Teaching About Race/ethnicity and Racism Matters: an Examination of How Perceived Ethnic Racial Socialization Processes Are Associated with Depression Symptoms

Ethnic racial socialization (ERS) processes include cultural socialization (enculturation), preparation for bias, and promotion of mistrust. Although often conflated, these processes may variably confer psychological risk or protection. Cultural socialization has often been found to be protective, whereas promotion of mistrust has at times been associated with risk. We hypothesized that the distinctive associations between ERS processes and depression might be explained by trait optimism and pessimism as potential mediators. Results from a sample of 670 African American, Latino, and Asian American young adults indicated that cultural socialization was negatively associated with depression, whereas preparation for bias and promotion of mistrust were positively associated with depression. Participants who reported that their families engaged in cultural socialization had a more optimistic and less pessimistic outlook, which in turn explained lower levels of depression symptoms. In contrast, reported familial preparation for bias and promotion of mistrust were linked to greater pessimism and less optimism, which in turn were associated with depression symptoms. Although there were racial/ethnic differences in mean levels of ERS processes, multigroup analyses revealed that the associations with depression symptoms were robust across groups.