What is it about?
Psychosis is a severe mental health condition which includes symptoms like hearing voices, feeling paranoid, or having confused thoughts. It can greatly impact the life of individuals who develop psychosis with estimates suggesting that people living with schizophrenia lose an average of 14.5 years of potential life. Previous research has also shown that people from ethnic minority backgrounds have a higher likelihood of developing psychosis. While previous studies have ruled out some explanations for this disparity (such as genetics), it still isn’t fully understood why people from ethnic minority background are at a greater risk for psychosis. One of the suggested reasons is racism and several studies have already looked into whether there is a link between racism and psychosis. Therefore, we conducted a review of the current research to bring together all of the findings available to understand whether it supports a link between racism and psychosis. The review found consistent evidence of an association between racism and psychosis.
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Why is it important?
Racism presents a serious public health issue which requires joint efforts to tackle through research, practise and policy in order to address the health inequities in psychosis and wider mental health. The findings from this review not only to highlight the impact of racism on mental health but also help us to understand the increased rates of psychosis seen in people from ethnic minority backgrounds.
Perspectives
"By pulling together the best available evidence, we have shown that there is a clear link between experiencing racial or ethnic discrimination and subsequent risk of psychosis. Experiencing discrimination can have a real and profound impact on a person’s mental health, and these findings help us to understand the serious health inequities in psychosis rates." (India Francis-Crossley) "Racism is a global threat to society. This review shines a spotlight on the threat it poses to our mental health. This review offers different messages, including ideas for further studies. However, a message that should not be overlooked is that racism is neither inevitable nor a disease but if left unchecked its human costs are substantial." (Dr Juliana Onwumere) "While our review finds that experiences of racism are linked to greater psychosis risk, too little is being done in public health and policy to tackle this societal scourge, resulting in both the breakdown of civic trust and perpetuation of intergenerational disparities in serious mental health conditions between different ethnic groups." (Professor James B. Kirkbride)
India Francis-Crossley
University College London
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: The association between racism and psychosis: An umbrella review, PLOS Mental Health, September 2025, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmen.0000401.
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