Activism, social support, and trump-related distress: Exploring associations with mental health.

Abstract

The current study investigated whether distress related to the Trump presidency, activism, and peer social support may directly or interactively influence minoritized college students' symptoms of anxiety and depression. In particular, the current study sought to identify whether peer support may moderate the interaction between Trump-related distress and activism such that when peer support is low, activism may exacerbate the negative effects of Trump-related distress on students' mental health; however, when peer support is high, activism may mitigate the negative effects of Trump-related distress on students' mental health. Participants in the current study included 319 college students attending a predominantly White institution in the Southeastern U.S. Students were eligible to participate in the study if they were either firstgeneration college students, students from historically underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups, or students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Although results were not suggestive of interactive effects, results indicated that greater Trump-related distress and more engagement in activism were associated with increases in students' symptoms of anxiety. The results of the current study suggest additional resources may need to be deployed by institutions and students' support networks to bolster their psychological health in the context of Trump-related distress and their engagement in activism.

Development and validation of the Trans and Nonbinary Coping Measure (TNCM): A measure of trans and nonbinary specific ways of coping with gender-related stress.

“…Although activism can help individuals harbor a sense of personal agency and resilience, it can also incur a psychological cost. Recent research on activism and stress and anxiety supports our results demonstrating a positive relation, yet the same studies point to the importance of activism for creating a sense of agency for TNB individuals in the face of discrimination (see Albright & Hurd, 2021; Bockting et al, 2020; Valente et al, 2020). The correlational relation between the Social Activism subscale and mental health may be too simplistic to capture the nuance of the effect of social activism.…”

Associations between emotional responses to the Trump presidency and activism among underrepresented college students

“…Findings from the current study may offer a starting point to guide future research focused on how emotional responses to political events may influence participation in various types of activism. Being subject to unjust sociopolitical circumstances might motivate people to engage in activism despite possible risks to their wellbeing and the significant time, energy, and tangible resources required for their endeavors (Albright & Hurd, 2021). Students may, in part, participate in activism in response to the ways they feel they might be impacted by the forces they are resisting.…”

“…Participants in the current study included 303 How to cite this article: Albright, J. N., & Hurd, N. M. (2021). Associations between emotional responses to the Trump presidency and activism among underrepresented college students.…”

Resisting and countering online racial hate: Antiracism advocacy and coping online with racism as moderators of distress associated with online racism.

“…Similarly, Alexander et al (2022) found that emotional distress was associated with mental health symptomatology only when Black individuals reported low levels of engagement in institutional antiracist advocacy (i.e., participation in political activities such as calling governmental representatives). In another study that considered institutional antiracist advocacy in terms of traditional political activities, Albright and Hurd (2021) found that more frequent engagement was associated with more symptoms of anxiety (77% racially/ ethnically minoritized college sample). However, antiracist advocacy was not a significant moderator in the association between Trump-related distress following the 2016 election and mental health symptomatology (Albright & Hurd, 2021).…”

“…In another study that considered institutional antiracist advocacy in terms of traditional political activities, Albright and Hurd (2021) found that more frequent engagement was associated with more symptoms of anxiety (77% racially/ethnically minoritized college sample). However, antiracist advocacy was not a significant moderator in the association between Trump-related distress following the 2016 election and mental health symptomatology (Albright & Hurd, 2021). It may be that engagement in antiracist advocacy can leave racially/ethnically minoritized individuals feeling empowered, agentic, and purposeful but institutional forms may especially increase worry and be burdensome, especially in the absence of successful social change (Albright & Hurd, 2021; Ballard et al, 2019; Conner et al, 2023).…”