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Discrimination is an urgent public health problem. A number of major cities and counties across the United States has declared racism a public health crisis. While there is a growing body of research on the discrimination-health connection, less is known regarding the social relational consequences of discrimination. The present study addresses this knowledge gap by investigating the relationship between discrimination, skin tone, and objective and subjective social isolation using a nationally representative sample of African Americans.This analysis was based upon the African American subsample (N = 3,570) of the National Survey of American Life. Discrimination was assessed with the Everyday Discrimination Scale. Objective and subjective isolation differentiated between respondents who were (a) socially isolated from both family and friends, (b) socially isolated from friends only, (c) socially isolated from family only, and (d) not socially isolated. Skin tone was self-reported. Multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to test the study hypotheses.The analyses indicated that more frequent discriminatory experiences were associated with increased risk for subjective and objective social isolation. Skin tone moderated the association between discrimination and subjective isolation; the discrimination-isolation relationship was stronger among participants with darker skin tones.These findings shed light on African Americans' nuanced experiences with discrimination and colorism. Further, the data demonstrate heterogeneity in the vulnerability to the adverse effects of discrimination within the African American population; the relationship between discrimination and subjective isolation was stratified by skin tone. This underscores the well-documented and persistent racialized social stratification system in the United States (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

We assess the likelihood of moderate and severe psychological distress among Black immigrants. We test the region of context framework, which states that Black immigrants from majority-Black and racially mixed regions of origin have better health outcomes than Black immigrants from majority-white contexts. We utilize data from IPUMS Health Surveys, 2000–2018. We employed partial proportional odds models to assess the likelihood of moderate and severe psychological distress among Black immigrants and U.S.-born Black Americans. All immigrant groups, except for Black Europeans, are significantly less likely to be in moderate and severe distress vis-a-vis U.S.-born Black Americans (p

Previous research has reported that white survey interviewers remember black respondents’ skin tones in a much narrower range than recollections by black interviewers. This finding has been used to suggest that, in line with the one-drop rule, whites do not perceive meaningful differences between light- and dark-skinned black people. The authors reanalyze evidence thought to demonstrate relative homogeneity in white interviewers’ evaluation of black skin tones. In contrast to previous studies, this examination of several data sources reveals significant heterogeneity in the ratings assigned by white interviewers when taking into account the ordinal nature of the skin tone measures. The results are consistent with theories of social cognition that emphasize that beyond formal racial classification schemes, skin tone is used to implicitly categorize others along a continuum of “blackness.” The findings also align with research suggesting that rather than nullifying within-race skin tone, increases in white racism intensify white colorism.

The authors investigate the association between self-reported experiences of discrimination and social media use among Black American adults. Experiences of discrimination were assessed using a 10-question scale of self-reported discrimination encounters. Data analysis was based on a sample of 220 Black American adult respondents residing in Texas. The results indicate that Black Americans reporting higher levels of discrimination use social media more frequently than those who report lower levels of discrimination. In addition, Black Americans who experience higher levels of discrimination are more likely to have accounts on Twitter or Facebook than those who experience lower levels of discrimination. Together, these findings suggest that social media sites such as Twitter serve as sites of expression for people of color to air their grievances, find community, and cope with online and offline forms of racism and discrimination.

Several different measures of skin color are popular in social science surveys, yet we have little evidence to suggest which method is the most valid or reliable when we design new studies. In this experiment, we compare three different ways of asking raters to evaluate skin tone, testing whether common methods designed to reduce variation across raters from different social groups are effective. We compare two popular scales: a simple text-based 5-point skin tone scale (which asks raters to classify pictures on a scale from very light to very dark) and a newer 10-point palette-based skin tone scale (which asks raters to choose a number from 1 to 10, with pictures associated with each number). We also ask raters to use a more complex two-axis color grid that we created, in order to test whether addressing common criticisms of the palette-based scales improves rating reliability. Experiment participants rated a randomly selected subset of pictures with a wide range of skin tones. We find that demographic characteristics of the raters such as gender, race, their amount of contact with diverse racial groups, and immigration status affect skin tone ratings that observers assign, no matter what type of measure is used, and the three measures have reliability ratings that are statistically similar. We discuss the implications of the differences between the measures for designing social science surveys and interview studies.

