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Discrimination Experience and Concerns During COVID-19: Exploring the Role of Media Sources Among U.S. Asians.

BACKGROUND
Media coverage and scholarly research have reported that Asians and Asian Americans who lived in the US have been targets of the blame of the pandemic during the COVID-19 break.


OBJECTIVE
This study aims to examine what types of discrimination Asians who resided in the U.S. have experienced and worried during the pandemic, as well as factors that were associated with everyday discrimination experience and concerns over future discrimination that the Asian community may face.


METHODS
A cross-sectional online survey was conducted. A total of 235 people who identified themselves as Asians or Asian Americans and resided in the US completed the questionnaire.


RESULTS
Our study suggested that up to a third of Asians surveyed had experienced some types of discrimination. When adding the percentages in "very often," "often," and "sometimes," the percentages for each experienced discrimination type fell into 14%-34%, and the higher percentages (49%-58%) were found when measuring concerns over discrimination in the future. By adding the percentages of "very often" and "often", the most frequently experienced discrimination types included "people act as if they think you are dangerous (25/235; 11%)" and "being treated with less courtesy or respect (24/235; 10%)." About 14% (32/235) of individuals reported very often, often, or sometimes being threatened or harassed. We also discovered the significant role of social media use in the higher likelihood of experiencing discrimination (β = .18, P = .013) and having concerns over future discrimination that the community would face (β = .20, P =.005). Use of print media was also positively associated with experienced discrimination (β = .31, P < .001).


CONCLUSIONS
Our study provided important empirical evidence regarding various types of discrimination experienced and concerned by Asians who resided in the US during the global pandemic. The relationship between media sources and the perception of racial biases among this group was also identified. We noted the role of social media in reinforcing the perception of discrimination experience and the concern over future discrimination among Asians during this outbreak. Our results indicate several practical implications for public health agencies. To reduce discrimination against Asians during the pandemic, official sources and public health professionals should be cognizant of the possible impacts of amplifying stigmatizing cues in media reports on activating racial biases. Furthermore, Asian or Asian Americans could also be informed that using social media for COVID-19 information would associate with greater concerns over future discrimination, and thus they may consider approaching this media source cautiously.


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