Perceived discrimination and mental health in college students: A serial indirect effects model of mentoring support and academic self-concept

Abstract

Objective

Examine the direct and indirect effects of perceived discrimination, mentoring support, and academic self-concept on college student mental health.

Participants

Three hundred fifteen undergraduates of minorized gender (72%), ethnic (57%), and sexual (37%) identities.

Methods

An online survey assessed perceived discrimination, mentoring support, academic self-concept, and mental health.

Results

Perceived discrimination was associated with mentoring support (B=-0.11, p=.019), academic self-concept (B=-0.13, p<.001), and mental health (B=-0.15, p<.001). Additionally, mentoring support (B = 0.29, p<.001) and academic self-concept (B = 0.53, p<.001) were associated with mental health, and each other (B = 0.25, p<.001). Significant indirect effects were observed such that mentoring support and academic self-concept, individually and collectively, contributed to the association between perceived discrimination and mental health.

Conclusions

Addressing discrimination, creating supportive relationships, and facilitating academic growth may reduce mental health concerns in undergraduate populations, thereby having implications for college transition and retention strategies.

Keywords:

• Academic self-concept
• college students
• mental health
• mentoring support
• perceived discrimination

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of Haverford College.

Author note

Data collection and preliminary analysis were sponsored by the Department of Psychology at Haverford College. We have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Notes

† The term “minoritized” refers to people who are mistreated or discriminated against for their different identities (e.g., gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation) based on systems of oppression, whereas the term “minority” refers to people of a certain identity group which is numerically smaller than the majority group in society³. A minoritized identity may comprise a large portion of a population (constituting a “majority” status) and continue to be marginalized. Therefore, we use the term “minoritized” to highlight the social contexts, rather than statistics, which fuel the marginalization of non-male, non-White, and non-heterosexual identities.