Girls are increasingly becoming involved with the juvenile justice system; however, what brings girls to engage in delinquency or what obstacles these girls face later in life resulting from adolescent criminal behavior is understudied. In the present study, we used latent class analysis to identify subtypes of risks among adolescent girls ( N = 1,174) who have engaged in delinquent behaviors and mixture modeling to determine what distal psychological, social, educational, and economic outcomes in young adulthood are associated with each subtype. Four adolescent subtypes were identified, which were distinguished primarily based on the severity of their self-reported victimization experiences and mental health concerns. Classes with higher levels of victimization experiences tended to report more engagement with delinquent behavior in adolescence and had a larger proportion of Black and Hispanic girls than lower-victimization classes. Identified classes differed from each other on distal (i.e., young adulthood) measures of economic instability, educational attainment, drug use, depression, and adult arrests. Generally, latent classes which were characterized by higher rates of victimization and mental health concerns and lower educational performance in adolescence fared worse in young adulthood. Implications for those who care for girls who engage in delinquency, including suggestions for using trauma and culture informed screening, prevention, and intervention services, and directions for future research are discussed. Additional online materials for this article are available on PWQ’s website at http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/suppl/0361684320918243 .

The caste system is a relatively rigid system of social hierarchy in India. The caste membership defines one’s access to resources and life opportunities. A growing body of research suggests that lower caste groups have an excess burden of morbidity and mortality in India. However, it is not clear as to what extent caste differences in health are conditioned by socioeconomic status (SES) indicators. This study examined the caste differences in hypertension and tested whether caste differences in hypertension are conditioned by education and household wealth in a representative sample of women in India. This study used data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 2015–2016, India. The analysis is based on a nationally representative sample of 648,064 adult women aged 15–49 years. We used logistic regression to examine whether the association between caste and hypertension varied by education and wealth index using interactions and controlling for potential confounders. The regression models suggest that scheduled tribes and non-caste members have the highest odds of hypertension compared with privileged upper caste members. Interaction models indicate complex intersections of caste, education, and wealth index. The predicted probabilities derived from these interaction models suggest that while SES indicators are inversely associated with the odds of hypertension, the inverse patterning was significantly weaker in other backward classes and more protective in non-caste members compared with upper caste. Additionally, caste difference in predictive risk of hypertension tends to diverge at the lower levels of SES and become narrower at the higher levels of SES. These findings provide evidence of differential returns to SES and have implications for understanding the causes of SES patterning in health among disadvantaged caste groups in India.

How do Mexicans of distinct racial backgrounds fit into the recognized patterns of racial health disparities? We conduct regression analyses using data from the 2000-2017 National Health Interview Survey to determine if Mexicans who self-identify as White or Black have a relative advantage or disadvantage in self-rated health in relation to Non-Hispanic (NH) Whites and Blacks in the U.S. Our results indicate that both Black Mexicans and White Mexicans have a significant disadvantage in relation to NH-Whites while White Mexicans have a slight advantage in relation to both NH-Blacks and Black Mexicans. Overall, our results suggest that studying health outcomes among Hispanics without considering race may mask inequalities not observed in the aggregate., Highlights • We analyze self-rated health among non-Hispanic and Mexican Whites and Blacks taking into consideration relevant covariates. • White Mexicans have an advantage over NH Blacks and to a certain extent, over Black Mexicans. • We consider race among Mexicans in order to determine how it affects self-rated health independently of ethnic status. • Our results suggest that studying health outcomes among Hispanics without considering race may mask inequalities.

The prevalence of child maltreatment and its association with future violence makes identifying ways to intervene with victims and prevent subsequent violence increasingly important. Child maltreat...

OBJECTIVES: Black Caribbeans in the United States have been the victims of major discrimination (e.g., unfairly fired, denied a promotion, denied housing). What is not known is the degree to which they also experience more routine forms of everyday discrimination such as receiving poor restaurant service, being perceived as dishonest, and being followed in stores. This paper investigates the distribution and correlates of everyday discrimination among a national sample of black Caribbeans in the U.S. DESIGN: This analysis used the black Caribbean sub-sample (n=1,621) of the National Survey of American Life. Demographic and immigration status correlates of ten items from the Everyday Discrimination Scale were investigated: being treated with less courtesy, treated with less respect, receiving poor restaurant service, being perceived as not smart, being perceived as dishonest, being perceived as not as good as others, and being feared, insulted, harassed, or followed in stores. RESULTS: Roughly one out of ten black Caribbeans reported that, on a weekly basis, they were treated with less courtesy and other people acted as if they were better than them, were afraid of them, and as if they were not as smart. Everyday discrimination was more frequent for black Caribbeans who were male, never married, divorced/separated, earned higher incomes, and who were second or third generation immigrants. Black Caribbeans attributed the majority of the discrimination they experienced to their race. CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this is the first study to provide an in-depth investigation of everyday discrimination among the black Caribbean population. It provides the frequency, types and correlates of everyday discrimination reported by black Caribbeans in the United States. Understanding the frequency and types of discrimination is important because of the documented negative impacts of everyday discrimination on physical and mental health.

