Symposium 32 - Race, Culture, Identity and Mental Health: Understanding and addressing youth experiences of discrimination

Saturday, November 18, 2023

1:30 PM – 3:00 PM PST

Location: Queets (505), Level 5

CE: 1.5

Keywords: African Americans / Black Americans, Competence, LGBTQ+
Level of Familiarity: Basic to Moderate
Recommended Readings: Williams, M. T., Holmes, S., Zare, M., Haeny, A., & Faber, S. (2022). An evidence-based approach for treating stress and trauma due to racism. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpra.2022.07.001,

Metzger, I. W., Anderson, R. E., Are, F., & Ritchwood, T. (2020). Healing interpersonal and racial trauma: Integrating racial socialization into trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy for African American youth. Child Maltreatment, 26(1), 17–27. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077559520921457

Vargas, S. M., Huey, S. J., & Miranda, J. (2020). A critical review of current evidence on multiple types of discrimination and mental health. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 90(3), 374–390. https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000441

Cave, L., Cooper, M. N., Zubrick, S. R., & Shepherd, C. C. J. (2020). Racial discrimination and child and adolescent health in longitudinal studies: A systematic review. Social Science & Medicine, 250, 112864. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2020.112864

Chair(s)

CB

China Bolden, M.S. (she/her/hers)

Seattle Pacific University
Seattle, Washington

Discussant(s)

Isha Metzger, Ph.D., Other (she/her/hers)

Assistant Professor
Georgia State University
Atlanta, Georgia

Presenter(s)

RC

Richelle Clifton, M.S. (she/her/hers)

Graduate Student
Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis
Seattle, Washington
CB

China Bolden, M.S. (she/her/hers)

Seattle Pacific University
Seattle, Washington
JP

Jonathan Poquiz, Ph.D. (he/him/his)

University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
MP

McKenna Parnes, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

University of Washington
Seattle, Washington

In recent years, the impact of racism and discrimination on minoritized youths’ mental health has been well documented (Benner et al, 2018; Cave et al. 2020; Tao & Fisher, 2022) and become widely known not only among minoritized groups but within the larger population. With the prolific uptake and creation of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Justice (EDIJ) trainings and workgroups, awareness and acknowledgment of systemic levels of oppression have also grown. Despite these efforts, we continue to see high levels of discriminatory experiences among BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth and low levels of mental health intervention specifically targeting related problems (Williams et al., 2022). Chronic exposure to discrimination and the cultural invalidation of minoritized youth may contribute to poorer treatment outcomes (Leger et al., 2022). Increased clinician training in addressing and targeting these specific problems as well interventions specifically addressing discrimination are needed.

First, Ms. Richelle Clifton, MS., will discuss black youth’s experiences of daily microaggressions in the school setting and the associated impact on mental health. Further, she will discuss the role of racial identity within these constructs and highlight further need for inquiry and intervention. Next, Ms. China Bolden, MS., will discuss BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth access and engagement in evidence-based mental health treatment as well as providers’ overall experience and competence in treating minoritized youth. Drs. Poquiz and Parnes will discuss possible ways to disrupt trajectories of harm and positively impact minoritized youth mental health and well-being through interventions specifically targeting aspects of BIPOC and LGBTQ+ identity.

We propose a 90-minute length symposium. Each of the four papers will be allocated 15 minutes to present. This will allow for 20 minutes of discussion with Dr. Isha Metzger as the discussant and 10 min for questions.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the session, the learner will be able to:

List two likely treatment targets for black youth who experience chronic microagressions.
List two training goals for providers who want to effectively engage in conversations about discrimination with minority patients.
Name four ways that the larger US culture invalidates minoritized youth.
Name one service your clinic could include to better serve BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth and families.
Name one way you can potentially positively impact minority youth treatment engagement.