Internalization of the model minority myth, school racial composition, and psychological distress among Asian American adolescents.

Abstract

The authors investigated the moderating effect of school racial composition in the relationship between internalization of the model minority myth and psychological distress among Asian American adolescents. The model minority myth is the stereotype of Asian Americans as more successful than other racial minority groups because of values emphasizing hard work, achievement, and belief in the "American dream" (Yoo, Burrola, & Steger, 2010). The following 2 aspects of this myth were assessed: the myth of achievement orientation (M-Achievement), the degree to which participants attribute Asian Americans' comparative success to achievement, and the myth of unrestricted mobility (M-Mobility), the degree to which participants believe Asian Americans have unrestricted upward mobility (Yoo et al., 2010). The sample included 367 Asian American adolescents (58% female, M age ϭ 16.33) attending two high schools-a predominantly Asian school on the West Coast and a predominantly non-Asian school in the Southwest. Data were analyzed using multiple group path analysis. Results indicated that Asian American adolescents in the predominantly non-Asian school were more likely to internalize the model minority myth than adolescents in the predominantly Asian school. Moreover, the school moderated the M-Mobility-psychological distress link. In summary, being in a predominantly Asian school was related to lower levels of internalization of the model minority myth. Furthermore, internalization of the myth of unrestricted mobility increased depression and anxiety for adolescents in the predominantly Asian school, whereas it decreased stress for adolescents living in the predominantly non-Asian school. Implications of these findings are discussed. What is the public significance of this article?The current study seeks to understand the role of context in internalizing the stereotype that Asian Americans face fewer barriers to success compared with other racial/ethnic minority groups. Results suggest that the extent to which Asian American adolescents internalize the stereotype and the relationship between internalization and psychological distress vary depending on the racial composition of their high school. These findings highlight the complexity of stereotype internalization for Asian Americans.

Impostor Feelings and Psychological Distress Among Asian Americans: Interpersonal Shame and Self-Compassion

“…For Asian Americans, failure to meet the educational expectations of this stereotype may result in feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, psychological distress, and suicide (Kim & Park, 2008). Atkin, Yoo, Jager, and Yeh (2018) recently reported that Asian Americans who internalize model minority stereotypes might feel burdened due to the pressure they feel to live up to societal expectations of being successful, intelligent, and hardworking. As a result, when Asian Americans receive praise for something they have accomplished, they might be afraid of not living up to others’ expectations of them (i.e., impostor feelings).…”

The role of school race/ethnic composition in mental health outcomes: A systematic literature review

“…Thirteen studies published over twenty-five years met inclusion criteria, an indication that more research is needed, particularly as schools are becoming more diverse yet segregated over time. The evidence thus far supports the protective association of having higher same-race/ethnic group density for all students, with the exception of one study (Atkin, 2018). In contrast, there was no overall strong evidence of mental health advantage in schools with greater diversity.…”

“…While the majority included high-school adolescent samples (n = 8), two studies sampled middle-and high-school students, and three studies included middle-school adolescents only. Five studies examined the effects of race/ethnic density in the U.S. with three using nationally representative school-based data-National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health; Crosnoe, 2009;Walsemann et al, 2011) and Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (Coutinho, Oswald, & Forness, 2002), and two using convenience samples among adolescent girls of African descent (Seaton & Carter, 2018) and Asian-American adolescents (Atkin, 2018). Three studies examined density effects using European data sources (Astell-Burt, Maynard, Lenguerrand, & Harding, 2012;Eilbracht, Stevens, Wigman, van Dorsselaer, & Vollebergh, 2015;Gieling, 2010).…”

“…Another study tested the ethnic density hypothesis uniquely among Asian American high-school students (Atkin, 2018) assessing if school race/ethnic composition moderates the relationship between a student's internalization of the model minority stereotype, the belief that Asian Americans have higher achievement and better upward mobility, and psychological distress, measured using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale. The study found that overall the internalization of the model minority stereotype was more often supported among Asian American students in predominantly non-Asian schools compared to majority-Asian schools net of household socioeconomic status.…”

Nationality as an Influential Variable with Regard to the Social Skills and Academic Success of Immigrant Students

“…Unlike the previous ones, in this group, no connection difficulties have been observed, although their parents' understanding of the language has. However, in this situation, above all, it has affected the socialization of Asian students, who were already characterized by having poor social skills [79]. This has been associated with few interactions in the different schools' digital media [80].…”