Perceived skin tone discrimination and suicidal ideation Black Americans: Findings from the National Survey of American Life.

Background: To examine the association between skin tone discrimination and lifetime suicidal ideation and suicide attempt among Black Americans.

Methods: We analyzed the National Survey of American Life (NSAL), which is a national probability sample of Black American adults residing in the general population of the United States. Using multivariable logistic regression, we examined the associations between skin tone discrimination (from Blacks and from whites) and suicidal ideation and suicide attempt, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics.

Results: While respondents on average reported higher frequency of inter-group skin tone discrimination, only intra-group skin tone discrimination was significantly associated with greater odds of lifetime suicidal ideation [aOR: 1.21; 95% CI: 1.08-1.36] and suicide attempt [aOR: 1.22; 95% CI: 1.22; 95% CI: 1.04-1.44] adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics. Inter-group skin tone discrimination was not significantly related to suicidal ideation or suicide attempt. When stratifying by ethnicity, the effect of intra-group skin tone discrimination on suicidal ideation and attempt was stronger among Caribbean Black Americans than it was for African Americans. Limitations: All measures in the sample were self-reported and thus vulnerable to recall bias.

Conclusions: Intra-group skin tone discrimination is a risk factor for suicidal ideation among Black Americans, and especially among Caribbean Black Americans.