The Influence of Internalized Racism on the Relationship between Racial Discrimination and Depressive and Anxiety Symptom Distress

The current study used three waves of data to longitudinally examine whether internalized racism moderated and/or mediated the association between racial discrimination and depressive and anxiety symptom distress. Participants were 155 Black college students attending a predominantly White institution who completed measures of racial discrimination, internalized racism, and mental health symptom distress. Using hierarchical linear regression and auto-regressive cross-lagged models, results indicated that certain dimensions of internalized racism moderated, but did not mediate, the link between racial discrimination and psychological symptom distress. Specifically, there was a positive association between racial discrimination and Wave 3 somatization symptom distress for individuals with low levels of alteration of physical appearance. There was also a positive association between racial discrimination and Wave 2 anxiety for individuals with high levels of internalization of negative stereotypes. Clinical implications for the treatment of Black college students are discussed.Master of Art