2022/10/15 by Xiaowen Han, Jeylan T. Mortimer, Tom VanHeuvelen · 1 voice
Health Professions · Social Sciences · #Employment and Welfare Studies #Racial and Ethnic Identity Research #Health disparities and outcomes
paper · pdf · doi:10.1332/175795921x16615892091105
openalex publication_date 2022/10/15 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
Considerable evidence demonstrates that perceiving oneself as an object of discrimination has negative consequences for mental health. However, little is known about whether this experience is more or less harmful in distinct phases of the life course, consistent with the life course principle of timing; or whether, in accord with the principle of lifespan development, it has long-term implications. We draw on longitudinal data addressing perceived workplace discrimination based on race/ethnicity and gender from the prospective Youth Development Study, covering early adulthood to midlife. Hierarchical linear modelling of the effects of discrimination on depressed mood indicates that both forms of discrimination have short-term (within life stages) and long-term (across stages) adverse effects on adult mental health. The impacts of perceived discrimination within stages on depressed mood appear to be greatest in the mid-30s and to weaken by midlife. Lingering effects of discrimination are more pronounced early on. These patterns are observed with controls for key time-varying negative experiences at work and personal socio-economic status, as well as invariant background characteristics (gender, race and parental socio-economic status). We consider these findings in relation to the dynamics of personal change in the context of occupational careers.