Discrimination, Depression, and Anxiety Among US Adults

Examining how discrimination is associated with mental health across different demographic groups can guide efforts to improve mental well-being.

To analyze associations between discrimination and mental health and explore how these associations may vary by race and ethnicity and sex.

Cross-sectional data of 29 522 adults weighted to represent a population of 258 237 552 US adults from the 2023 US National Health Interview Survey were analyzed.

Exposure to discrimination was measured using the Everyday Discrimination Scale, which assesses frequency of being treated with less courtesy, receiving poor service, being treated as not smart, being feared, and experiencing harassment. A summative scale and a nominal variable (none, low, and high) measured degree and levels of discrimination exposure.

Outcomes included depression (measured with the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 scale) and anxiety (measured with the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2 scale), with scores of 3 or greater indicating positive screening results for each scale. Multinomial logistic regression analyses examined associations of interest and tests of interaction explored effect modification by race and ethnicity and sex.

Among a sample of 29 522 adults weighted to represent a population of 258 237 552 US adults (mean age, 48.1 years [95% CI, 47.8-48.4 years]; 51.1% female; 17.5% Hispanic or Latino, 2.5% multiracial or other, 6.2% non-Hispanic Asian, 11.6% non-Hispanic or non-Latino Black, and 62.2% non-Hispanic or non-Latino White), each unit increase in exposure to discrimination was associated with increased odds of positive screening results for depression (odds ratio [OR], 1.15 [95% CI, 1.12-1.17]), anxiety (OR, 1.14 [95% CI, 1.12-1.16]), and both depression and anxiety (OR, 1.19 [95% CI, 1.16-1.21]). Compared with no exposure to discrimination, low and high exposure to discrimination were associated with increased odds of positive screening results for depression (low exposure: OR, 2.20 [95% CI, 1.77-2.72]; high exposure: OR, 5.39 [95% CI, 3.61-8.04]), anxiety (low exposure: OR, 1.97 [95% CI, 1.66-2.33]; high exposure: OR, 4.98 [95% CI, 3.59-6.91]), and both depression and anxiety (low exposure: OR, 2.60 [95% CI, 2.13-3.18]; high exposure: OR, 8.84 [95% CI, 6.44-12.14]). Associations between discrimination and positive screening results for depression alone (F4,607 = 3.35; P = .01) and between discrimination and positive screening results for both depression and anxiety (F4,607 = 2.80; P = .03) varied by race and ethnicity. Associations of interest did not differ by sex.

Findings of this cross-sectional study suggest an association between discrimination and mental health across US adults, emphasizing the need for further evaluation and increased awareness of how these associations may vary across different demographic groups.