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The relationship between perceived discrimination and wellbeing in impoverished college students: a moderated mediation model of self-esteem and belief in a just world

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Abstract

This study examined the mediating role of self-esteem in the relationship between perceived discrimination and subjective wellbeing and explored how resilience and belief in a just world interact to buffer the detrimental influences of perceived discrimination on subjective wellbeing. A questionnaire survey was conducted on 872 impoverished college students in China. The results indicated that: (1) Self-esteem mediated the relationship between perceived discrimination and subjective wellbeing. (2) Belief in a just world played a moderating role between perceived discrimination and subjective wellbeing, and the harmful impact of perceived discrimination on wellbeing was weaker for those who had higher (vs.lower) levels of belief in a just world. (3) Resilience moderated the relationship between perceived discrimination and self-esteem, and the harm of discrimination on self-esteem was weakened for those who had lower (vs.higher) levels of resilience. Poverty indeed has a non-negligible and vital impact on the mental health of college students. Among impoverished Chinse college students, resilience and belief in a just world play a protective role in the relationship between discrimination and subjective wellbeing. However, the current finding suggests that we should not exaggerate the protective effect of resilience. It is crucial to change unfavorable factors in the environment, such as discrimination against poverty.

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Data Availability

The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the first author on reasonable request, Xiaoyan LIU. The data are not publicly available due to restrictions. This study containing information (e.g. names) that could compromise the privacy of research participants.

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  1. Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

    Xiaoyan Liu, Tong Xie, Yanqiang Tao, Pengwei Liang & Jianping Wang

  2. Department of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China

    Wen Li

  3. School of Foreign Languages, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, China

    Qian Zhao

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Liu, X., Xie, T., Li, W. et al. The relationship between perceived discrimination and wellbeing in impoverished college students: a moderated mediation model of self-esteem and belief in a just world. Curr Psychol 42, 6711–6721 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-021-01981-4

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