The Effects of Social Identity Incompatibility on Student Mental Health

Background: Students from ethnic minority backgrounds have been shown to be more vulnerable to developing mental health disorders compared to White British students. They have also been shown to experience greater social identity incompatibility; however, it is not yet clear if this may explain some of the disparities in mental health. The aim of the current study was to investigate the relationship between social identity incompatibility and non-clinical generalised anxiety, depression and academic distress in students from ethnic minority backgrounds compared to White students. Methods: A total of 526 students from City St George’s, University of London, completed the Counselling Centre Assessment of Psychological Symptoms (CCAPS-62) and the student identity scale. Results: Results showed correlations between the measures of mental health and incompatibility across all students. Even though there were no significant group differences in the level of anxiety and depression, we found that the interaction between ethnic group and practical incompatibility predicted academic distress. Conclusions: The results may be specific to the multi-ethnic and cultural nature of this inner London city university, but they highlight the importance of practical incompatibility, in particular, in understanding student mental health across different ethnicities.