AIM: Using a nationally representative sample of African American men, this study investigated the associations between lifetime history of incarceration, discrimination, and mental health (e.g. depressive symptoms and psychological distress). We hypothesized that discrimination would fully mediate the association between incarceration history and mental health outcomes among African American men. METHODS: Using a cross-sectional design, our analysis included 1,271 African American men who participated in the National Survey of American Life (NSAL), 2001–2003. Incarceration history was the main independent variable. Depressive symptoms and psychological distress were the dependent variables. Everyday discrimination was the mediator. Age, education, and income were covariates. Structural equation models (SEM) were used for data analysis. RESULTS: Among African American men, incarceration history was positively associated with perceived discrimination, depressive symptoms, and psychological distress. Everyday discrimination fully mediated the associations between incarceration history and both depressive symptoms and psychological distress. CONCLUSION: Discrimination may play an important role in the mental health problems of African American men with a history of incarceration. These findings have public policy implications as well as clinical implications for mental health promotion of African American men. Policies that reduce preventable incarceration or at least reduce subsequent discrimination for those who have been incarcerated may enhance mental health of previously incarcerated African American men.

African American female students' elevated suspension risk has received national attention. Despite a number of studies documenting racial/ethnic disparities in African American females' school suspension risk, few investigations have attempted to explain why these disparities occur. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of colorism in explaining suspension risk using a nationally representative sample of adolescent females. Controlling for individual- and school-level characteristics associated with school discipline such as student-teacher relationships, prior discipline history, school size and type, the results indicate that colorism was a significant predictor of school suspension risk. African American female adolescents with darker complexions were almost twice as likely to receive an out-of-school suspension as their White female peers. This finding was not found for African American female students with lighter skin complexions. Implications for adopting a colorist framework for understanding school discipline outcomes and future research for advancing the field in this area are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record

The present study examined the impact of criminal justice contact on experiences of everyday discrimination among a national sample of African American men. African American men have a high likelihood of being the targets of major discrimination as well as experiencing disproportionate contact with the criminal justice system. Few studies, however, examine everyday discrimination (e.g., commonplace social encounters of unfair treatment) among this group. Using data from the National Survey of American Life, we provide a descriptive assessment of different types of everyday discrimination among African American men. Specifically, we examined differences in everyday discrimination among men who have never been arrested, those who have been arrested but not incarcerated, and men who have a previous history of criminal justice intervention categorized by type of incarceration experienced (i.e., reform school, detention, jail, or prison). Study findings indicated overall high levels of reported everyday discrimination, with increased likelihood and a greater number of experiences associated with more serious forms of criminal justice contact. However, in many instances, there were no or few differences in reported everyday discrimination for African American men with and without criminal justice contact, indicating comparable levels of exposure to experiences with unfair treatment.

Objectives This study examined the impact of everyday discrimination (both racial and non-racial) on the mental health of older African Americans. Methods This analysis is based on the older African American subsample of the National Survey of American Life (NSAL) (n = 773). We examined the associations between everyday discrimination and both general distress and psychiatric disorders as measured by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Six dependent variables were examined: lifetime mood disorders, lifetime anxiety disorders, any lifetime disorder, number of lifetime disorders, depressive symptoms as measured by the 12-item Center for Epidemiological Scale of Depression (CES-D), and serious psychological distress as measured by the Kessler 6 (K6). Results Overall, racial and non-racial everyday discrimination were consistently associated with worse mental health for older African Americans. Older African Americans who experienced higher levels of overall everyday discrimination had higher odds of any psychiatric disorder, any lifetime mood disorder, any lifetime anxiety disorder, and more lifetime DSM-IV disorders, in addition to elevated levels of depressive symptoms and serious psychological distress. These findings were similar for both racial discrimination and non-racial discrimination. Conclusions This study documents the harmful association of not only racial discrimination, but also non-racial (and overall) discrimination with the mental health of older African Americans. Specifically, discrimination is negatively associated with mood and anxiety disorders as well as depressive symptoms and psychological distress. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

