TY - JOUR
T1 - Racial differences in links between perceived discrimination, depressive symptoms, and ambulatory working memory
AU - Harrington, Erin E.
AU - Gamaldo, Alyssa A.
AU - Felt, John M.
AU - Witzel, Dakota D.
AU - Sliwinski, Martin J.
AU - Murdock, Kyle W.
AU - Engeland, Christopher G.
AU - Graham-Engeland, Jennifer E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Objectives: Perceived discrimination is associated with racial cognitive health disparities. Links between discrimination and cognitive performance, like working memory, in everyday settings (i.e. ambulatory performance) require investigation. Depressive symptoms may be a mechanism through which discrimination relates to ambulatory working memory. Method: Discrimination, retrospective and momentary depressive symptoms/mood, and aggregated and momentary working memory performance among older Black and White adults were examined within the Einstein Aging Study. Results: Racially stratified analyses revealed that discrimination did not relate to Black or White adults’ ambulatory working memory. Among Black adults, however, more frequent discrimination was associated with greater retrospectively reported depressive symptoms, which related to more working memory errors across two weeks (indirect effect p < 0.05). This path was not significant among White adults. Links between discrimination and momentary working memory were not explained by momentary reports of depressed mood for Black or White adults. Conclusion: Depressive symptoms may play an important role in the link between discrimination and ambulatory working memory among Black adults across extended measurements, but not at the momentary level. Future research should address ambulatory cognition and momentary reports of discrimination and depression to better understand how to minimize cognitive health disparities associated with discrimination.
AB - Objectives: Perceived discrimination is associated with racial cognitive health disparities. Links between discrimination and cognitive performance, like working memory, in everyday settings (i.e. ambulatory performance) require investigation. Depressive symptoms may be a mechanism through which discrimination relates to ambulatory working memory. Method: Discrimination, retrospective and momentary depressive symptoms/mood, and aggregated and momentary working memory performance among older Black and White adults were examined within the Einstein Aging Study. Results: Racially stratified analyses revealed that discrimination did not relate to Black or White adults’ ambulatory working memory. Among Black adults, however, more frequent discrimination was associated with greater retrospectively reported depressive symptoms, which related to more working memory errors across two weeks (indirect effect p < 0.05). This path was not significant among White adults. Links between discrimination and momentary working memory were not explained by momentary reports of depressed mood for Black or White adults. Conclusion: Depressive symptoms may play an important role in the link between discrimination and ambulatory working memory among Black adults across extended measurements, but not at the momentary level. Future research should address ambulatory cognition and momentary reports of discrimination and depression to better understand how to minimize cognitive health disparities associated with discrimination.
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U2 - 10.1080/13607863.2024.2351923
DO - 10.1080/13607863.2024.2351923
M3 - Article
C2 - 38738650
AN - SCOPUS:85192809591
SN - 1360-7863
JO - Aging and Mental Health
JF - Aging and Mental Health
ER -