Dr. Su Yeong Kim’s Research Uncovers How Daily Discrimination Affects Latina Mental Performance

Discrimination doesn’t just bruise emotions; it shapes the way the brain functions years down the line. Our latest research explores how the chronic stress of discrimination can deteriorate the mental sharpness of Mexican-origin women, with depression acting as the hidden link in this troubling chain.

The study, titled “Prospective Effects of Discrimination, Depressive Symptoms, and Cognitive Control Among Mexican-Origin Women”, tracks how social stress reverberates inside the mind, ultimately slowing reaction times and impairing decision-making in ways that can persist for nearly a decade.

Why This Study, Why Now?

Mexican-origin women represent over 60% of the U.S. Latino population and face heightened risk for cognitive impairment compared to non-Hispanic Whites. Despite this, few studies have examined how discrimination, a pervasive and insidious form of chronic stress, may be impairing their cognitive function over time.

The research team (led by Dr. Su Yeong Kim) used an 8-year, three-wave longitudinal design to analyze over 596 Mexican-origin immigrant women in Central Texas, tracking how their experiences with both everyday and ethnic discrimination led to depression, and eventually, reduced cognitive control.

Key Takeaways

1. Discrimination Doesn’t Just Hurt Feelings, It Hurts the Brain

• Both everyday and ethnic discrimination at baseline significantly predicted increased depressive symptoms several years later.

• These depressive symptoms, in turn, were linked to slower reaction times on cognitive tasks, signaling impaired cognitive control.

2. Depression Is the Key Pathway

• There were no direct effects of discrimination on cognitive function.

• But the indirect path through elevated depressive symptoms was significant and robust.

3. Age Wasn’t a Factor, but Money Was

• Contrary to expectations, age did not moderate the relationships. However, financial strain did.

• For women under low financial stress, high discrimination was paradoxically linked with faster reaction times, possibly reflecting a hyper-alert state driven by chronic stress.For others, the combination of stress and financial strain led to poorer performance.

Why This Study Changes the Narrative

Historically, psychological research and family systems theory have focused on top-down models parents influence children, and society affects the individual. But Dr. Su Yeong Kim’s work flips this dynamic.

Her developmental systems approach demonstrates that discrimination doesn’t just have emotional costs; it erodes cognitive functioning years later, through a slow-burning cycle of depressive symptoms. This turns what has long been viewed as a social problem into a mental and neurological health concern.

Real Lives, Real Consequences

Imagine a woman who emigrates from Mexico, builds a life in Central Texas, and raises a family. She works hard, navigates a new culture, and endures subtle and overt discrimination daily. Over time, this invisible stress settles first as depressive thoughts, then as a decline in her ability to focus, shift gears, or respond quickly to daily challenges.

This isn’t anecdotal, it’s statistically valid. These women aren’t just surviving racism, they are neurologically altered by it.

What Should Change?

1. Frame Discrimination as a Public Health Issue

It's time to treat racial and ethnic discrimination as a predictor of cognitive aging, not just a social or emotional issue.

2. Tailor Mental Health Services for Latina Women

Target interventions during early midlife, when the effects of depression on cognition are beginning to set in, but can still be interrupted.

3. Contextualize Financial Strain

Recognize that economic stability can buffer,  or sometimes distort, the effects of discrimination. Public policy must account for this complexity.

Read the Full Study

Interested in the complete research? Access the original publication here: “Prospective Effects of Discrimination, Depressive Symptoms, and Cognitive Control Among Mexican-Origin Women” – Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences

Final Thoughts

Mexican-origin women face a unique intersection of social burdens, and as this research reveals, the toll goes far beyond emotional distress. Our study makes a compelling case that discrimination is a slow, silent force, reshaping the brain, reaction by reaction, year after year.

If we want to support women of color in aging with dignity and cognitive health, we must start by listening to the hidden stories written in their minds.