Emotional Response Profiles to Racial Discrimination

Abstract

The present study examined the association between racial identity and patterns of emotional responses to blatant and subtle racial discrimination vignettes in a sample of 129 African American college students. Using latent profile analyses, we identified eight patterns of emotional responses to the scenarios. Multinomial logistic regression analyses revealed that racial identity was associated with these response patterns. Specifically, private and public regard were related to profiles in the blatant condition, while private regard, centrality, and nationalist ideology were related to profiles in the subtle condition. These findings suggest that there are varied ways in which African American youth respond emotionally to discrimination and that the significance and meaning that one places on race may affect these responses.