We examined how sociopolitical context (marked by generational cohort) and maternal skin color interacted to influence preterm delivery (PTD) rates in sample of Black women. Data were from 1410 Black women, ages 18–45 years, residing in Metropolitan Detroit, MI enrolled (2009–2011) in the Life-course Influences on Fetal Environments (LIFE) Study. Because we hypothesized that generational differences marked by changes in the sociopolitical context would influence exposure to racism, we categorized women into two cohorts by maternal birth year: a) Generation X, 1964–1983 and b) Millennial, 1984–1993. Descriptive results showed similar PTD rates by generational cohort, Generation X: 16.3% vs. Millennials: 16.1%. Yet, within each generation, PTD rates varied by women's skin tone (categorized: light, medium, and dark brown). Poisson regression models confirmed a significant interaction between generational cohort and maternal skin tone predicting PTD (P = 0.001); suggesting a salubrious association between light brown skin tone (compared to medium and dark) and PTD for Generation X. However, Millennials with medium and dark brown skin experienced lower PTD rates than their light Millennial counterparts. Research should consider sociopolitical context and the salience of skin tone bias when investigating racial health disparities, including those in perinatal health.

Introduction Literature posits that discrimination can be a barrier to racial and ethnic minorities’ healthcare use. This study examines the relationship between perceived discrimination in the form of racial microaggressions and delayed prenatal care in African American women. It also investigates whether this relationship is modified by women's shade of skin color owing to societal attitudes and beliefs tied to colorism (also known as skin-tone bias). Methods Data were collected from a cohort of 1,410 black, African American women in metropolitan Detroit, Michigan, enrolled in 2009–2011 (analyzed between August 2017 and July 2018). Perceived racial microaggressions were assessed using the 20-item Daily Life Experiences of Racism and Bother scale. Logistic regression modeled the relationship between the Daily Life Experiences of Racism and Bother scale and delayed prenatal care, defined as third trimester or no prenatal care entry. Results Nearly a quarter (24.8%) of women had delayed prenatal care. Logistic regression models showed that a Daily Life Experiences of Racism and Bother score above the median was associated with delayed prenatal care (AOR=1.31, 95% CI=1.00, 1.71). This association was moderated by self-reported maternal skin tone (interaction p=0.03). A higher Daily Life Experiences of Racism and Bother score was associated with delayed prenatal care among African-American women at either end of the color continuum (light brown: AOR=1.64, 95% CI=1.02, 2.65; dark brown: AOR=2.30, 95% CI=1.20, 4.41) but not in the middle (medium brown women). Conclusions Skin tone–based mistreatment in tandem with racial discrimination in the form of racial microaggressions may influence African American women's use of prenatal care. These findings have implications related to the engagement of women of color, particularly African American women, in healthcare systems and maternal and child health programs.

OBJECTIVE: This paper examines how mortality covaries with observed skin tone among blacks and in relation to whites. Additionally, the study analyzes the extent to which social factors such as socioeconomic status affect this relationship. DESIGN: This study uses data from the 1982 General Social Survey (N = 1,689) data linked to the National Death Index until 2008. We use this data to examine the links between race, observed skin tone among blacks, and all-cause mortality. Piecewise exponential hazard modeling was used to estimate disparities in skin tone mortality among blacks, and relative to whites. The multivariate models control for age, education, gender, region, metropolitan statistical area, marital status, labor force status, and household income. RESULTS: Observed skin tone is a significant determinant of mortality among blacks and in relation to whites. Light skinned blacks had the lowest mortality hazards among blacks, while respondents with medium and dark brown skin experienced significantly higher mortality. The observed skin tone mortality disparities covaried with education; there are significant mortality disparities across observed skin tone groups among black respondents with high school or more education, and nonsignificant disparities among those with less education. CONCLUSION: It is crucial to identify the social processes driving racial disparities in health and mortality. The findings reveal that the nuanced social experiences of blacks with different observed skin tones markedly change the experience of racial inequality. Research on the nuanced social processes and biological mechanisms that connect differences in observed skin tone to mortality outcomes promises to better illuminate the experience of racial inequality and policy mechanisms we can use to undermine it.

