COVID-19 Racism and Chinese American Families' Mental Health: A Comparison between 2020 and 2021.

This study compared rates of multiple forms of COVID-19 racism-related discrimination experiences, fear/worries, and their associations with mental health indices among Chinese American parents and youth between 2020 and 2021. Chinese American parents of 4- to 18-year-old children and a subsample of their 10- to 18-year-old adolescents completed surveys in 2020 and 2021. A high percentage of Chinese American parents and their children continued to experience or witness anti-Chinese/Asian racism both online and in person in 2021. Parents and youth experienced less vicarious discrimination in person but more direct discrimination (both online and in person) and reported poorer mental health in 2021 than in 2020. Associations with mental health were stronger in 2021 than in 2020 for parents' and/or youth's vicarious discrimination experiences, perceptions of Sinophobia, and government-related worries, but weaker only for parents' direct discrimination experiences. The spillover effect from parents' vicarious discrimination experiences and Sinophobia perceptions to all youth mental health indices were stronger in 2021 than in 2020. Chinese American families experienced high rates of racial discrimination across multiple dimensions, and the detrimental impacts on their mental health were still salient in the second year of the pandemic. Vicarious and collective racism may have even stronger negative impacts on mental health and well-being later in the pandemic. Decreasing health disparities for Chinese Americans and other communities of color requires extensive, long-term national efforts to eliminate structural aspects of racism.

Stand against anti-Asian racial discrimination during COVID-19: A call for action

Racial discrimination against people of Chinese and other Asian ethnicities has risen sharply in number and severity globally amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This rise has been especially rapid and severe in the United States, fueled by xenophobic political rhetoric and racist language on social media. It has endangered the lives of many Asian Americans and is likely to have long-term negative impacts on the economic, social, physical, and psychological well-being of Asian Americans. This essay reviews the prevalence and consequences of anti-Asian racial discrimination during COVID-19 and calls for actions in practice, policy, and research to stand against it. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Age-varying associations between Chinese American parents' racial-ethnic socialization and children's difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic

Parental racial-ethnic socialization (RES) can be an important resource for Chinese American youth as they navigate the highly racialized and Sinophobic context of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. We used time-varying association models to examine Chinese American parents' engagement in six types of racial-ethnic socialization (RES) practices during the COVID-19 pandemic and their associations with child difficulties across child ages 4-18 years and child gender. Five hundred Chinese American parents (Mage = 43.5 years, SD = 6.5;79% mothers) with 4-18-year-old children (Mage = 11.7 years, SD = 3.9;48% girls) reported on their RES practices and children's adjustment difficulties. Parents' use of maintenance of heritage culture and cultural pluralism RES did not vary for children at different ages, whereas they used more awareness of discrimination RES for older children than younger children. Parents engaged in more maintenance of heritage culture RES during early adolescence and more concealing Chinese connection RES during middle adolescence with their daughters than sons. Maintenance of heritage culture and cultural pluralism RES contributed to fewer child difficulties during early to middle adolescence, respectively. However, avoidance of outgroups and concealing Chinese connection RES strategies contributed to more child difficulties across most child ages. Awareness of discrimination and awareness of COVID-19 discrimination RES were associated with more child difficulties during early to middle adolescence during the pandemic, with the association peaking at around child age 14. Findings highlight the role of child age and gender in parents' RES and implications for their adjustment during COVID-19, and inform culturally and developmentally tailored interventions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) Impact Statement This study suggests that Chinese American parents emphasize different racial-ethnic socialization practices with their children of different ages and gender during the racialized coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Early to middle adolescence appears to be a key developmental period during which certain parent racial-ethnic socialization practices are more strongly associated with child adjustment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Chinese American Adolescents' Experiences of COVID-19-Related Racial Discrimination and Anxiety: Person-Centered and Intersectional Approaches.

The present study examined the impact of COVID-19-related racial discrimination on Chinese American adolescents (N = 213; Mage = 13.95 years, SD = 2.35; 49% girls) at the intersection of race and gender. We explored (1) subgroups of adolescents based on ethnic identity, bicultural identity integration, and behavioral acculturation; (2) their demographic correlates; and (3) whether the association between racial discrimination and anxiety varied across subgroups and gender. Latent profile analysis identified three profiles: bicultural, marginalized, and separated. Bicultural and marginalized adolescents were vulnerable to direct and vicarious racial discrimination, respectively. Moreover, bicultural and marginalized boys and separated girls were more negatively affected by COVID-19-related racial discrimination. The findings highlight the utility of person-centered and intersectional approaches in understanding Chinese American adolescents' experiences of racial discrimination.

COVID-19 Leads to Dramatic Changes in the Food Retail Environment in New York City: May-July 2020.

A systematic assessment of the effect of COVID-19 on the food retail environment-an important determinant of health-has not been conducted. Our objective was to assess the impact of COVID-19 on closures of restaurants, food retail stores, and fresh produce vendors in New York City (NYC). We conducted a cross-sectional study following the peak of COVID-19 in six neighborhoods in NYC. Two Chinese ethnic neighborhoods and four higher/lower resourced comparison neighborhoods were selected a priori based on 14 sociodemographic indicators. The primary outcome was indefinite/temporary closures or absence of food businesses. Of 2720 food businesses identified, produce vendors and restaurants were more likely to close than food retail stores. A higher proportion of food businesses closed in Chinese ethnic neighborhoods vs. comparison neighborhoods. COVID-19 impacted food businesses in six NYC neighborhoods examined in this period, with the greatest effect observed for Chinese ethnic neighborhoods.