What Mediates the Relationship Between Ethnic Discrimination and Stress? Coping Strategies and Perceived Social Support of Russian Immigrants in Germany

Abstract

Objective: Experiences of ethnic discrimination may constitute major stressors for ethnic minority groups. This study examined the associations between different forms of ethnic discrimination and levels of perceived stress in Russian immigrants living in Germany, taking into account potential moderating (in-group identification) and mediating (coping and social support) factors. Methods: Russian immigrants (N = 308) were assessed using online questionnaires (e.g., perceived stress scale, behaviors from intergroup affect and stereotype treatment scale, and brief COPE). Three forms of ethnic discrimination were examined: active harm (e.g., open aggression), passive harm (e.g., paternalistic behavior), and everyday discrimination (e.g., receiving poor service). Moderation by in-group identification and mediation via coping and social support were tested. Results: Passive harm was more prevalent than everyday discrimination and active harm. Passive harm and everyday discrimination were associated with higher perceived stress (rs = .22 and .18, ps <.01), and in-group identification did not moderate these associations (ps >.27). The coping strategy self-blame mediated the association between active harm and stress. Substance use and self-blame mediated the association between passive harm and stress, whereas venting, behavioral disengagement, denial, self-blame, and social support mediated the association between everyday discrimination and stress. A direct effect remained for passive harm and everyday discrimination. Conclusion: The present study revealed that Russian immigrants encounter different forms of ethnic discrimination, and that this is associated with higher levels of stress. This association was partly explained by coping and social support, illustrating possibilities for interventions aimed at improving the use of adaptive coping strategies and promoting social support-seeking for Russian immigrants.

Racial and Gender Discrimination Predict Mental Health Outcomes among Healthcare Workers Beyond Pandemic-Related Stressors: Findings from a Cross-Sectional Survey

“…Our findings support the social causation model, which theorizes that experiencing discrimination damages social connections, leading to heightened psychological distress [9,10]. Other studies have also identified that race-based and mental illness-based discrimination had indirect effects on mental health outcomes through social support [10,46,47]. Although no studies to our knowledge have tested this model among HCWs, qualitative studies have identified that minority and female HCWs face discrimination in terms of social exclusion and isolation [30,48] that could prevent them from accessing the mental health benefits of social support.…”

Mediating and moderating effects of perceived social support on the relationship between discrimination and well-being: A study of South Koreans living in Japan

“…Enriched Social Support Inventory (ESSI, Mitchell et al, 2003 ) consists of 7 items; however, we selected 6 items measuring perceived availability of social support excluding an item asking marriage status ( Goreis et al, 2020 ). The scale asks about the availability of anybody regardless of ethnic groups who can help around the individual, not specific others like partners or friends (e.g., “ Is there someone available to give you good advice about a problem?…”

“…On the other hand, the mediating role of perceived social support is little investigated. Interestingly, Goreis et al (2020) identifies social support not moderating but mediating between discrimination and psychological distress among Russian immigrants in Germany. The study suggests that those who face discrimination tend to perceive social support less available, which leads to increase in distress.…”

“…However, this moderation is inconclusive. For example, some studies report no supportive findings with Russian immigrants in Germany ( Goreis et al, 2020 ) or Muslim women in New Zealand ( Jasperse et al, 2012 ). To our knowledge, however, the relationships have been rarely examined East Asian minorities.…”

Aetiological research on the health of migrants living in Germany: a systematic literature review

“…Another study reported that migrant females are mostly confronted by complicated patterns of health problems associated with social deprivation and traditional cultural values, which may conflict with the host nation’s norms, and thus, results in inferior self-esteem and ambiguity of feelings 100. In this SLR, the ability to identify sociocultural risk factors among ageing migrants was limited to three studies, focusing on perceived discrimination 103 104. It is therefore important that more robust research is done to address the importance of traditions and norms for health among ageing migrants 101…”