Discrimination and mental health outcomes in British Black and South Asian people during the COVID-19 outbreak in the UK

ABSTRACT

This study focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on mental health outcomes in Black and South Asian people in the United Kingdom. A sample of 226 participants completed a survey consisting of measures of ethnic identification, religiosity, British national identification, perceived discrimination, fear of COVID-19, generalised anxiety, depression and life satisfaction. Black participants reported more frequent ethnic discrimination than South Asians who, conversely, reported more religious discrimination. Structural equation modelling showed that discrimination had a direct impact on fear of COVID-19 and an indirect impact through decreased British national identification and life satisfaction. Religiosity and ethnic identification appeared to be protective against fear of COVID-19. Fear of COVID-19 was in turn associated with increased depression and generalised anxiety and decreased life satisfaction. The results suggest that some minority groups may be facing poorer mental health outcomes due to discrimination and minority stress.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• minority stress
• social identity
• discrimination
• depression
• anxiety
• mental health

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data sharing statement

The dataset can be accessed by e-mailing the corresponding author.

Notes

1 Prolific is an online recruitment platform for surveys. Users with access to the Internet who meet the eligibility criteria sign up to participate in the survey and are paid a rate set by the researcher. https://www.prolific.co/

2 “Clap for Carers” was an initiative in the UK to show support for key workers (such as doctors, nurses, healthcare workers and others), to facilitate a sense of inclusion and to boast morale in the face of COVID-19