Effects of Autonomic Reactivity on the Relationship Between Racial Discrimination and Anxiety

Undergraduates: Rachel Uri, Vanessa Volpe, Katie Perkins Nicole Garder-Neblett

Faculty Advisor: Jean-Louis Gariepy
Department: Psychology & Neuroscience

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Racial discrimination may be conceptualized as a unique, chronic stressor that impacts the lives of African-American/Black individuals, and is associated with a multitude of negative mental and physical health outcomes. Specifically, frequent racial discrimination has been repeatedly associated with increased anxiety symptomology. The present study was designed to elaborate upon this relationship by assessing intraindividual differences in the autonomic reactivity of Black undergraduate students. These differences in reactivity were examined by the careful monitoring of changes in respiratory sinus arrhythmia (¿¿RSA) and heart rate during a laboratory task designed to mimic a real-life encounter with racial discrimination. Participants completed both an online questionnaire and a laboratory visit in which electrocardiogram data were collected. Multiple regression analyses indicate that both ¿¿RSA and heart rate reactivity significantly moderate the relationship between frequency of racial discrimination and anxiety symptomology, even when controlling for age, gender, and parental education. These results suggest that future research examining the negative effects of racial discrimination might profitably place more emphasis on autonomic reactivity in order to better understand and predict health outcome trajectories, as well as identify those individuals who may be at risk.