Rationale Research assessing the health-related consequences of perceived discrimination depends upon high quality measures of perceived discrimination. The Everyday Discrimination Scale (EDS) is among the most frequently used instruments to assess perceptions of discrimination in general, as well as specific types of discrimination (e.g., based on race/ethnicity or age). While numerous studies attest to its validity and reliability for racial/ethnic minority groups, no existing study has examined its psychometric equivalence across gender, age, or socio-economic groups. This study fills this gap. Hypothesis We hypothesize that because social hierarchies of race/ethnicity, age, gender and class have different histories and are differently organized and institutionalized in contemporary United States, racial/ethnic, age, gender, and education-based groups differ in the types of discrimination they experience and perceive. As a result, the EDS may not be equivalent across these social groups. Method We test this hypothesis by analyzing data from the 2015 US Texas Diversity Study (N=1,049), a telephone survey of English- and Spanish-speaking adults. We examine two forms of the EDS – one focusing on discrimination regardless of attribution and one focusing specifically on discrimination attributed to respondents’ race/ethnicity. Results Multi-group confirmatory factor analyses revealed that neither version of the scale generates estimates of discrimination that can be meaningfully compared across all racial/ethnic, age, gender, and education-based groups. Conclusions Our results urge caution when drawing comparisons of perceived discrimination across diverse social groups based on the EDS and point to avenues for future scale development.

Social stratification theory predicts that racial minorities and women should have poorer mental health outcomes than Whites and men because they have less social power and fewer resources. Empirical investigations, however, reveal that race and gender differences are far more complex than theory would predict. Women are more distressed than men but distress levels are similar for Blacks and Whites. Women experience internalizing disorders such as major depression and men experience externalizing disorder such as substance abuse, but the overall prevalence of mental disorders does not vary by gender. Even more puzzling is that the overall prevalence diagnosable mental disorder is lower among Blacks than among Whites. We draw on upon intersectionality and stress perspectives to review the complex gender and race patterns observed in the epidemiology of mental health and conclude with a discussion of future research.

In this article, we consider how colorist ideologies and practices unsettle arguments that celebrate racial gains in education, particularly as related to divides that have narrowed since the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Although outcomes based on race may document some general paths of improvement, progress and success can be appreciably uneven across people who are the same race. Even though skin tone is a linchpin of intraracial disparities, connections between colorism and educational outcomes are underappreciated. A brief consideration of how color-based advantages and disadvantages may affect African-, Latino/a-, and Asian-descended groups is provided to heighten educators' awareness of the problem.

How racial identity influences self-esteem and psychological well-being among African Americans remains unresolved due to unexplained inconsistencies in theoretical predictions and empirical findings. Using data from the National Survey of American Life (N = 3,570), we tested hypotheses derived from social identity theory and the internalized racism perspective. Findings support social identity theory in showing that African Americans strongly identify with their group and view it very positively. In addition, those who identify more with their group and evaluate it more positively have greater self-esteem, greater mastery, and fewer depressive symptoms. However, findings also support the internalized racism perspective by showing that when group evaluation is relatively negative, racial identification is related to lower mastery and higher depressive symptoms. We conclude that both social identity theory and the internalized racism perspective are necessary for understanding how racial identity is related to self-attitudes and mental health among African Americans.

Data from the 2001-2003National Survey of American Life are used to investigate the effects of phenotype on everyday experiences with discrimination among African Americans (N=3343). Latent class analysis is used to identify four classes of discriminatory treatment: 1) low levels of discrimination, 2) disrespect and condescension, 3) character-based discrimination, and 4) high levels of discrimination. We then employ latent class multinomial logistic regression to evaluate the association between skin tone and body weight and these four classes of discrimination. Designating the low level discrimination class as the reference group, findings revealed that respondents with darker skin were more likely to be classified into the disrespect/condescension and the high level microaggression types. BMI was unrelated to the discrimination type, although there was a significant interaction effect between gender and BMI. BMI was strongly and positively associated with membership in the disrespect and condescension type among men but not among women. These findings indicate that skin tone and body weight are two phenotypic characteristics that influence the type and frequency of discrimination experienced by African Americans.

