Abstract
This meta-analysis systematically reviewed 242 studies (1805 effect sizes) published between 1998 and 2015 and examined the correlations between racial discrimination, health (physical health, mental health, and substance use), and cultural outcomes (acculturation, racial identity, collective self-esteem, ethnic identity, and racial socialization) among racial-ethnic minority Americans. The relationships between several moderators were examined (e.g., gender, race) using subgroup analyses and meta-regression. The meta-analysis was conducted using Fisher’s Z with a robust variance estimation method that accounted for the dependence among correlations in the same study. Findings suggest that the direct overall relationship between racial discrimination, health, and culture was strongest for mental health (r = .207), then substance use (r = .159), culture (r = .101), and physical health (r = .067); findings were confirmed by a meta-regression that controlled for several variables. Findings also indicated that convenience samples yielded higher correlations compared to national probability samples, and Asian and Native American racial groups had stronger effects from racial discrimination than did blacks. Race, gender, and measurement characteristics are discussed, as well as research, and educational and clinical implications.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ahn, S., Ames, A. J., & Myers, N. D. (2012). A review of meta-analyses in education: Methodological strengths and weaknesses. Review of Educational Research, 82(4), 436–476.
Borenstein, M., Hedges, L. V., Higgins, J. P., & Rothstein, H. R. (2005). Comprehensive meta-analysis (Version 2.2.027) [Computer software]. Englewood: Biostat, Inc.
Borenstein, M., Hedges, L. V., Higgins, J. P., & Rothstein, H. R. (2009). Introduction to meta-analysis. London: Wiley.
Borrell, L. N., Jacobs, D. R., Williams, D. R., Pletcher, M. J., Houston, T. K., & Kiefe, C. I. (2007). Self-reported racial discrimination and substance use in the coronary artery risk development in adults study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 166(9), 1068–1079. https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwm180.
Britt-Spells, A. M., Slebodnik, M., Sands, L. P., & Rollock, D. (2016). Effects of perceived discrimination on depressive symptoms among Black men residing in the United States: A Meta-Analysis. American Journal of Men's Health, 12(1), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/1557988315624509.
Campon, R., & Carter, R. T. (2015). The appropriated racial oppression scale: Development and preliminary validation. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 21(4), 497–506.
Carter, R. T. (2007). Racism and psychological and emotional injury recognizing and assessing race-based traumatic stress. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(1), 13–105. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000006292033.
Carter, R. T., Lau, M. Y., Johnson, V., & Kirkinis, K. (2017). Racial discrimination and health outcomes among racial/ethnic minorities: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Multicultural Counseling & Development, 45(4), 232–259.
Clark, R., Anderson, N. B., Clark, V. R., & Williams, D. R. (1999). Racism as a stressor for African Americans: A biopsychosocial model. American Psychologist, 54(10), 805–816. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.54.10.805.
Duval, S., & Tweedie, R. (2000). Trim and fill: a simple funnel plot–based method of testing and adjusting for publication bias in meta-analysis. Biometrics, 56(2), 455–463.
Earnshaw, V. A., Rosenthal, L., Carroll-Scott, A., Santilli, A., Gilstad-Hayden, K., & Ickovics, J. R. (2015). Everyday discrimination and physical health: Exploring mental health processes. Journal of Health Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105315572456.
Feagin, J. R. (2006). Systemic Racism: A Theory of Oppression. New York: Routledge.
Fisher, Z., & Tipton, E. (2015). Robumeta: An R-package for robust variance estimation in meta- analysis. arXiv preprint arXiv.1503.02220.
Forsyth, J., & Carter, R. T. (2012). The Influence of racial identity status attitudes and racism-related coping on mental health among Black Americans. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 18(2), 128–140.
Hedges, L. V., & Olkin, I. (1985). Statistical methods for meta-analysis. Orlando: Academic Press.
Hedges, L. V., Tipton, E., & Johnson, M. C. (2010). Robust variance estimation in meta- regression with dependent effect size estimates. Research Synthesis Methods, 1(1), 39–65.
Hunte, H. E., & Barry, A. E. (2012). Perceived discrimination and DSM-IV–based alcohol and illicit drug use disorders. American Journal of Public Health, 102(12), e111–e117. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2012.300780.
Jones, K. P., Peddie, C. I., Gilrane, V. L., King, E. B., & Gray, A. L. (2013). Not so subtle a meta-analytic investigation of the correlates of subtle and overt discrimination. Journal of Management. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206313506466.
Kalaian, H. A., & Raudenbush, S. W. (1996). A multivariate mixed linear model for meta-analysis. Psychological Methods, 1(3), 227–235.
