Does purpose in life or ethnic identity moderate the association for racial discrimination and suicide ideation in racial/ethnic minority emerging adults?

Abstract

Objective: To examine purpose in life (PIL) and ethnic identity (EI) as buffers to suicide ideation for Asian American, Hispanic, and Black emerging adults who perceive racial discrimination. Method: Two-hundred eighty-nine undergraduate students enrolled at a large university in the southwestern region of the United States (40.8% Asian American, 32.5% Hispanic, 26.6% Black; 61.2% women; mean age ϭ 20.47, SD ϭ 1.83) reported on experiences of racial discrimination, PIL, EI, and suicidal thoughts. Covariates were intrinsic religiosity, gender, and age. Results: Regression analysis showed that EI was not a significant moderator for the association between perceived racial discrimination (PRD) and suicidal ideation (␤ ϭ Ϫ.08, p ϭ .13; 95% confidence interval (CI) [Ϫ.19, .03]). However, PIL was a significant moderator (␤ ϭ Ϫ.11, p ϭ .025; CI [Ϫ.20, Ϫ.01]). A hierarchical regression showed that PIL as a moderator explained additional variance (⌬R 2 ϭ 0.11, p Ͻ .001) in suicide ideation above and beyond EI. Conclusions: These findings provide some insight into how life purpose might ameliorate the impact of social stressors above and beyond a positive cultural identity for young racial/ethnic minority adults.

Racial discrimination, coping, and suicidal ideation in Chinese immigrants.

“…Perhaps other factors not included in this study may play a moderating role in the relationship between racial discrimination and suicidal ideation among Chinese immigrants. Previous evidence suggests that factors such as religious beliefs and purpose in life may buffer the adverse effects of discrimination on suicidal ideation in racial/ethnic minority adults (Hong et al, 2018; Walker et al, 2014). Future research is needed to identify protective factors that can mitigate the effects of racial discrimination on suicidal ideation among Chinese immigrants, so that we can develop more responsive, effective prevention and intervention services for the U.S. Chinese community.…”

Suicidal behaviour among university students: a systematic review

“…Age emerged as one of the most prominent demographic features, especially the transition stage from school to university (Conley et al, 2014). Female students were more at risk for suicide attempts than male students (Bantjes et al, 2019; Hong et al, 2018; Loftis et al, 2019; Miletic et al, 2015; Sivertsen et al, 2019). However, Bantjes, Breet, Saal, Lochner, Roos, Taljaard, Mortier, Auerbach, Bruffaerts, Kessler, and Stein (2020) report a significantly lower likelihood of males seeking professional treatment than females, placing them at greater risk of suicide attempts.…”

“…Substantial psychological, social, and behavioural factors inherent in university students were reported as protective factors. Psychological factors included the creation of a positive self-identity, self-compassion (Hasking et al, 2019), unified sense of self (Gnan et al, 2019), finding meaning and purpose in life (Hong et al, 2018), satisfaction with life (Taylor et al, 2020), and mindfulness (Fang et al, 2019). Furthermore, exposure to resilience and conflict management programmes reduced suicide rumination when experiencing difficulties (Bruns & Letcher, 2018; Kratovic et al, 2020; Mitsui et al, 2018).…”

Suicide in African American Adolescents: Understanding Risk by Studying Resilience

“…Tests of the association between racial-ethnic identity and suicidality, specifically, have largely been conducted during emerging adulthood, and these results support the hypothesis that racial-ethnic identity serves a protective role-often attenuating the risk for suicidal thoughts and behaviors conferred by exposure to racism and discrimination. For example, Hong et al (2018) tested the protective effects of ethnic identity and purposefulness in a sample of 289 college students (40.8% Asian, 32.5% Latinx, and 26.6% African American). Suicidal ideation was positively associated with perceived racism and negatively associated with purpose in life, ethnic identity, and religiosity.…”