Reconceptualizing Mental Health Through a Critical Race Theory Lens: Students of Color Experiences With Microaggressions

• In Event: 25.050 - Nuancing Research on Difference and Marginalization in Higher Education: Studies That Complicate Investigation of Inequities

Abstract

For undergraduate students of color attending predominantly white institutions (PWI), experiences with racial microaggressions can exacerbate typical psychosocial stressors resulting in significant psychological distress that jeopardizes their mental health and academic success. The purpose of this presentation is to share a study that gives voice to students of color attending a PWI and captures the essence of their lived experiences (Moustakas, 1994). This qualitative study, a mixture of focus groups and individual semi-structured interviews with twenty students, conducted from a phenomenological approach, occurs within the social context of a higher education setting in the northeast region at a medium sized university that is also a PWI. This study was conducted on campus following a period of extreme levels of stress related to racial tensions on campus and a number of traumatic student incidents (non-related) that heightened campus security and challenged perceptions of safety. The theoretical framework offered to examine the intersectionality of race, gender and endemic racism was critical race theory (CRT) (Delgado & Stefancic, 2001). As an empirical study, the phenomenological approach applied pairs well with the underpinnings of CRT as both frameworks provide a perspective to articulate and deconstruct the pathology of systemic racism through a lens that magnifies the consequential effects of racial microaggressions and the psychological distress experienced by students of color (Brown, 2008; Huber & Solorzano, 2015). These themes manifested in the findings from this study indicating that students of color reported feelings related to vulnerability resulting in high levels of stress. They also related academic experiences with examples of being ignored, demeaned and negatively stereotyped as unintelligent. In addition, students reported feeling perceived as dangerous or a threat to others based on the treatment received by white peers, faculty, and/or staff. Racial microaggressions are layered verbal and nonverbal assaults towards People of Color (Pérez Huber & Solorzano, 2015). Students that experienced microaggressions reported feeling a host of impostor feelings including isolation, self-doubt, anxiousness, and frustration. Studies indicate that cultural distrust and stigma associated with mental illness are barriers that prevent students of color from seeking help for relief (Barksdale & Molock, 2008; Hunt, Eisenberg, Lu, & Gathright, 2015). The lack of mental health treatment may result in escalation of symptoms associated with anxiety and depression (Bynum, Burton, & Best, 2007; Lindsey, Barksdale, Lambert, & Ialongo, 2010). The findings from this study adds new relevance to extant literature by recognizing how students of color define their own mental health and how the definition of mental health is shaped by race, racism, and gender. I argue for the need to promote safe spaces on campuses where students can heal from racial trauma by receiving culturally appropriate counseling that will validate and promote strategies for self-care to support mental and physical well-being. The World Health Organization (2016) states a key fact that “there is no health without mental health” (p. 1). Racial microaggressions can place the mental health of students of color at risk and impact the racial climate on college campuses (Yosso, Smith, Ceja, & Solorzano, 2009).

Author

• Ada Robinson-Perez, Binghamton University - SUNY