Overt and subtle racial discrimination and mental health: preliminary findings for Korean immigrants

Abstract

Objectives: We examined differential effects of overt and subtle forms of racial discrimination on 2 dimensions of mental health-positive affect and depressive symptoms, and explored the mediating roles of emotional arousal and cognitive appraisal.

Methods: Cross-sectional survey data were collected through face-to-face interviews with a sample (N=180) of adult Korean immigrants living in Toronto, Ontario. Maximum likelihood estimates of path coefficients were obtained using structural equation models.

Results: Perceived racial discrimination was associated with both the erosion of positive affect and depressive symptoms. Overt discrimination was associated with the erosion of positive affect, and subtle discrimination was associated with depressive symptoms. Effects of subtle discrimination on depressive symptoms were mediated through cognitive appraisal.

Conclusions: The results emphasize the salience of subtle discrimination for the mental health of Asian immigrants. Experiences of overt racial bias seemed to be of little importance for the levels of depressive symptoms among those in our sample, although the experience of blatant discrimination tended to reduce positive mood.

FIGURE 1—

Measurement model of perceived discrimination: adult Korean immigrants in Toronto, Ontario, 1997. Note. Down arrows indicate causation; curved lines indicate correlations. Up arrows indicate measurement error. χ² = 19.16 (P = .32); root mean squared error of approximation = 0.031; goodness-of-fit index = .97.

FIGURE 2—

Measurement model of emotional arousal and cognitive appraisal: adult Korean immigrants in Toronto, Ontario, 1997. Note. Down arrows indicate causation; curved lines between factors and variables indicate correlations. Up arrows indicate measurement error. χ² = 11.21 (P = .43); root mean squared error of approximation = 0.00; adjusted goodness-of-fit index = .96.

FIGURE 3—

Maximum likelihood estimates of standardized coefficients of factor loadings and structural associations among perceived discrimination and mental health: adult Korean immigrants in Toronto, Ontario, 1997. …Note. Straight lines indicate significant associations; curved lines indicate significant correlations; dotted lines indicate no significant associations. χ² = 48.73 (P = .02); root mean squared error of approximation = 0.05; goodness-of-fit index (GFI) = .95; adjusted GFI = .91.

FIGURE 4—

Maximum likelihood estimates of standardized coefficients of factor loadings and structural associations among perceived discrimination, emotion, cognitive appraisal, and mental health: adult Korean immigrants in Toronto, Ontario, 1997. Note. Thin arrows indicate factor loadings; curved lines indicate significant correlations; thick lines show significant structural associations; dotted lines show nonsignifcant structural associations. T-test values are in parentheses. χ² = 43.09 (P = .09); root mean squared error of approximation = 0.04; goodness-of-fit index (GFI) = .95; adjusted GFI = 0.92.