The compounded effect of the dual pandemic on ethnic-racial minority adolescents' mental health and psychosocial well-being

• Published in: Current opinion in psychology Vol. 52; p. 101626
• Main Authors: Eboigbe, Loretta I., Simon, Carlisa B., Wang, Yuqi S., Tyrell, Fanita A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier Ltd 01.08.2023
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; COVID-19; Dual pandemic; Ethnic and Racial Minorities; Ethnic-racial minority; Humans; Mental Health; Pandemics; Racial discrimination; Review; Social Identification; Dual pandemic; Ethnic-racial minority; Adolescents; Racial discrimination; Mental health
• ISSN: 2352-250X; 2352-2518; 2352-250X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2023.101626

During the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. youth faced various stressors that affected their schooling experiences, social relationships, family dynamics, and communities. These stressors negatively impacted youths' mental health. Compared to White youths, ethnic-racial minority youths were disproportionately affected by COVID-19-related health disparities and experienced elevated worry and stress. In particular, Black and Asian American youths faced the compounded effects of a dual pandemic due to their navigation of both COVID-19-related stressors and increased exposure to racial discrimination and racial injustice, which worsened their mental health outcomes. However, protective processes such as social support, ethnic-racial identity, and ethnic-racial socialization emerged as mechanisms that attenuated the effects of COVID-related stressors on ethnic-racial youths’ mental health and promoted their positive adaptation and psychosocial well-being.