Emerging Adulthood Attributes, Discrimination, Mental Health, and Substance Use in a Sample of Asian, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and White College Students

Although Asian/Pacific Islanders are considered a single ethnic/racial category in national studies, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders (NHOPIs) and Asians show marked disparities in health outcomes and risk behaviors, including substance use. Currently, knowledge regarding the psychosocial mechanisms by which NHOPI ethnicity is associated with increased substance use, compared with Asian or White, is limited, especially among emerging adults. The present study tested a model in which the relationship between NHOPI ethnicity and higher substance use (i.e., current tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, and illicit drug use) was hypothesized to be mediated through higher emerging adulthood stress (e.g., feeling "in-between," instability), higher self-reported racial/ethnic discrimination, substance use in one's social networks, and poorer mental health symptomology (i.e., depression, anxiety). Data collected at a single time-point from 2,344 college students, M-age = 21.2 (SD = 2.1); 54% Women; 24% NHOPI, 49% Asian, 27% White, were analyzed by employing structural equation modeling. NHOPI and Asian ethnicity were dummy coded with reference to White. Results indicated that the association between NHOPI ethnicity and higher substance use was mediated in two steps, via higher racial/ethnic discrimination and poorer mental health symptology. NHOPI ethnicity, but not Asian, was associated with higher identification with emerging adulthood attributes, which in turn was associated with increased substance use. Implications are discussed in the context of reducing health disparities faced by NHOPIs. What is the public significance of this article? This study found that Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander emerging adults, who represent a vulnerable population, may experience higher stress associated with emerging adulthood and perceived racial/ethnic discrimination (compared with Asian and White), which may, in turn, place them at higher risk for substance use.