This research project received funding through the 2024-2025 Institute for Diversity Science Seed Grant Program
Principal Investigator: Morgan Jerald, Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Abstract:
Black Americans experience higher rates of chronic physical and mental health conditions compared to White individuals, largely due to the impacts of racism and sexism. Past research examining the impact of perceived discrimination on health has not explicitly examined interracial interactions as a potential mechanism. In addition, research examining the negative effects of interracial interactions has primarily focused on cognitive outcomes and on White individuals’ experience of interracial interactions. Last, limited research has used an intersectional perspective to understand how gender-specific forms of racism diminish health and well-being.
The proposed studies aim to integrate these lines of research to examine how interracial interactions are associated with the health of Black Americans, by testing the following questions” (Study 1) What are the associations among perceived discrimination, attitudes about interracial interactions, and health among Black Americans? and (Studies 2a and 2b) What are the associations among awareness of gendered, racial stereotypes, attitudes about interracial interactions, and health among Black women and men? I will use structural equation modeling to examine data from three online surveys. The findings are likely to have important theoretical and real-world implications.