The relationship between perceived discrimination and wellbeing in impoverished college students: a moderated mediation model of self-esteem and belief in a just world

This study examined the mediating role of self-esteem in the relationship between perceived discrimination and subjective wellbeing and explored how resilience and belief in a just world interact to buffer the detrimental influences of perceived discrimination on subjective wellbeing. A questionnaire survey was conducted on 872 impoverished college students in China. The results indicated that: (1) Self-esteem mediated the relationship between perceived discrimination and subjective wellbeing. (2) Belief in a just world played a moderating role between perceived discrimination and subjective wellbeing, and the harmful impact of perceived discrimination on wellbeing was weaker for those who had higher (vs.lower) levels of belief in a just world. (3) Resilience moderated the relationship between perceived discrimination and self-esteem, and the harm of discrimination on self-esteem was weakened for those who had lower (vs.higher) levels of resilience. Poverty indeed has a non-negligible and vital impact on the mental health of college students. Among impoverished Chinse college students, resilience and belief in a just world play a protective role in the relationship between discrimination and subjective wellbeing. However, the current finding suggests that we should not exaggerate the protective effect of resilience. It is crucial to change unfavorable factors in the environment, such as discrimination against poverty.