%0 Journal Article
%T Influence of Perceived Racial Discrimination on Health and Behaviour of Immigrant Children in British Columbia
%A M. Anne George
%A Cherylynn Bassani
%A Robert W. Armstrong
%J International Journal of Population Research
%D 2012
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2012/274963
%X This study examines the influence of perceived discrimination on the health and behaviour of ethnic minority immigrant children in British Columbia, Canada. Using data from the New Canadian Children and Youth Study, we examine perceived discrimination experienced by the parent, family, and cultural group in Canada to test the influence of micro-, meso-, and macrolevels of discrimination on children. Families from 6 ethnic backgrounds participated in the study. Parents¡¯ perceptions of the child¡¯s health and six behavioral scales (hyperactivity, prosocial behaviour, emotional problems, aggression, indirect aggression, and a general combined behaviour scale) were examined as outcome variables. After controlling for ethnicity and background variables, our findings suggest that perceived micro- and macrodiscrimination has the greatest influence on the health and behaviour of our immigrant child sample. Variation among ethnic groups provided the largest explanation of health and behavioural discrepancies in our study. 1. Introduction Ethnic-based prejudice is an unfavorable opinion or perception of the way one¡¯s ethnocultural group is regarded by others and often leads to racial or ethnic discrimination which denotes actual practice or experience. Racial discrimination is the behaviour that excludes individuals or groups based on one¡¯s racial or ethnic group identity from engaging in opportunities, or receiving services, that would otherwise be awarded to others [1]. According to Kessler and colleagues [2], a high prevalence of racial discrimination, combined with its negative strong influence on adult¡¯s mental health makes it one of the most important factors to assess when examining wellbeing of marginalized individuals. Ethnic based prejudice and discrimination are associated with racism: the idea that negative racial opinions and behaviours are justifiable because of group differences. Often, the concepts of racial discrimination and racism are used interchangeably. Studies that examine the influence of racism on health and general wellbeing in adult populations have progressively increased since the 1980s [3, 4]. The literature suggests that perceived racial discrimination is negatively associated with behavioural, mental, and physical health statuses [2, 5, 6]. Both Paradies¡¯ [3] and Williams et al¡¯s. [4] meta-analyses of 138 and 52 studies, respectively, examined the influence of racism on adult health (from 1980 to 2007). Both studies concluded that ample evidence exists to support the link between racism and poor health outcomes. Paradies'
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijpr/2012/274963/