Pathways between perceived discrimination and health among immigrants: evidence from a large national panel survey in Germany

Abstract

Objective. Discrimination is an important determinant of health, and its experience may contribute to the emergence of health inequalities between immigrants and nonimmigrants. We examine pathways between perceived discrimination and health among immigrants in Germany: (1) whether perceptions of discrimination predict self-reported mental and physical health (SF-12), or (2) whether poor mental and physical health predict perceptions of discrimination, and (3) whether discrimination affects physical health via mental health.

Design. Data on immigrants come from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) from the years 2002 to 2010 (N = 8,307), a large national panel survey. Random and fixed effects regression models have been estimated.

Results. Perceptions of discrimination affect mental and physical health. The effect of perceived discrimination on physical health is mediated by its effect on mental health. Our analyses do not support the notion that mental and physical health predict the subsequent reporting of discrimination. Different immigrant groups are differentially exposed to perceived discrimination.

Conclusion. In spite of anti-discrimination laws, the health of immigrants in Germany is negatively affected by perceived discrimination. Differential exposure to perceived discrimination may be seen as a mechanism contributing to the emergence of health inequalities in Germany.

Keywords:

• discrimination
• immigrants
• health
• longitudinal data analysis
• fixed effects
• Germany

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank two anonymous reviewers and the editors for their helpful comments and suggestions. This work was supported by the Collaborative Research Center 882 (SFB 882) “From Heterogeneities to Inequalities” and the research projects B3 and C1 at Bielefeld University.