Identifying online racism: Longitudinal pathways to depression symptomology among Black adolescents

Abstract

Online racism is increasingly becoming a public health concern, with the short‐term psychological consequences of online racism on Black adolescents well documented. Although previous investigations have focused on the unidimensional and cross‐sectional effects of online racism related to depressive symptoms, our understanding of the multidimensional aspects and longitudinal effects of online racism on depressive symptoms among Black adolescents remains limited. Thus, the current investigation contributes to the growing body of literature on online racism exposure among Black adolescents by exploring the longitudinal changes in the identification of online racism exposure and how it is related to later depressive symptoms. Using a sample of 135 self‐identified Black adolescents ranging from 11 to 19 years old (M _age  = 14 years; SD = 2.44), the results indicated that an increased positive change in individual ORD exposure and vicarious ORD, but not traumatic events online (TEO), was associated with an increase in depression symptoms at wave 2. Overall, these findings highlight the need to consider how changes in Black adolescents' exposure to online racism over time may shape their psychological well‐being and underscore the importance of addressing both direct and indirect forms of online racism as salient developmental stressors for Black adolescents.