accusations of being bad people and by defending positive aspects of their identities. However, these strategies offer only situational and temporary protection from stigma, as interview participants did not report fundamentally challenging a dominant narrative that perpetuates the stigmatization of nontraditional belief systems. In this thesis, I broaden the understanding of atheists in the United States, how they interact with their identities, and I discuss research and societal implications of stigma management more broadly.