Racial Identity and Mental Health

Experiences of racism (whether personal or witnessing racism towards others) present a significant threat to healthy mental functioning. Racism has the potential to affect self-esteem, elicits anger (appropriately so), and can even lead to symptoms of depression over time.

But there is good news! Views of yourself as a racial and cultural person (racial identity) can protect you from the potential negative impact of racist events.  There are several components to racial identity:

1. How important is race to you
2. Your ideas about how Black people should behave and interact with society
3. How you view Black people
4. How you believe other people view Black people

While self-knowledge alone is often the key to increased mental health, there is some evidence that suggests that certain aspects of racial identity can buffer against racism more than others. For example, Black people who report seeing race as important to who they are, feel positively about being Black, and acknowledge some of the negative views about Black people held by others have reported lower levels of depression symptoms when faced with racism.

There is no “right” way to be Black, but exploring how you see yourself can improve your mental health. The process alone of acknowledging experiences of racism, whether they happen to you or someone else, can help you cope, and will likely improve your relationships with people you care about.

Three Ways to Explore Your Own Racial Identity

1. Take a self-assessment on racial identity available here. Write down what reactions you have to the questions and to the results. For one week, try to keep track of times when you become aware of your race and see what feelings come up. Then go back to your reflections of the assessment. You might be surprised what you discover about yourself, or it might confirm something you already knew.
2. If you want to take the results of the assessment a step further, encourage friends and family members to complete it, so you can discuss your reactions as a group. Pay particular attention to your emotions, especially the ones that linger after those conversations. Put in effort to be open to other people’s ideas in these conversations, as you may run into differences of opinion. Remember, there is no “right” racial identity that you need to encourage in other people, but there is one that is right for YOU.
3. Discussing your racial identity and experiences with discrimination are frequent topics in therapy. Connect with a therapist to explore your racial identity further. If completing the assessment or conversations with friends and family lead you to want to develop a positive view of yourself or cope with racism, therapy can be a way to help with that process.

Dr. Rebecca Hubbard is a clinical psychotherapist with a private practice based in Chicago, IL.

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