UC Berkeley

Culturally-sensitive programs may be one means by which universities can promote the well-being of underrepresented students. I examined participation in an ethnically-based residential program or "theme house" during the first year of college as a predictor of downstream immune health markers among Latino undergraduates. Using a four-year prospective design, I compared the immune system functioning of Latino students in a residential theme program with a matched sample of non-residents. Given the association of race-based rejection sensitivity (RS-race), or anxious expectations of ethnic discrimination, with negative college adjustment among minority students (Mendoza-Denton, Downey, Purdie, Davis, & Pietrzak, 2002) and research linking expected discrimination to health vulnerabilities (Williams, Neighbors, & Jackson, 2003), I assessed RS-race levels at matriculation and again after theme house residency. Findings suggest a protective benefit of theme house membership among students with RS-race concerns. High levels of RS-race were associated with more circulating inflammatory cytokines, specifically Interleukin-6 (IL-6), among non-residents only after the first year of college. Even 1-2 years following theme house residency, the positive relationship between RS-race and IL-6 levels was weaker among residents compared to non-residents, controlling for IL-6 levels at the previous timepoint. Culturally-based spaces may support aspects of students' physical well-being as a function of identity-based acceptance concerns.