Poster #72 - Discrimination and Adjustment in Chinese American Adolescents: Moderation by Ethnic Identity and Cultural Orientation

• In Event: Poster Session 03

Abstract

An emerging body of research has shown that racial and ethnic discrimination is a salient experience for Chinese American adolescents, despite the positive image portrayed by the “model minority” stereotype (Qin et al., 2008). In samples of Chinese American (CA) adolescents, greater perceived discrimination is linked to increased adjustment problems (Benner & Kim, 2009; Juang & Alvarez, 2010). However, the strength of the link between discrimination and adjustment outcomes may depend upon several moderator variables, including ethnic identity and cultural orientations. Although some studies have found that ethnic identity buffers the negative effects of perceived discrimination for CA adolescents ( Rivas-Drake et al., 2008), other studies have shown that ethnic identity exacerbates the discrimination-adjustment link (Yip et al., 2008). A similar pattern of mixed findings is observed in research investigating how cultural orientations – the degree of engagement in cultural behaviors and practices – moderate associations between discrimination and adjustment. Greater Chinese cultural orientation has been found to be both a protective and vulnerability factor for mental health in the context of discrimination (Deng et al., 2010; Juang & Cookston, 2009). Some studies have shown that CA youth with greater American cultural orientations exhibit stronger associations between discrimination and adjustment (Benner & Kim, 2009), although other research suggests the opposite pattern (Deng et al., 2010). These discrepant findings on ethnic identity and cultural orientations might be explained by differences in sample characteristics, and therefore warrant further investigation and replication.
The first aim of the present study is to examine concurrent links between discrimination and adjustment (internalizing symptoms and externalizing symptoms) in a sample of first- and second-generation CA adolescents (15-18 years) from immigrant families (N=141). The second and third aims are to test the roles of ethnic identity and cultural orientations (Chinese and American) respectively as moderators of these associations. All measures were collected using youth self-report questionnaires, and youth’s parents additionally reported on internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Results replicated prior work in showing that greater self-reports of discrimination were associated with greater youth-reported internalizing symptoms (β=.19, p=.037). Greater discrimination was correlated with greater youth-reported externalizing symptoms (r=.20, p=.023), although this link was no longer significant when controlling for parental education. Ethnic identity moderated the link between discrimination and externalizing symptoms (p=.013) – a significant association was only observed for individuals who reported a strong ethnic identity. American cultural orientation moderated the link between discrimination and internalizing symptoms (p=.040), such that stronger associations were observed for those with greater orientation to American culture.
Taken together, these results replicate prior work in showing that racial discrimination remains a significant risk factor for CA adolescent mental health. Our findings suggest that greater ethnic identity and greater orientation to the mainstream (American) culture may render the effects of discrimination more potent for individuals. Overall, this study contributes to a better understanding of the complex interaction between racial, ethnic, and cultural factors in predicting concurrent psychological adjustment in CA adolescents, one of the largest and fastest growing immigrant subgroups.

Authors

• Stephanie Haft, University of California - Berkeley
  Presenting Author

• Kathryn Heine, University of California - Berkeley

• Qing Zhou, University of California - Berkeley