Online discrimination and suicidal ideation through PTSD in Black youth
New findings show online racial discrimination predicts suicidal ideation through PTSD symptoms in Black adolescents.
Does individual online racial discrimination predict suicidal ideation through post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in Black adolescents?
New findings show that, yes, there exists an indirect association between individual online racial discrimination and suicidal ideation through PTSD symptoms. And more than ever, Black youth are feeling the repercussions.
The findings, which are part of a cross-sectional study that included 525 Black adolescents, are published in JAMA Psychiatry. Experts noted the increased suicide rates among Black youth in the past two decades and are calling out the critical need for research on suicidal ideation and the unique risk factors for this population.
“As a Black person and a psychologist, I feel a personal and professional commitment to illuminate the negative impact of racism on Black youth and explore protective factors that will buffer this negative impact,” says Ashley Denise Maxie-Moreman, Ph.D., pediatric psychologist at Children’s National Hospital and co-author of the study. “We only recently began looking at linkages between racial discrimination and suicidal ideation in particular.”
This is the first known study to date assessing how racial discrimination online is linked to suicidal ideation. Notably, there has been a dearth of NIH funding and attention to research focused on the health of Black youth, and especially research projects that are led by scholars from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds who have committed their scholarly work to this topic area.
The big picture
The etiology of suicidal ideation remains unclear, especially for Black youth. Opara et al’s (2020) Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide and Intersectionality argues that racial minority-specific stressors – such as racial discrimination – may be risk factors for suicidal ideation and suicide behaviors. This new study provides support for this theory, highlighting online racial discrimination as a potential risk factor for suicidal ideation, warranting further exploration.
Why it matters
Out of the total 525 participants, 265 were girls (50.5%) and 251 were boys (47.8%). Overall, the findings indicated that online racial discrimination was a significant predictor of suicidal ideation through PTSD symptoms.
A child may experience trauma symptoms associated with exposure to online racial discrimination. These PTSD symptoms could include intrusive thoughts of the event, avoidant behaviors, negative alterations in cognition/thoughts, and psychological distress and hyperarousal. Additionally, there are previous studies showing links between online racial discrimination and other psychological symptoms like depression and anxiety.
What’s next
Given the increasing suicide rates among Black youth, the authors urge online platforms to be aware of the links between online racial discrimination, PTSD symptoms, and suicidal ideation, and create safer spaces for Black adolescents by proactively monitoring and reducing hate speech.
The goal is to further explore associations between online racial discrimination and suicidal ideation (as well as other psychological and physiological symptomatology) in larger samples and with innovative methodology. The authors are also exploring culturally specific protective factors that may buffer the negative impact of online racial discrimination. More funding and institutional support is needed for scholars doing similar research.