Financial stress, which is common among African Americans, has been linked to higher psychological distress. This study examines whether racial identity moderates the association of financial stress with depressive symptoms. If so, through what mechanisms does it operate? We investigated these questions in a moderated mediation analysis, using data from the National Survey of American Life ( N = 3,570). Of the two racial identity dimensions examined, positive group evaluation but not closeness to other African Americans was associated with less adverse effects of financial stress on depressive symptoms. In addition, we tested two mechanisms that could explain the buffering effect. Psychological resources (self-esteem and, less consistently, mastery), explained 26% to 46% of the buffering effects of racial identity; family support explained 8%. That is, positive group evaluations fortify African Americans in the face of hard times. They do so primarily through their association with a greater sense of self-worth.

Hurricane Katrina constitutes the most costly natural as well as technology-induced disaster, in terms of both human suffering and financial loss in the history of the United States. Even years later, it continues to profoundly impact the livelihoods and the mental and physical health of those who have experienced evacuation and return and those who have begun lives anew elsewhere. Our study focuses on these geographical processes associated with the Katrina disaster experiences of African Americans and Vietnamese Americans comprising an overwhelming majority (93.4 percent) of residents in a racially mixed pre-Katrina eastern New Orleans neighborhood. We examine the spatial morphology of routes, volumes, and frequencies of evacuees; their return rates and experiences; and rationales and motivations to return or stay. The conceptual framework is based on the disaster migration, place attachment, and social network literature. Both quantitative and qualitative evidence indicates that the evacuation and retu...

Social stratification profoundly affects mental health. Specifically, substantial empirical evidence finds that higher status promotes mental health via a higher sense of control and a propensity to cope actively with problems. An unresolved issue, though, is whether the effects of sense of control and active coping on mental health are uniformly beneficial across levels of socioeconomic status. Perceived control and John Henryism, an active coping style, may undermine mental health, especially for lower-status persons, who lack resources. Using data from the National Comorbidity Survey for African Americans, Hispanics, and whites, we find that both sense of control and John Henryism tend to be monotonically related to positive mental health regardless of socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity.

This research adds to the literature seeking to clarify the social psychological mechanism through which self-esteem is related to physical health for African Americans. Specifically, this study investigates the relationships among self-esteem, happiness, and physical health limitations for a representative sample of African Americans. Utilizing the Broaden-and-Build Theory of Positive Emotions, these results indicate that the impact of self-esteem on physical health outcomes is mediated by happiness. Interestingly, the positive influence that happiness exerts on physical health is suppressed by age. This study suggests that positive emotions such as happiness are beneficial to outcomes such as physical health by transforming traits such as self-esteem into adaptive capability and personal resources that individuals can use to improve health outcomes.

The flooding of New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina on 29 August 2005 uncovered critical issues in local, state, and national strategies for emergency preparedness and disaster relief. The Katrina disaster reveals the persistent racial inequality and economic disparities in American society. This paper examines the pre-Katrina socio-spatial configuration of the African-American and Vietnamese-American communities in an eastern New Orleans suburb. Using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods to collect data and compare the two groups, our study reveals media are the first and foremost information sources for both groups. Many Katrina victims evacuated more than once, some not with their families during their first and subsequent relocations. However, the communities mobilized to provide intra- and inter-group self-help among families and relatives, friends and neighbors, while receiving assistance from community organizations, religious institutions, and the government. Compared to ...

Researchers often assume that the extent, quality, and effectiveness of personal relationships explain why African Americans have relatively good mental health despite experiencing high levels of stress. This study tests this assumption using data from the 1990–1992 National Comorbidity Survey. Few racial differences emerge in patterns of social relationships, and the nature and quality of social relationships do not explain African Americans’ resiliency on mental health. Several aspects of social relationships benefit African Americans’ mental health more than Whites’, but these moderating effects are insubstantial. Hence, the data do not support the assumption. If social relationships help explain the lack of racial differences in mental health, their nature and effects must be more adequately conceptualized.

This research examines the role of social capital and networks to explain the evacuation, relocation, and recovery experiences of a Vietnamese American community in New Orleans, Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. As the single largest community institution, the parish church’s complex bonding and bridging social capital and networks proved particularly critical in part because of its historically based ontological security. The process of evacuation, but especially relocation and recovery, was dependent on deploying co-ethnic social capital and networks at a variety of geographical scales. Beyond the local or community scale, extra-local, regional, and national scales of social capital and networks reproduced a spatially redefined Vietnamese American community. Part of the recovery process included constructing discursive place-based collective-action frames to successfully contest a nearby landfill that in turn engendered social capital and networks crossing ethnic boundaries to include the extra-local African American community. Engaging social capital and networks beyond the local geographical scale cultivated a Vietnamese American community with an emergent post-Katrina cultural and political identity.

