There is a significant mental health impact on those falling within marginalized groups. Marginalized groups are groups with reduced opportunities for advancement due to unequal power differentials. Those power differentials inform social determinants in areas linked to health and finances (Loeb et al., 2020). The experiences of discrimination and exclusion that drive increased disparity between dominant and subdominant (marginalized) groups, result in a disjointed experience between psychological well-being and perceived quality of life within subdominant groups (Bryant-Davis, 2023). This blog will explore the impact of trauma on the following marginalized groups: 1) Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), 2) Black women, and 3) children with disabilities.
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)
Racial inequities have been highlighted in the days following COVID-19. There are increased prevalence of coronavirus infections, inpatient hospitalizations, death, and reduced vaccination rates linking back to significant historical practices that did not instill faith and trust in BIPOC groups, such as Henrietta Lacks and her family’s cells being utilized for medical research without their consent and/or knowledge or the Tuskegee Syphilis experiments that denied treatment to its participants (Buchbinder et al., 2023; Loeb et al., 2020). According to Loeb et al. (2020), popular movements such as the Eugenics movement looked to separate groups of people into desirable and undesirable categories. As a result, dominant and subdominant groups (i.e., BIPOC groups) were separated for “people’s protection,” and then subdominant groups were labeled as “undesirables”.
Other issues of concern to the BIPOC group are broken window policing, which occurs when law enforcement overly polices low-level and nonviolent offenses such as traffic stops or stop-and-frisk procedures. Research suggests that individuals within the BIPOC group are disproportionately impacted by these practices (Buchbinder et al., 2023). Other instances involved social welfare policies that encouraged the separation of families. Even in mental health practices, there has been a history of inappropriately pathologizing expected responses to family separation, sexual abuse, and violence from individuals who rejected experiences of oppression. Moreover, these practices were utilized to highlight the inferiority of BIPOC groups (Loeb et al., 2020). Given the polarizing systemic practices and policies that have occurred historically, BIPOC groups experience ongoing housing, education, and workplace position and/or salary inequities, discrepancy, and disparity that reinforce old stereotypical practices over valuing consistent and proper challenge of these outdated systems.
Marginalized communities hold distrust towards mental health professionals as a result of historically being victimized, stigmatized, and stereotyped. Therefore, the sharing of accurate information related to race and ethnicity helps to combat negative stigmas. It is imperative that mental health professionals be aware, confront, and challenge conditions that contribute to disparities. BIPOC communities should know where to identify accurate health information, especially information that is specific to their race and/or ethnicity. In addition, mental health providers should demonstrate a willingness to address the needs of BIPOC groups through coordination and linkage of appropriate resources. The following resources are a start to that discourse: https://www.naminh.org/bipoc-aapi/ and https://www.mhanational.org/bipoc.
Black Women
Black women and/or African American women are often seen holding their stereotypes. They are often in the position of having to hold the family together, remain strong, and appear as the ones making sacrifices for those around them. This stereotypical depiction of the strong Black woman has roots in slavery. According to White et al. (2023), the intersection of gender and race uniquely sets Black women apart from White women and Black men, because there are unhelpful cultural belief sets and expectations placed upon her role within society.
Black women also fall within the BIPOC group. However, the stigma differs slightly in the sense that Black women are believed to handle stress easily and are resilient while BIPOC groups are often seen in a victimizing light. This type of stereotype is harmful to the Black woman because it makes it seem as if she is indestructible instead of human, challenging her ability to express wants and needs. Moreover, the inability to soften and empathize over time will have the Black women believe the unhelpful narrative. This untruth can lead Black women to endure increased discrimination, often resulting in more severe posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (Ravi et al., 2023).
In the United States alone, approximately 82% of adults experience trauma. This is even more prevalent for the Black woman because she is more likely to have exposure to sexual assault, domestic violence, natural disasters, and sudden death of a loved one when compared to White counterparts (White et al., 2023). The impact of stereotypes can result in outcomes of depression, reduced chances to seek help, disruption to the nervous system, difficulty with emotional self-regulation, and challenges to identity. Generally, when Black women obtain access to spaces where they were previously excluded, Black women face increased adversity related to lower pay, longer work hours, sexual harassment, and racial harassment inclusive of colorism (Bryant-Davis, 2023). Therefore, having resources for the Black woman to identify places of support and connection is important. Check out these resources if you are looking for more ways to break these harmful stereotypes: https://bwhi.org/ and https://womensfoundationsouth.org/.
