Racial Discrimination and Stress Response

Overseen By Qingfang Song, Ph.D.

Age: Any Age

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: Western Kentucky University

Disqualifiers: Severe depression, severe anxiety, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 2

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial aims to understand how racial discrimination affects stress responses in ethnic minority adolescents. Researchers seek to determine if experiences of racial bias lead to different stress reactions and whether factors like parental guidance and personal identity can mitigate or exacerbate these effects. Participants will complete a computer task designed to mimic subtle racial discrimination, known as the Peer Rejection Task, and a challenging puzzle to induce stress. Suitable candidates are Latino American or Black/African American adolescents aged 9-14 living in Warren County, Kentucky, who have not frequently faced racial discrimination or severe anxiety-related conditions.

As an unphased study, this trial provides a unique opportunity to contribute to important research on stress and identity in adolescents.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications.

What prior data suggests that the Peer Rejection Task is safe for adolescents?

Research has shown that merely thinking about discrimination can cause stress, affecting both mind and body. This stress manifests both psychologically and physically, such as through changes in heart rate or blood pressure.

Other studies have found that discrimination increases sensitivity to rejection and leads to stronger negative emotions. Those who face discrimination might feel more hurt by rejection and experience more intense negative feelings.

These studies aim to understand how discrimination affects stress, not to test any medical treatment. This trial will examine stress responses to discrimination and does not involve any new drugs or medical procedures. Participants might feel stressed during the study, but it will be similar to stress they may have already experienced in everyday life. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Researchers are excited about this trial because it explores how subtle racial discrimination affects stress responses in adolescents, which is a less understood area compared to many physical health conditions. Unlike traditional treatments that focus on managing stress through therapy or medication, this approach uses a peer rejection task on a computer to simulate real-world experiences of discrimination. This innovative method aims to provide insights into the cognitive and emotional impacts of racial bias, potentially paving the way for new strategies to mitigate stress and improve mental health outcomes.

What evidence suggests that the Peer Rejection Task is effective for studying stress response to racial discrimination?

Research has shown that racial discrimination can cause stress in teenagers, affecting their mental and physical health. Studies have found that experiencing racial discrimination leads to negative emotions and higher stress levels. For example, facing discrimination has been linked to increased anxiety and depression. One study found that these experiences can change how people emotionally process events, possibly leading to more negative feelings. In this trial, participants will undergo a stress-inducing task, including the Peer Rejection Task, designed to mimic subtle racial discrimination. This approach helps researchers better understand stress responses. Understanding these responses is important for finding ways to protect against the harmful effects of discrimination. ^{1 6 7 8 9}

Who Is on the Research Team?

Qingfang Song, Ph.D

Principal Investigator

Western Kentucky University

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

This trial is for Latino American or Black/African American adolescents in 6th-8th grade living in Warren County, Kentucky. Their parents must also participate. It's not for those with frequent racial discrimination experiences, severe depression, peer victimization, or severe social anxiety or generalized anxiety disorders.

Inclusion Criteria

Living in Warren county of Kentucky

Identified as Latino American or Black/African American

I am the parent of a teenager who qualifies for this study.

Exclusion Criteria

I have severe social anxiety and will not do the peer rejection task.

I often feel bullied or left out by others.

I have severe generalized anxiety disorder and will not do the peer rejection task.

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Stress Induction

Participants complete an adapted peer rejection task and an impossible puzzle task to elicit stress responses

1 day

1 visit (in-person)

Data Collection and Analysis

Participants' cardiovascular activity, salivary samples, and emotional responses are collected and analyzed

1 day

1 visit (in-person)

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for any delayed stress responses and overall well-being

4 weeks

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• Peer Rejection Task

Trial Overview The study examines how subtle racism affects stress responses in ethnic minority teens and looks at factors like parental guidance on race issues, the kids' interpretation of racism, and their sense of racial identity as possible influencers.

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: stress inducing task Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Adolescents will complete an adapted peer rejection task on the computer to elicit the experience of subtle racial discrimination from White peers, as well as an impossible puzzle task to elicit cognitive stress.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

Western Kentucky University

Lead Sponsor

Trials

12

Recruited

1,400+

Published Research Related to This Trial

Research indicates that experiences of racism and discrimination can lead to increased physiological responses, such as higher blood pressure, particularly in individuals who may not recognize or report these experiences.

The impact of racial discrimination on health outcomes is influenced by personality traits and cultural orientation, although the specific neural mechanisms behind these physiological reactions remain unclear.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Physiological responses to racism and discrimination: an assessment of the evidence. Harrell, JP., Hall, S., Taliaferro, J.[2021]

A study involving 113 adults found that experiences of ethnic discrimination are linked to increased daily anger and negative perceptions of social interactions, suggesting that racism can heighten stress levels.

The research highlights how perceived discrimination can shape individuals' views of their daily experiences, potentially contributing to health disparities among different racial groups.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Perceived ethnic discrimination in relation to daily moods and negative social interactions. Broudy, R., Brondolo, E., Coakley, V., et al.[2021]

fMRI scans of Black participants experiencing perceived racial discrimination revealed that those who felt more distressed showed heightened neural activity related to social pain and decreased activity in areas responsible for regulating emotions.

