Work

Investigating the Relationship between Perceived Discrimination, Social Status, and Mental Health

Year: 2012

Type: article

Abstract: A growing body of evidence suggests that experiences with discrimination have implications for mental health and that these associations may vary by social status. We use data from the Chicago Community Adult Health Study (CCAHS) to examine how two types of perceived discrimination, chronic everyday discrimination and major lifetime discrimination, are linked to mental health, and how this association varies by race/ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status. Results indicate that everyday discrimination is generally independently linked to greater depressive symptoms, loneliness, and hostility across all social status groups. Major discrimination is not associated with depressive symptoms or loneliness after adjusting for a host of covariates, but is associated with hostility, especially for certain groups. These findings highlight the need to examine multiple indicators of discrimination and mental health, and to pay attention to both differences and similarities in these associations by social status.

Source: Society and Mental Health

DOI: 10.1177/2156869311433067

Authors: Hedwig Lee, Kristin Turney

Institutions: University of Washington, University of California, Irvine

Language: English

Topic: Racial and Ethnic Identity Research

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Reduced inequalities, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development