Cultural Stress, Daily Well-Being, and Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms Among Hispanic College Students

The present study was designed to examine the extent to which, in a sample of 873 Hispanic college students, daily levels of, and variability in, well-being would mediate the predictive effects of culturally related stressors (discrimination, negative context of reception, and bicultural stress) on internalizing and externalizing symptoms 11 days later. A 12-day daily diary design was utilized, where reports of cultural stressors were gathered on Day 1, daily well-being reports were gathered on Days 2-11, and outcomes were measured on Day 12 (with controls for Day 1 levels of these same outcomes). Structural equation modeling results indicated that daily means of, and variability in, well-being significantly mediated the predictive effect of Day 1 ethnic/racial discrimination, negative context of reception, and bicultural stress on Day 12 symptoms of anxiety and depression. No effects emerged for externalizing symptoms. When we decomposed the latent well-being variability construct into its component indicators (self-esteem, life satisfaction, psychological well-being/self-acceptance, and eudaimonic well-being), daily variability in life satisfaction and self-acceptance appeared to be primarily responsible for the mediated predictive effects we observed. These results are discussed in terms of implications for further research, for counseling practice, and for the development of more inclusive university practices and policies. Public Significance Statement Our results indicate that cultural stressors can lead to symptoms of anxiety and depression among Hispanic students by compromising their daily well-being. It is essential for university administrators and professors to incorporate more Hispanic-focused content in classes, for universities to hire more Hispanic administrators and faculty, and for a reduction in zero-sum competition among students with a corresponding increased focus on establishing a better balance of communal and individual achievement. Hispanic students may also benefit from efforts to help them manage cultural stressors and to maintain stable levels of daily well-being.