title: The moderating role of centrality on associations between ethnic identity affirmation and ethnic minority college students' mental health.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Prior literature has shown that ethnic affirmation, one aspect of ethnic identity, is positively associated with mental health. However, the associations between ethnic affirmation and mental health may vary depending how much importance individuals place on their ethnic group membership (ie, centrality).
  
  
  METHODS
  Using path analysis, the current study examined the relations between ethnic affirmation and indices of mental health problems (ie, anxiety and depressive symptoms), and tested whether the process was moderated by ethnic centrality among 3,659 college students representing 3 ethnic groups (41% Latino/a, 35% Asian American, and 24% African American) who participated in a large, multisite university study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results suggested that the associations between ethnic affirmation and mental health were stronger for Latino/a and Asian American students who reported higher levels of ethnic centrality. For African Americans, higher levels of ethnic affirmation predicted better mental health, but this association did not vary as a function of ethnic centrality.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Educational Psychology , University of Illinois at Chicago , Chicago , Illinois.
authors.forename: Aerika S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Brittian
authors.forename: Adriana J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Umaña-Taylor
authors.forename: Richard M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Byron L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Zamboanga
authors.forename: Su Yeong
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Robert S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Weisskirch
authors.forename: Linda G
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Castillo
authors.forename: Susan Krauss
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Whitbourne
authors.forename: Eric A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Hurley
authors.forename: Que-Lam
authors.initials: QL
authors.lastname: Huynh
authors.forename: Elissa J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: S Jean
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Caraway
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American / Q000193:education / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D001007:Anxiety / Q000208:ethnology; D001213:Asian / Q000193:education / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D003863:Depression / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000193:education / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: ethnic affirmation; ethnic centrality; ethnic identity; mental health