Discrimination and the Health of African Americans: The Potential Importance of Intersectionalities

Abstract

Research examining associations between self-reported experiences of discrimination overall (e.g. potentially due to race, gender, socioeconomic status, age, etc…) and health -particularly among African-Americans - has grown rapidly over the past two decades. Yet recent findings suggest that self-reported experiences of racism alone may be less impactful for the health of African-Americans than previously hypothesized. Thus, an approach that captures a broader range of complexities in the study of discrimination and health among African-Americans may be warranted. This article presents an argument for the importance of examining intersectionalities in studies of discrimination and physical health in African-Americans, and provides an overview of research in this area.

Figure 1. Discrimination, Intersectionalities and Health among African-Americans

Note: Figure 1 provides a working framework for how African-American race might interact with other social identities to shape: a) exposure to discrimination (e.g. the quantitative amount of discrimination experienced by different subgroups); b) experiences of discrimination (e.g. qualitative differences in how discrimination might be experienced by individuals with different intersecting identities) and c) the physiological (or psychological) impact of or response to discrimination.