Associations between Socioeconomic Characteristics and Mental Health Among Diverse Young Asian Adults in the United States

Background:

Rates of anxiety and depression have risen sharply among Asian Americans in the U.S., and sociodemographic factors such as immigration, financial hardship, and parental education are important characteristics that are associated with different health statuses. However, less is known about mental health outcomes among Asian populations by these indicators, particularly among young adults. Focusing on Asian communities is specifically timely given there have been substantial increases in mental health needs since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. While many affective disorders present between ages 18-29, denoting young adulthood, research on this developmental period among Asian Americans is scant. Since more than half of all Asian Americans are enrolled in some form of higher education during this age range, colleges and universities are meaningful settings to investigate the social factors associated with mental health outcomes among young Asian adults.

Methods:

Secondary data were analyzed examining a large sample of young Asian students (n=8,669) aged 18-29 who participated in the 2022-2023 Healthy Minds Study (HMS), which is a national cross-sectional survey evaluating mental health among enrollees in higher education. Multivariate logistic regressions were conducted to evaluate differences in anxiety and depression by immigrant status, current and past financial hardship, and highest level of education obtained by one or multiple parents, adjusting for age, ethnic subgroup, sexual orientation, and gender.

Results:

The mean age of respondents was 21.3 years (SD=2.9) and most participants identified as female (70%, n=6,064). Almost half of participants (42%, n=3,688) reported not being U.S. born while roughly one quarter (27%, n=2,365) reported not holding U.S. citizenship. Depression and anxiety were high among the sample overall, with symptoms being significantly higher for those with more financial hardship. Those with higher current financial insecurity were significantly more likely to meet the threshold for both severe depression and severe anxiety. Similarly, lower levels of past financial insecurity were associated with lower odds of depression and anxiety. No significant differences were observed among U.S. citizens compared to those without U.S. citizenship, including when evaluating potential moderating effects with interactions between financial hardship and immigration status. Finally, mixed results were found regarding parental education and affective symptoms, with young adults with parental education of less than a high school diploma reporting a statistically significant reduction in the odds of anxiety compared to those with a parent with a bachelor’s degree.

Conclusions and Implications:

Findings support the need to prioritize social determinants of health such as basic needs, education, and financial resources in mental health service delivery for young Asian communities in the U.S. Better understanding and measuring discrepancies in resource access and related privileges are key to enhancing culturally responsive services and their effectiveness among heterogenous and historically underserved populations. More research is also needed to better understand how to assess and promote mental wellbeing among diverse young Asian immigrants. Further investigation should also evaluate associations between these characteristics and mental health among young Asian adults in the general population and other settings, not only higher education, to continue informing health equity efforts.