Longitudinal Effects of Racial Discrimination on Depressive Symptoms Among Black Youth: Between- and Within-Person Effects [sciencedirect.com]

Objective

Black youth experience racial discrimination at high rates. This study sought to further understand the longitudinal effects of racial discrimination on their mental health by examining cross-lagged associations between perceived racial discrimination and depressive symptoms at the between-person (interindividual) level and the within-person (intraindividual) level.

Method

Three hundred and forty-six Black youth (M_age = 10.9 years) from the rural Southern United States reported racial discrimination and depressive symptoms four times over 24.5 months. A cross-lagged panel model (CLPM) was used to examine between-person concurrent and lagged effects, and a random intercept cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM) was used to examine within-person concurrent and lagged effects.

Results

There were significant concurrent associations at all waves in both models. Additionally, there were significant lagged effects from perceived racial discrimination to depressive symptoms but not from depressive symptoms to perceived racial discrimination in both models.

Conclusion

Youth experiencing higher levels of racial discrimination subsequently develop more depressive symptoms than youth experiencing less discrimination (between-person effects) and youth experiencing higher levels of discrimination relative to their own average subsequently report increases in depressive symptoms (within-person effects). These findings provide a rigorous test of conceptual models outlining the harmful effects of racial discrimination on mental health, add to a growing body of work documenting these effects among Black youth, and underscore the need for systemic changes to reduce the amount of discrimination Black youth experience and for interventions to promote resilience among Black youth in the face of cultural marginalization.

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