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ViewAttendees 4

Symposia

Racial Trauma

Raising our Voices to the Concealment and Minimization of Racial Trauma: Experiences of Police Brutality, Colorism, Racial Gaslighting and Gun Violence

4 - (SYM 132) The Development and Validation of a Perceived Within-group Racial Discrimination Measure Among Latino Adults

Sunday, November 17, 2024
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM EST
Location: Franklin 10, Level 4, Marriott Downtown
Abstract Body
Discrimination poses significant mental health risks, particularly among marginalized groups such as Latinxs living in the United States. While the effects of discrimination from out-group members are well-documented, less is known about within-group discrimination and its impact on mental health. Existing research highlights the detrimental effects of within-group discrimination on mental health outcomes such as depression, anxiety, and substance use. Previous studies have primarily focused on colorism within African American communities or have focused on acculturation-related discrimination among Latinxs rather than racial discrimination. Latinxs in the United States report the existence of within-group colorism as well 

as other forms of discrimination based on phenotypic characteristics like hair texture and facial features. Further, colorism has been linked to various adverse outcomes such as job opportunities, income disparities, and educational attainment among Latino individuals. Despite recent attention in the media, research investigating the impact of within-group racial discrimination on Latino mental health remains limited. This study develops a measure to assess within-group racial discrimination among Latinx adults. While existing measures of discrimination capture frequency and intensity, they often fail to distinguish between in-group and out-group perpetrators. This research develops a comprehensive measure of within-group racial discrimination among Latinx adults. Employing a mixed methods design, we conduct three studies consisting of: (1) a focus group of 19 Latinx adults, using grounded theory to create an initial item pool; (2) 13 cognitive interviews to refine the initial item pool; (3) an online study with 300 Latinx adults to assess the validation of the set of items in the proposed measure using confirmatory factor analyses. Our measure represents a novel tool capturing the frequency to which Latinx adults experience within-group racial discrimination and promotes a better understanding of the nuanced impact of within-group discrimination on Latinx mental health and may help practitioners provide more culturally responsive treatment services to Latinx adults.