Coping, Ethnic Discrimination, and Depression in the Middle Eastern American Community: An Examination of Gender Differences

Abstract Ethnic discrimination targeted at the Middle Eastern American (MEA) community has dramatically increased within the past two decades (Ibish, 2008; New York City Commission on Human Rights, 2018). Although studies on MEA mental health are limited, several studies have demonstrated ethnic discrimination to be a risk factor for the development of depressive symptoms in this community (Abu-Ras & Abu-Bader, 2009; Hodge, Zidan, & Husain, 2015). Given the continued increase in discriminatory incidents targeted at the MEA community, it is imperative to examine the ways in which MEA individuals cope with this stressor. As such, the current study examined coping responses (i.e., problem-focused engagement, emotion-focused engagement, problem-focused disengagement, and emotion-focused disengagement) as mediating variables in the relationship between perceived ethnic discrimination and depressive symptoms in a sample of MEA individuals. In addition, the study also investigated how these relationships may be moderated by gender. Specifically, using a conditional process model (i.e., moderated multiple mediation) with gender as a moderator and the four coping variables (i.e., problem-focused engagement, emotion-focused engagement, problem-focused disengagement, and emotion-focused disengagement) as mediators, the current study explored the specific conditional indirect effects of perceived ethnic discrimination on depressive symptoms through the four coping responses as moderated by gender. Preliminary results of the study revealed that 43% of the sample met the criteria for mild depression and 20% of the sample met the criteria for severe depression. The results of the conditional process analysis revealed a direct and positive relationship between ethnic discrimination and depressive symptoms. However, results revealed that gender did not significantly moderate the indirect effects of perceived ethnic discrimination and depressive symptoms with the four coping strategies as mediators. Conversely, a multiple mediation model with gender as a covariate revealed that problem-focused engagement and emotion-focused disengagement significantly mediated the relationship between ethnic discrimination and depressive symptoms for both genders. As experiences of ethnic discrimination increased, both men and women utilized problem-focused engagement and emotion-focused disengagement coping as responses to their discriminatory experiences. The use of problem-focused engagement was subsequently associated with decreased depressive symptoms while the use of emotion-focused disengagement was associated with increased depressive symptoms. The results of this study highlight the diversity of coping responses used among the MEA community in response to ethnic discrimination and the complex ways in which these coping responses influence the development of depressive symptoms. Clinical implications and limitations of the results of this study are discussed.