Coping, Racial Discrimination, and Psychological Distress Among Asian American Parents

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-Asian racism and hate crimes surged in the United States, placing Asian Americans (AAs) at increased risk for psychological distress (i.e., anxiety and depression symptoms). We examined how coping styles (i.e., direct and indirect) moderated the association between racial discrimination, fear of discrimination, and psychological distress in a sample of 229 AA parents. Results indicated that indirect coping styles significantly moderated the relationship between racial discrimination and anxiety symptoms, and fear of discrimination and anxiety symptoms. Simple slopes revealed that racial discrimination was associated with greater anxiety symptoms among parents with high levels of indirect coping, but not with low levels. Direct coping was not a significant moderator. Our findings highlight the need for the development of coping-focused interventions that are aimed specifically at buffering the adverse psychological outcomes among AAs experiencing racial discrimination.