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BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1525165
This article is part of the Research Topic Community Series In Mental-Health-Related Stigma and Discrimination: Prevention, Role, and Management Strategies, Volume III View all 16 articles

Exploring Gendered Racism and the Mental Health of Rural Black Women

Provisionally accepted
Wanda Martin Burton Wanda Martin Burton 1*Christina Ezemenaka Christina Ezemenaka 2Sharlene D. Newman Sharlene D. Newman 1
  • 1 University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, United States
  • 2 University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Gendered racial microaggressions adversely impact Black college women’s mental health, but less is known about rural Black women’s mental health.Objective: Examine the association between gendered racism, depression, and psychological distress.Methods: This cross-sectional study included 200 rural Black women from the Southeastern United States. Gendered racism was assessed using the Gendered Racial Microaggressions scale (GRMS). Linear regression was used to assess GRM subscales, depression (PHQ-9) and psychological distress (K6) as outcomes.Results: Of the 200, 21.5% reported depression and 31% reported moderate psychological distress. Depression increased with increasing stress appraisal of gendered racism, p = .002.Conclusion: Gendered racial microaggressions impact the mental health of rural Black women.

    Keywords: rural, Women, Black - African, microaggressions, Mental Health, Depression, Gendered racism, social determinants of health (SDOH)

    Received: 08 Nov 2024; Accepted: 03 Feb 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Burton, Ezemenaka and Newman. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Wanda Martin Burton, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, United States

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