Even more to handle: Additional sources of stress and trauma for clients from marginalized racial and ethnic groups in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT

In addition the general stressors occurring as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals who are members of marginalized racial or ethnic minority groups in the United States may face additional stressors, such as pandemic-related, racially-based prejudice and discrimination and the magnification of pre-existing health disparities and their effects. Such stressors may increase pandemic-related and general health risks both directly and indirectly and increase the risk for both general and traumatic stress. These stressors and their historical and social contexts are discussed, and implications for clinicians are provided.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• pandemic
• race
• ethnicity
• health disparities
• discrimination

Disclosure statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report.

Additional information

Funding

No outside funding was used for this project.

Notes on contributors

Emily M. Lund

Emily M. Lund, PhD, CRC, is an Assistant Professor of Counselor Education in the department of Educational Studies in Psychology, Research Methodology, and Counseling at the University of Alabama.  Her primary research interests include interpersonal violence and trauma, especially in people with disabilities; suicide and non-suicidal self-injury, especially in people with disabilities; the experiences of counseling and psychology graduate students with disabilities; and LGBTQ+ issues, including their intersection with disability. She has published and presented extensively on these topics and currently has over 75 peer-reviewed publications. She is an editor of the books, Religion, Disability, and Interpersonal Violence (2017) and Violence against LGBTQ+ Persons: Research, Practice, and Advocacy (in press), both published by Springer.