About this poster

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Panel information
Panel 2. Cultural Processes

Abstract

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As Latinos have become the largest ethnic/racial group in the U.S., the need to understand their capacity to navigate adversity and discrimination experiences is great. Of particular importance to address a legacy of negative stereotypes and pathologizing of U.S. Latinos is work that focuses on the correlates of positive social behavioral outcomes. Prosocial behaviors refer to voluntary actions that benefit others and is deemed a marker of health and wellbeing (Carlo, 2014). When Latinos experience discrimination, it may reduce their inclination to engage in selfless acts of kindness (altruism), as they may prioritize their own well-being over the well-being of others. However, it's important to note that discrimination might also stimulate other forms of prosocial behavior, particularly actions driven by self-interest and a desire for approval from others, as a means to cultivate positive emotions and cope with stress. Research indicates that discrimination has the effect of diminishing selfless, altruistic prosocial behaviors and, instead, encourages actions that are motivated by self-interest and are performed publicly to gain social approval (Davis et al., 2016).
Internalizing symptoms and prosocial moral reasoning are psychological and social cognitive mechanisms that can explain the links between discrimination and prosocial behaviors. Discrimination could potentially play a role in fostering emotions of social alienation and exclusion, which, over an extended period, may lead to the emergence of depression and anxiety. Moreover, discrimination and internalizing symptoms may impact prosocial behaviors though individuals capacity to engage in sophisticated forms of prosocial moral reasoning which involves the cognitive processes individuals use to determine how to respond to moral dilemmas where one person's needs or desires conflict with those of others. To date no studies have investigated the links between internalizing symptoms and prosocial moral reasoning. Prosocial moral reasoning is a consistent predictor of prosocial behaviors demonstrating that high levels of moral reasoning is associated with altruistic prosocial behavior and low levels of moral reasoning is associated with public prosocial behaviors.The present study is designed to examine the relations between discrimination and prosocial behaviors and to test whether these relations are mediated by internalizing symptoms and prosocial moral reasoning.
Participants were 531 Latino young adults (73% girls; M Age = 19.7 years; predominantly Mexican heritage) who completed an online survey measuring discrimination, internalizing symptoms, public and altruistic prosocial behaviors. Path analysis demonstrated a good fit model ( χ 2= 29.5, df = 3, p <.05; CFI = .94; RMSEA = .01; SRMR = .05 ). Follow up indirect effect tests showed that higher levels of discrimination were linked to higher levels of internalizing symptoms, high levels of internalizing symptoms was negatively linked to prosocial moral reasoning. Prosocial moral reasoning, in turn, predicted high levels of altruistic prosocial behaviors and low levels of public prosocial behaviors. Discussion will focus on the central roles of mental health problems and moral cognitions in accounting for the relations between discrimination exposure and prosocial moral behaviors in U.S. Latino young adults.

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