Background: The flooding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina revealed the disproportionate vulnerability of ethnic minority communities for emergency preparedness, disaster relief and health. Nurses need to analyse Katrina's health consequences for the most vulnerable segments of our society. Aim: To examine factors contributing to differential health outcomes among the New Orleans Vietnamese community in response to Katrina. Methods: A sample of 113 adult Vietnamese Katrina survivors from New Orleans was recruited. A mixed-method approach, including survey and focus groups, was used to collect data. Survey questions were modified from standardized instruments to evaluate survivors' health status and factors contributing to health outcomes. Multivariate and content analysis were used to investigate effects of prior trauma, financial strain, social support and acculturation level in predicting survivors' health outcomes. Results: Findings suggested financial strain was the strongest risk factor for Vietnamese survivors' post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and physical and mental health post-disaster; while social support was a strong protective factor for health. Survivors who perceived higher impact from previous traumatic experiences had poorer physical health, but not PTSD symptoms or poor mental health after controlling for financial strain and social support, suggesting complex relationships among these measures in predicting PTSD symptoms and health. Less-acculturated individuals also reported higher levels of PTSD symptoms and poorer physical health. Conclusions: Catastrophic events like Katrina can result in disproportionate risk of negative health outcomes among vulnerable populations. Nurses should take into account prior trauma, financial strain, social support network and acculturation level, to adequately address survivors' needs.

As the floodwaters have receded from New Orleans and rebuilding has begun, new sto-ries of race relations have emerged and new histories are being written. One is the his-tory of a predominantly Catholic Vietnamese American community located in eastern New Orleans. Before Hurricane Katrina, Vietnamese Americans constituted less than 1.5 percent of the city’s population. Since Katrina, the small Vietnamese American com-munity in eastern New Orleans has received significant press coverage due to its mem-bers’ high rate of return and the rapid rebuilding of their community. This essay will explore how shared refugee experiences, the leadership role of the Catholic Church, and the historically specific circumstances of Vietnamese immigrant settlement in eastern New Orleans contributed to this community’s mobilization and empowerment. Some might attribute the community’s ability to recover so quickly to a strong work ethic and an innate identity—both features of the myth of Asian Americans as “model minorities.” That myth is a 1950s and 1960s construction that has since been deployed to justify racist assumptions about African Americans, Hispanics, and American Indians. It also obscures historical processes. This essay argues that the eastern New Orleans Vietnamese American community’s response to Katrina is clearly rooted in its particular history and collective memory. As the experience of the Vietnamese American community in Village de L’Est demonstrates, history and memory are more than analytical artifacts—they are political resources.

BACKGROUND : Few works have viewed disaster relief in the context of socioeconomic disparity and racial inequality before Katrina. OBJECTIVE : By using the vulnerable-populations conceptual framework, our study aimed to investigate the relationship among economic vulnerability, perceived discrimination, and health outcomes among 69 Black Katrina survivors in Eastern New Orleans. STUDY DESIGN : A mixed-method approach, including survey and focus groups, was applied to collect data. RESULTS : Our findings suggested that a higher level of perceived racial discrimination during Katrina and financial strain post-Katrina were associated with more posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms; support provided by network members served to enhance mental and physical health. Compared with Black males, female survivors reported more PTSD symptoms and worse mental health. CONCLUSIONS : It is imperative for nursing scholars and public policies to directly address the intricacies of race, class, and gender inequality to deliver interventions tailored to meet the unique needs of vulnerable populations. J Am Psychiatr Nurses Assoc, 2007; 13(5), 257-266. DOI: 10.1177/1078390307307260

