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Abstract

Research indicates that racialised minorities may experience psychological distress and trauma as a result of racism and racial discrimination. Race-Based Traumatic Stress (RBTS) describes the psychological injury that can arise from repeated racial harm and has been linked to mental health disparities among racially minoritised groups. This qualitative study explores how Black Irish individuals experience and make sense of racism, and how racial distress is sustained over time within the Irish context.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 Black Irish participants who had experienced racism and sought psychological support. Data were analysed using reflexive Thematic Analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2021). Participants described significant emotional distress, including anxiety, depression, hypervigilance, and emotional exhaustion, linked to cumulative exposure to racism. Findings extend RBTS by illustrating how racial distress is maintained through ongoing anticipation of racism, vigilance, and adaptation within racialised environments, consistent with minority stress processes.

Participants’ engagement with mental health services was often shaped by experiences of minimisation or avoidance of racism within therapy, which contributed to feelings of invalidation and disengagement. The findings highlight the importance of recognising racism as a legitimate and potentially traumatic stressor within Irish mental health services and underlines the importance of training that enables clinicians to engage more confidently and reflexively with issues of racism, power, and inequality in therapeutic practice

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

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