Race-Related Stressors on Aging

A race-related stressor is something that causes psychological or emotional distress that an individual or group of people experience as a result of being a target of a racial discriminatory action (e.g., microaggressions, hate crimes, institutionalized racism). These stressors impact how individuals or racial and ethnic populations age (e.g., African Americans have higher rates of dementia and Alzheimer’s due to chronic stress; Arab Americans report high levels of depression and anxiety due to bias-motivated violence; Asian Americans’ health conditions often go untreated due to a lack of culturally and linguistically accessible care; Latinx Americans have high rates of negative mental health outcomes due to bigotry and prejudice; Native Americans and Alaskan Natives have a lower life expectancy because of disproportionate poverty, discrimination in the delivery of health services, and cultural differences).

Overall, older people among ethnic minorities report poorer health outcomes than white older people no matter their social and economic conditions. More on African Americans here and here, and more on Arab Americans here.