The Insidious Impact of Structural Racism on the Intergenerational Transmission of Depression

The study explores how depression is passed down intergenerationally due to the compounding impact of historical trauma and structural racism.

A new study in the American Journal of Psychiatry conceptualizes how structural racism and cumulative trauma are macro-level societal conditions that drive the transmission of depression, affecting several subsequent generations.

The authors provide a clinical case example and highlight the importance of examining the intergenerational reach of depression while giving recommendations for disrupting structural racism.

“We assert that structural racism and cumulative trauma are fundamental drivers of the intergenerational transmission of depression,” the authors argue. “The clinical vignette used in this review highlights the ways in which structural racism (e.g., familial housing discrimination and lack of access to mental health treatment) and cumulative trauma (e.g., exposure to hate crimes via cross burnings, parental incarceration, and ACEs) interact to influence the intergenerational transmission of depression.”

The burden of depression appears to be higher among African Americans than their White counterparts, particularly since African American adults with depression rate their depressive symptoms as more severe, have a more persistent course of illness, and experience more significant disability due to their depressive symptoms.