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal and coping. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.
Lee, D. L., & Ahn, S. (2011). Racial discrimination and Asian mental health: A meta-analysis. The Counseling Psychologist, 39(3), 463–489. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000010381791.
Lee, D. L., & Ahn, S. (2012). Discrimination against Latina/os: A meta-analysis of individual- level resources and outcomes. The Counseling Psychologist, 40(1), 28–65. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000011403326.
Lee, D. L., & Ahn, S. (2013). The relation of racial identity, ethnic identity, and racial socialization to discrimination–distress: A meta-analysis of Black Americans. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 60(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031275.
Lipsey, M. W. & Wilson, D. B. (2002). Practical meta-analyses. Thousand Oaks, CA.
Mak, W. W., Cheung, F. M., & Leung, F. (2012). Somatoform disorders in Asians. In E.C. Chang (Ed.), Handbook of adult psychopathology in Asians: Theory, diagnosis, and treatment (pp. 179–203). New York: Oxford University Press, Inc.
Marger, M. (2015). Race and ethnic relations: American and global perspectives (10th ed.). Stamford: Cengage Learning.
Matt, G. E., & Cook, T. D. (2009). Threats to the validity of generalized inferences. In H. Cooper, L. V. Hedges, & J. C. Valentine (Eds.), The handbook of research synthesis and meta-analysis (pp. 537–560). New York, NY, US: Russell Sage Foundation.
Orwin, R. G. (1983). A fail-safe N for effect size in meta-analysis. Journal of Educational Statistics, 8, 157–159.
Paradies, Y., Ben, J., Denson, N., Elias, A., Priest, N., Pieterse, A., … Gee, G. (2015). Racism as a determinant of health: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS ONE, 10(9), e0138511. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0138511.
Paradies, Y. C. (2006). Defining, conceptualizing and characterizing racism in health research. Critical Public Health, 16(2), 143–157. https://doi.org/10.1080/09581590600828881.
Pascoe, E. A., & Smart Richman, L. (2009). Perceived discrimination and health: A meta- analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 135(4), 531–554. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0016059.
Pieterse, A. L., Todd, N. R., Neville, H. A., & Carter, R. T. (2012). Perceived racism and mental health among Black American adults: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 59(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026208.
Polanin, J. R. (2013). Addressing the issue of meta-analysis multiplicity in education and psychology. Doctoral Dissertation.
R Core Team. (2014). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna: R Foundation for Statistical Computing.
Raudenbush, S. W., Becker, B. J., & Kalaian, H. (1988). Modeling multivariate effect sizes. Psychological Bulletin, 103(1), 111–120.
Schmitt, M. T., Branscombe, N. R., Postmes, T., & Garcia, A. (2014). The consequences of perceived discrimination for psychological well-being: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 140(4), 921–948.
Shavers, V. L., Klein, W. M., & Fagan, P. (2012). Research on race/ethnicity and health care discrimination: Where we are and where we need to go. American Journal of Public Health, 102(5), 930–932. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2012.300708.
Smedley, B. D. (2012). The lived experience of race and its health consequences. American Journal of Public Health. 102(5), 933–935. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2011.300643http://10.5665%2Fsleep.3326.
Tipton, E. (2015). Small sample adjustments for robust variance estimation with meta- regression. Psychological Methods, 20(3), 375–393. https://doi.org/10.1037/met0000011.
Triana, M. D. C., Jayasinger, M., & Pieper, J. R. (2015). Perceived racial discrimination and its correlates: A meta-analyses. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36(1), 491–513.
Van den Noortgate, W., Lopez-Lopez, J., Marin-Martinez, F., & Sanchez-Meca, J. (2013). Three level meta-analysis of dependent effect sizes. Behavior Research Methods, 45(2), 576–594.
Williams, D. R. & Mohammed, S. A. (2009). Discrimination and racial disparities in health: Evidence and needed research. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 32(1), 20–58.
Williams, D. R., & Mohammed, S. A. (2013a). Racism and health I: Pathways and scientific evidence. American Behavioral Scientist, 57(8), 1152–1173. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764213487340.
Williams, D. R., & Mohammed, S. A. (2013b). Racism and health ll: A needed research agenda for effective interventions. American Behavioral Scientist, 58(8), 1200–1226. https://doi.org/10.1177//0002764213487341.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Appendix C
Appendix C
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Carter, R.T., Johnson, V.E., Kirkinis, K. et al. A Meta-Analytic Review of Racial Discrimination: Relationships to Health and Culture. Race Soc Probl 11, 15–32 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12552-018-9256-y
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12552-018-9256-y