Social Epidemiology of Perceived Discrimination in the United States: Role of Race, Educational Attainment, and Income.

Background and aims: This study aimed to compare non-Hispanic Black (NHB) and non-Hispanic White (NHW) American adults for the associations of educational attainment and household income with perceived racial discrimination.

Methods: The 2010 National Alcohol Survey (NAS N12), a nationally representative study, included 2635 adults who were either NHB (n = 273) or NHW (n = 2362). We compared NHBs and NHWs for the associations between education, income, and perceived racial discrimination. We used linear regression for data analysis. Outcome was perceived racial discrimination; the predictors were educational attainment and household income; covariates were age and gender; and moderator was race.

Results: In the total sample, high income was associated with lower levels of perceived racial discrimination, while educational attainment was not significantly associated with perceived racial discrimination. There was also an interaction between race and education but not household income, suggesting a difference in the association between educational attainment and perceived racial discrimination between NHB and NHW individuals. For NHW individuals, household income was inversely associated with perceived racial discrimination. For NHB individuals, however, household income was not related to perceived racial discrimination. For NHB but not NHW individuals, educational attainment was correlated with more not less perceived racial discrimination.

Conclusion: High income protects NHW but not NHB individuals against perceived racial discrimination, and NHB individuals with high education levels report more not less perceived racial discrimination.