Lifetime discrimination attributions and mental health in university students: a person-centered approach

Objective: The present cross-sectional study identified classes of discrimination attributions and associations with mental health indicators. Participants: Undergraduate students (n = 612) reported lifetime experiences of discrimination attributions, as well as depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, flourishing, and resilience. Methods: Latent class analysis was used to identify 4 classes: (1) lifetime intersectional discrimination, (2) discrimination due to gender and age, (3) racial discrimination, and (4) discrimination due to physical appearance, from cross-sectional survey data. Results: Students in the lifetime intersectional discrimination attribution classreported higher depressive symptoms than all other classes, and higher anxiety symptoms compared to students in the racial discrimination class. Students in the racial discrimination class reported higher levels of resilience, compared to students in the gender and age discrimination class. Conclusions: Findings suggest that students attributing lifetime discrimination to multiple social locations may represent a subgroup at elevated mental health risk. Campus mental health efforts may benefit from recognizing the cumulative impact of intersecting forms of discrimination on student mental health.