This study examined the impact of everyday discrimination (both racial and non-racial) on the mental health of older African Americans.This analysis is based on the older African American subsample of the National Survey of American Life (NSAL) (n = 773). We examined the associations between everyday discrimination and both general distress and psychiatric disorders as measured by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Six dependent variables were examined: lifetime mood disorders, lifetime anxiety disorders, any lifetime disorder, number of lifetime disorders, depressive symptoms as measured by the 12-item Center for Epidemiological Scale of Depression (CES-D), and serious psychological distress as measured by the Kessler 6 (K6).Overall, racial and non-racial everyday discrimination were consistently associated with worse mental health for older African Americans. Older African Americans who experienced higher levels of overall everyday discrimination had higher odds of any psychiatric disorder, any lifetime mood disorder, any lifetime anxiety disorder, and more lifetime DSM-IV disorders, in addition to elevated levels of depressive symptoms and serious psychological distress. These findings were similar for both racial discrimination and non-racial discrimination.This study documents the harmful association of not only racial discrimination, but also non-racial (and overall) discrimination with the mental health of older African Americans. Specifically, discrimination is negatively associated with mood and anxiety disorders as well as depressive symptoms and psychological distress. Copyright © 2016 John WileySons, Ltd.

Although researchers often incorporate various measures of ethnicity and ethnic identity (EI) into research about substance use, the relationships among ethnicity, EI, and substance use remain unclear (Marsiglia, Kulis, & Hecht, 2001; Phinney, 1996). This paper explores whether ethnicity and three EI instruments are useful in predicting substance use outcomes among three samples of ethnically diverse middle school youth. Findings include that age, gender, and/or racial or ethnic group membership influenced the strength of EI and that age, sex, and strength of EI influence substance use norms and behaviors. In each case where significant effects were obtained, a stronger sense of EI as measured by two of the instruments predicted more negative attitudes toward, and less use of, alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana. Implications for preventing substance use among middle school youth by building on and strengthening ethnic identity are provided.

To investigate the use of alternative therapies among different racial/ethnic groups in the USA. Specifically, we examined whether alternative medicine use differs for working aged whites, Asian Americans, African Americans, and Hispanics.Using the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, racial differences in utilization were investigated at two levels: (1) the bivariate level with no controls for other factors and (2) at the multivariate level with controls for age, sex, region, marital status, education, income, health status, satisfaction with conventional healthcare, and access measures.Americans in this sample population used alternative and complementary therapies at a fairly low rate (6.5%). This 6.5%, however, was not consistent across all groups. African Americans and Hispanics were less likely than whites to utilize alternative therapies, whereas Asian Americans did not differ significantly from whites.The use of alternative and complementary therapies varied across racial/ ethnic groups. Evidence showed that individuals who were dissatisfied with the availability of conventional healthcare, who were in poor health, but very satisfied with their conventional provider were more likely to use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies. The addition of these variables to a logistic regression model did not change the findings for differential use by ethnicity, the relative ranking of groups, or the overall strength of the relationship.

Using the American Changing Lives Survey, a nationally representative sample of adults residing in the United States, this research examines housewives' subjective evaluations of their housework and the subjective evaluations of paid employment among three groups of married women--professionals, sales-clerical, and service-blue collar wives. A major goal was to assess the usefulness of disaggregating employed women by occupational status. Depressive symptoms were regressed on five work conditions--autonomy, physical and time demands, boredom, and feeling appreciated--along with sociodemographic characteristics. The results indicate professional wives report fewer symptoms than homemakers, sales-clerical, and service-blue collar wives. Differences between professionals and homemakers are largely accounted for by professional women's more advantaged economic position. Nonprofessional employed women are more depressed than professionals even when their disadvantaged working conditions are controlled. We discuss the findings in view of research on the stress of combining full-time employment with homemaking and argue that balancing these two roles may be more difficult for some employed women than for others.

Purpose: We investigated whether health status (i.e., need characteristics) and financial resources (i.e., enabling characteristics) were important predictors of two types of functional adaptations among elderly adults: home modifications such as putting nonslip tape on rugs or installing more telephones and use of equipment for mobility or activities of daily living (ADLs) such as canes or walkers. Design and Methods: Participants were identified from the National Survey of Self-Care and Aging ( n � 3,485), a nationally representative sample of noninstitutionalized U.S. adults aged 65 and older. Need and enabling characteristics were used to predict home modifications and equipment use in multinomial logistic analysis, controlling for predisposing characteristics. Results: Although several health-status (need) variables had significant, direct effects on functional adaptations, the effects of ADL limitations were diminished at higher levels of impairment. Among the financial (enabling) variables, subjective income measures and supplemental insurance had significant, direct effects on functional adaptations. Implications: Promotion of functional adaptations among elderly people may benefit from both a proactive approach that targets elders with few limitations and a consideration of financial factors in addition to health status.