Children with Disabilities
Children with disabilities are a vulnerable population that does not always get the full sense of inclusion due to possible physical, intellectual, or sensory concerns. Therefore, increasing awareness surrounding what negatively impacts the population helps bridge needed gaps. According to Asbury et al. (2021), since COVID-19 families of children with disabilities and the children themselves are demonstrating increased anxiety and fear. In particular, the parents and/or caregivers are reporting worry about various topics whether it is self, others, or generalized worries about their child.
There is a desire that consistent and secure care should be provided to children with disabilities without overly changing routines. Sudden change can be triggering for anyone, but be even more profound for children with disabilities. The loss of sudden routine and/or structure can be destabilizing and distressing for children with disabilities. For those children, that struggle to verbalize their experience, it can become even more taxing for parents and/or caregivers to manage distressing behaviors. In response to COVID-19, the research identified impacts related to increased mental health complaints shown predominantly by behavioral disruptions, hyperactivity, and interpersonal issues such as children having difficulty communicating problems (Täljedal et al., 2023). It is suggested that parents and/or caregivers of children with disabilities know helpful programming and resources to assist with prosocial functioning behaviors and coping through behavioral disruptions. The links below share additional resources for children with disabilities to address these needs: https://www.autismsociety-nc.org/ and https://www.thecenterforconnection.org/ot-resources.
Give Attention to Marginalized Populations
BIPOC, Black women, and children with disabilities experience an increased prevalence of disparity. This disparity has causes related to but not limited to historical events such as slavery and the Eugenics movement. Each population is dealing with its mental health and grappling for the right resources that can be trusted. Taking time to learn about the population and their history could help to increase inclusive practices throughout society. Gaining awareness over triggering thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that keep the groups in a place of inequity should no longer operate as a standard, but challenge outdated systems that contribute to the groups’ oppressive experiences.
References
Asbury, K., Fox, L., Deniz, E., Code, A., & Toseeb, U. (2021). How is COVID-19 affecting the mental health of children with special educational needs and disabilities and their families? Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders, 51(5), 1772–1780.
Bryant-Davis, T. (2023). Healing the trauma of racism and sexism: Decolonization and liberation. Women & Therapy, 46(3), 246–260. https://doi.org/10.1080/02703149.2023.2275935
Buchbinder, S. K., Giacobbe, G., & Minor, T. D. (2023). Overpolicing people with serious mental health conditions: Considering racialized trauma for trauma-informed psychiatric rehabilitation services. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 46(1), 21–25. https://doi.org/10.1037/prj0000529
Loeb, T. B., Ebor, M. T., Smith, A. M., Chin, D., Novacek, D. M., Hampton-Anderson, J. N., Norwood-Scott, E., Hamilton, A. B., Brown, A. F., & Wyatt, G. E. (2020). How mental health professionals can address disparities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Traumatology.
Ravi, M., Mekawi, Y., Blevins, E. J., Michopoulos, V., Stevens, J., Carter, S., & Powers, A. (2023). Intersections of oppression: Examining the interactive effect of racial discrimination and neighborhood poverty on PTSD symptoms in Black women. Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science, 132(5), 567–576. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000818.supp (Supplemental)
Täljedal, T., Granlund, M., Almqvist, L., Osman, F., Norén Selinus, E., & Fängström, K. (2023). Patterns of mental health problems and well-being in children with disabilities in Sweden: A cross-sectional survey and cluster analysis. PloS One, 18(7), e0288815. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0288815 White, C. N., Swan, S., & Smith, B. (2023). Trauma, help-seeking, and the strong Black woman. Journal of Black Psychology, 49(4), 498-528. https://doi.org/10.1177/00957984231191859