Participants who attributed their exclusion to racial discrimination exhibited less neural activity associated with social pain and more activity related to emotion regulation, suggesting that understanding the cause of discrimination may help mitigate its emotional impact.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

An FMRI investigation of attributing negative social treatment to racial discrimination. Masten, CL., Telzer, EH., Eisenberger, NI.[2022]

In a study involving young adults during a simulated ball-toss game, neural activity measured through event-related potentials (ERPs) revealed that specific brain responses to social exclusion were linked to the level of distress participants felt after being excluded.

The research found that greater positive amplitude in slow-wave activity in the left prefrontal and medial frontal regions was associated with less distress, indicating that these neural responses can provide insights into how individuals process social exclusion, even during moments of fair play.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Exclusion and micro-rejection: event-related potential response predicts mitigated distress. Crowley, MJ., Wu, J., McCarty, ER., et al.[2021]

In a study of 165 Black and White adults, those with a history of high past discrimination showed greater physiological reactivity and slower recovery during an anger recall task, indicating that past discrimination can act as a chronic stressor affecting stress responses.

The findings revealed that while both racial groups experienced similar patterns, Black participants exhibited more intense reactivity and slower recovery compared to White participants, highlighting the unique impact of discrimination on cardiovascular responses.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Discrimination, dispositions, and cardiovascular responses to stress. Richman, LS., Bennett, GG., Pek, J., et al.[2022]

Experiencing rejection from individuals of a different race (out-group rejection) leads to distinct physiological responses, such as lower cortisol levels and increased cardiac output, compared to rejection from individuals of the same race (in-group rejection).

Out-group rejection is also linked to greater feelings of anger, increased attentional bias, and higher risk-taking behavior, suggesting that perceived discrimination may contribute to health disparities through both physiological and psychological pathways.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Experiencing discrimination increases risk taking. Jamieson, JP., Koslov, K., Nock, MK., et al.[2022]

In a study of 276 Black/African American emerging adults, racial exclusion led to increased cortisol release, indicating a stress response, and was associated with greater negative feelings and lower perceived control.

The relationship between racial exclusion and cortisol release was mediated by the feeling of reduced control, suggesting that the psychological impact of discrimination can have significant health implications.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Racial exclusion causes acute cortisol release among emerging-adult African Americans: The role of reduced perceived control. Peterson, LM., Stock, ML., Monroe, J., et al.[2022]

Participants showed negative emotional and physiological responses, such as increased cardiovascular reactivity and poorer performance, after social rejection from same-race evaluators, while acceptance led to positive responses.

In interactions with different-race evaluators, social rejection triggered anger and heightened activation in all participants, but social acceptance resulted in White participants feeling more positive than Black participants, who displayed vigilance and threat responses.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

How attributional ambiguity shapes physiological and emotional responses to social rejection and acceptance. Mendes, WB., Major, B., McCoy, S., et al.[2021]

Race-based rejection sensitivity (RS-race) is linked to increased stress symptoms among Black adults with fewer cross-race friends, indicating that social connections can influence mental health outcomes.

In an experimental study with Latino/a-White dyads, RS-race led to more psychosomatic symptoms when participants had same-race friendships, but this effect was not present when they formed cross-race friendships, highlighting the protective role of diverse social interactions against intergroup stress.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Stress and coping in interracial contexts: The influence of race-based rejection sensitivity and cross-group friendship in daily experiences of health. Page-Gould, E., Mendoza-Denton, R., Mendes, WB.[2021]

Citations

1. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3483920/

Discrimination and the Stress Response: Psychological ... Race, race-based discrimination, and health outcomes among African ... Physiological responses to racism and discrimination: an assessment of the evidence.

2. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2747726/

Perceived Discrimination and Health: A Meta-Analytic Review The most frequently used racial discrimination questionnaires included the Perceived Racism Scale (10% of both samples measuring racial discrimination), the ...

3. onlinelibrary.wiley.com onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mhs2.70030

Effects of Experiences of Racial Discrimination on the ... The goal was to understand how previous exposure to racial discrimination shapes affective processing, across positive and negative affective ...

4. jamanetwork.com jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2819909

Racial Discrimination and Risk for Internalizing ... This cohort study evaluates the association between racial discrimination and risk for psychopathology moderated by neuroaffective ...

5. journals.sagepub.com journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17456916221100509

A Systematic Review of Black People Coping With Racism Anger as a coping mechanism for racial discrimination had a negative impact on African Americans' general well-being and psychological distress.

6. sciencedirect.com sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929325001215

Racial/Ethnic Discrimination Shapes Adolescent Brain ... Racial and ethnic discrimination has lasting consequences for adolescent functioning, yet its impact on adolescent brain development is ...

7. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6532404/

Stress and the Mental Health of Populations of Color ... This article provides an overview of research on race-related stressors that can affect the mental health of socially disadvantaged racial and ethnic ...

8. onlinelibrary.wiley.com onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/sltb.13036

Relations between discrimination, rejection sensitivity ... Theory suggests that discrimination may strengthen the relation between rejection sensitivity and increases in negative affect as well as declines in problem- ...

9. journals.sagepub.com journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/24705470221118574

A Review of the Role of Vigilance Evoked by Racism ... The current review summarizes past research examining the association between racism, RST, and depression, as well as avenues in which RST becomes biologically ...