Discrimination, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Religious Involvement in Asian Americans: Results from a National Study

Background: Few studies have examined the role of religious involvement as a potential protective factor in the mental health of Asian Americans. Objective: Using the first national representative sample from the National Latino and Asian American Study (2002-2003), this study examined the direct effect of religious attendance on the diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and self-rated mental health in Asian Americans (n=2095), above and beyond that of discrimination and acculturation factors. Methods: Following pre-planned steps, hierarchical regression models associated (1) gender and discrimination with GAD and (2) gender, employment status, English proficiency and discrimination with self-rated mental health. In both cases, discrimination played an important role. Including religious attendance added explanatory power to both models, indicating its potentially significant influence on mental health. Results: The results indicate religious attendance was associated with self-rated mental health but not with GAD diagnosis in Asian subgroups. Further analyses found that discrimination was associated with lower self-rated mental health in Christians. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that religious attendance and affiliation may play a unique role protecting Asian Americans' mental health, and counteracting the damage of discrimination. Implications for culturally relevant research and mental health services are discussed.