TY - JOUR
T1 - Viral challenge reveals further evidence of skin-deep resilience in african americans from disadvantaged backgrounds
AU - Miller, Gregory E.
AU - Cohen, Sheldon
AU - Janicki-Deverts, Denise
AU - Brody, Gene H.
AU - Chen, Edith
N1 - Funding Information:
The studies described herein were supported by Grants MH50429 and AI066367 to Sheldon Cohen from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). These projects received clinical and regulatory support via NIH Grants RR00056, RR024153, and TR0005, awarded to the University of Pittsburgh. Development of the Common Cold Archive was supported by NIH Grant AT006694 to Sheldon Cohen.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 American Psychological Association.
PY - 2016/11/1
Y1 - 2016/11/1
N2 - Objective: Studies have revealed a phenomenon called skin-deep resilience, which develops in upwardly mobile African American youth. They perform well in school, maintain good mental health, and avoid legal problems. Despite outward indications of success, they also show evidence of worse health in biomarker studies. Here we extend this research, asking whether it manifests in differential susceptibility to upper respiratory infection, and if it emerges in European Americans as well. Methods: The sample included 514 adults in good health, as judged by physician examination and laboratory testing. Participants completed questionnaires about lifecourse socioeconomic conditions, conscientiousness, psychosocial adjustment, and lifestyle factors. They were subsequently inoculated with a rhinovirus that causes upper respiratory infection, and monitored in quarantine for 5 days the development of illness. Results: Consistent with past work, African Americans from disadvantaged backgrounds displayed indications of skin-deep resilience. To the extent these participants were high in conscientiousness, they fared better across multiple domains of psychosocial functioning, as reflected in educational attainment, symptoms of depression, and close relationship quality (p values = .01-.04). But analyses of these participants' susceptibility to infection revealed the opposite pattern; higher conscientiousness was associated with a greater likelihood of becoming ill following inoculation (p value = .03). In European Americans, there was no evidence of skin-deep resilience; conscientiousness was associated with better psychosocial outcomes, but not infection risk. Conclusions: These observations suggest that resilience may be a double-edged sword for African Americans from disadvantaged backgrounds. The same characteristics associated with academic success and psychological adjustment forecast increased vulnerability to health problems.
AB - Objective: Studies have revealed a phenomenon called skin-deep resilience, which develops in upwardly mobile African American youth. They perform well in school, maintain good mental health, and avoid legal problems. Despite outward indications of success, they also show evidence of worse health in biomarker studies. Here we extend this research, asking whether it manifests in differential susceptibility to upper respiratory infection, and if it emerges in European Americans as well. Methods: The sample included 514 adults in good health, as judged by physician examination and laboratory testing. Participants completed questionnaires about lifecourse socioeconomic conditions, conscientiousness, psychosocial adjustment, and lifestyle factors. They were subsequently inoculated with a rhinovirus that causes upper respiratory infection, and monitored in quarantine for 5 days the development of illness. Results: Consistent with past work, African Americans from disadvantaged backgrounds displayed indications of skin-deep resilience. To the extent these participants were high in conscientiousness, they fared better across multiple domains of psychosocial functioning, as reflected in educational attainment, symptoms of depression, and close relationship quality (p values = .01-.04). But analyses of these participants' susceptibility to infection revealed the opposite pattern; higher conscientiousness was associated with a greater likelihood of becoming ill following inoculation (p value = .03). In European Americans, there was no evidence of skin-deep resilience; conscientiousness was associated with better psychosocial outcomes, but not infection risk. Conclusions: These observations suggest that resilience may be a double-edged sword for African Americans from disadvantaged backgrounds. The same characteristics associated with academic success and psychological adjustment forecast increased vulnerability to health problems.
KW - Resilience
KW - Respiratory infection
KW - Socioeconomic status
KW - Upward mobility
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U2 - 10.1037/hea0000398
DO - 10.1037/hea0000398
M3 - Article
C2 - 27505193
AN - SCOPUS:84992208855
VL - 35
SP - 1225
EP - 1234
JO - Health Psychology
JF - Health Psychology
SN - 0278-6133
IS - 11
ER -
