Online Racial/Ethnic Discrimination, Suicidal Ideation, and Alcohol Misuse Among Ethnoracially Minoritized College Students: The Roles of Internalized Racism and Ethnic Identity

Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities https://doi.org/10.1007/s40615-025-02381-1 Online Racial/Ethnic Discrimination, Suicidal Ideation, and Alcohol Misuse Among Ethnoracially Minoritized College Students: The Roles of Internalized Racism and Ethnic Identity Lillian Polanco‑Roman1 Brendesha M. Tynes3 · Jazmin Reyes‑Portillo2 · Chantel T. Ebrahimi1 · Ashley Powell2 · Received: 19 December 2023 / Revised: 28 February 2025 / Accepted: 4 March 2025 © The Author(s) 2025 Abstract Over the past decade, mental health problems have disproportionately increased among U.S. ethnoracially minoritized college students, though explanations for this disparity remain understudied. In the present study, we examined the direct and indirect associations between online racial/ethnic discrimination, suicidal ideation (SI), and alcohol misuse. We also investigated whether internalized racism helps explain the association between online racial/ethnic discrimination (i.e., individual or vicarious exposures) and SI and alcohol misuse. Lastly, we examined the moderating role of ethnic identity dimensions (i.e., exploration and commitment) in this indirect association. Participants included 494 ethnoracially minoritized college students ages 18–30 years (M = 19.62, SD = 2.08; 79% female; 60% Latine; 83% U.S.-born) from the U.S. who completed an online survey. Findings revealed that online racial/ethnic discrimination (i.e., individual and vicarious exposures) was directly associated with increased SI and alcohol misuse. The indirect association of online racial/ethnic discrimination (i.e., individual and vicarious) on SI via internalized racism was statistically significant. These indirect associations, however, were not observed with alcohol misuse. Ethnic identity commitment moderated the indirect association of vicarious, though not individual, online racial/ethnic discrimination on SI via internalized racism. These findings underscore the impact of online racial/ethnic discrimination on ethnoracially minoritized college students’ mental health, identify internalized racism as a potential pathway through which this type of discrimination may confer risk for SI, as well as ethnic identity commitment as a potential protective factor that may buffer these harmful effects. Keywords Online racial/ethnic discrimination · Suicidal ideation · Alcohol use · College students In the United States, suicide has disproportionately increased among young people from ethnoracially1 minoritized backgrounds [1], for whom the highest risk period of dying by 1 We use the term ethnoracially to reflect individuals who identify from a racially and ethnically minoritized background, e.g., Black/ African American, Hispanic/Latina/o/x/e, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Native American/American Indian/Native Hawaiian/Alaskan, Middle Eastern/North African. We acknowledge that race and ethnicity are two distinct social constructs that are often conflated and used interchangeably by laypeople in real-world settings, and that experiences of discrimination are not easily distinguishable between race and ethnicity. Lillian Polanco-Roman and Jazmin Reyes-Portillo shared first authorship. * Lillian Polanco‑Roman 1 The New School, Department of Psychology, 80 Fifth Avenue, Room 617, New York, NY 10011, USA suicide is before age 30 years [2]. Unsurprisingly, mental health problems including suicidal ideation (SI) have disproportionately increased among ethnoracially minoritized college students over the past decade [3]. Although ethnoracially minoritized college students report low rates of alcohol misuse, it is another common problem among all college students that has worsened over this same period including among ethnoracially minoritized students [4, 5]. One potential driver of this increase in health risk behaviors (i.e., alcohol misuse, SI) in college students that remains understudied is online experiences, and online racism-related experiences may be particularly relevant among ethnoracially minoritized college students. 2 Department of Psychology, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, USA 3 University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA Vol.:(0123456789) Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities Racial/Ethnic Discrimination and Risk for Suicidal Ideation and Attempts Racism has been identified as a social determinant of health and a principal driver of racial/ethnic disparities in health outcomes in conjunction with and independently of poverty [6]. Racism is a system of power that purposely allocates societal resources inequitably to create social conditions that disadvantage People of Color. This manifests behaviorally via experiences of racial/ethnic discrimination, or unjust treatment predicated on an individual’s racial/ethnic group affiliation [7]. Biopsychosocial frameworks of racism propose that racial/ethnic discrimination functions as chronic psychosocial stressors that are detrimental to health [8, 9]. This framework is supported by empirical evidence as racial discrimination is associated with a range of mental health problems including symptoms of depression and anxiety, substance use problems, and suicidality [10]. Further, research with longitudinal studies reported a prospective association between higher levels of racial/ethnic discrimination and mental health problems later in life [11]. Contemporary frameworks of racism suggest that racist-based incidents also manifest in online settings, and may be especially salient in the lives of young people [12]. According to the Cultural Theory and Model of Suicide [13], sociocultural contexts play a critical role in the development of suicide-related risk across the spectrum ranging from lower levels of risk (e.g., passive SI, or thoughts of suicide with no intent to die) to higher levels of risk (e.g., suicide death, or a fatal suicide attempt). Specifically, sociocultural context influences exposures to unique stressors that people from ethnoracially minoritized backgrounds encounter like racial/ethnic discrimination, acculturative stress, and other minority stressors. Sociocultural context also impacts the appraisal, response, and management of psychological distress. Lastly, sociocultural context shapes the attitudes toward and manifestations of suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Overall, the Cultural Theory and Model of Suicide proposes that suicide risk is not a universal process, but instead a culturally mediated one suggesting that a socioecological lens is critical to understanding suicide risk. Despite earlier calls for greater cultural considerations in suicide research [14], a lack of racial and ethnic diversity in suicide studies remains a problem [15]. As such, racism-related factors are seldom examined in the suicide literature. This limits the cultural responsiveness of existing suicide prevention strategies, particularly among ethnoracially minoritized college students. Research suggests that exper (...truncated)