Understanding the Association between Everyday Discrimination and Self-Esteem Among Young Adults: Mediating Role of Personality Traits

Background

Everyday discrimination, characterized by subtle yet frequent and harmful forms of discrimination based on characteristics, is a significant source of stress among young adults, which negatively influences their subjective well-being. Recent studies have suggested that personality traits as potential psychological resources to link this dynamic, as they are no longer perfectly stable but can be changed by daily stressors and environmental factors, particularly in young adulthood. However, little is known as to whether personality traits mediate the association between everyday discrimination and self-esteem for emerging adults. Using the five-factor model of personality —extraversion, neuroticism, openness, agreeableness, consciousness—, this study examined: 1) the association between everyday discrimination and self-esteem; and 2) mediating effects of five personality traits on the association between everyday discrimination and self-esteem of young adults.

Methods

This study used the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) 2019 Transition into Adulthood Supplement (TAS) data. A subgroup of participants, adolescents aged 17 to 22 (Mean age = 19.59; n = 1,288), was used. Everyday discrimination was measured using seven items from the Everyday Discrimination Scale that assesses self-reported frequency of routine discriminatory experiences. Self-esteem was measured with the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale that captures positive self-esteem (PSE) and negative self-esteem (NSE). Personality traits were assessed using 15 items from the Big Five Inventory scale measuring five personality traits (i.e., extraversion, neuroticism, openness, agreeableness, consciousness). Covariates included young adults’ biological sex (male vs female), age (in years), race and ethnicity (non-Hispanic Whites vs all other race/ethnicity), and education (less than high school vs at least high school). This study applied Structural equation modeling to construct two path models predicting PSE and NSE separately.

Results

Model fit indices showed that both final models fit to the data (CFI = 0.90, RMSEA = 0.07; SRMR = 0.05 for PSE model; CFI = 0.90, RMSEA = 0.06; SRMR = 0.05 for NSE model). Among five personality traits, agreeableness (coef = -0.01; 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = [-0.010, -0.001]), conscientiousness (coef = -0.01; 95% CI = [-0.020, -0.010]), and neuroticism (coef = -0.03; 95% CI = [-0.037, -0.019]) significantly mediated the association between everyday discrimination and PSE. For the model predicting NSE, conscientiousness (coef = 0.01; 95% CI = [0.008, 0.022]) and neuroticism (coef = 0.03; 95% CI = [0.024, 0.045]) mediated the association between everyday discrimination and NSE.

Conclusions

The study findings highlight the importance of clinical efforts aimed at enhancing the subjective well-being of young adults through training programs and therapeutic interventions. For example, cognitive-behavioral therapy and mindfulness intervention, which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in changing personality, can be implemented for young adults experiencing everyday discrimination and other stressors. By utilizing personality traits as modifiable factors for interventions, particularly targeting the improvement of emotional stability (i.e., reducing neuroticism) and conscientiousness, clinical researchers and practitioners can promote mental health and well-being of young adults.