Internalized Racism and Personal Self-Esteem among Ethnoracial Minoritized Groups: A Meta-analytic Review

Internalized racism refers to the process by which individuals from both dominant and marginalized ethnoracial groups internalize and accept beliefs, attitudes, and stereotypes that reinforce the superiority of the dominant group and the inferiority of marginalized groups, particularly their own. Using theory-driven conceptualizations of internalized racism, we conducted the first meta-analysis examining its relationship with self-esteem. The meta-analysis was restricted to ethnoracial minoritized groups given the lack of research among dominant ethnoracial groups, including White people. The analysis included k =120 correlation effect sizes from 56 cross-sectional ethnoracial minority samples, involving 16,034 participants between 1982-2024. Findings revealed a small but significant negative association between internalized racism and self-esteem (r = –.22). Moderator analyses (k =114 correlation effect sizes) indicated that this negative association was more pronounced when (a) internalized racism was self-directed compared to group-directed, (b) the sample was older, and (c) internalized racism manifested as self-hatred compared to endorsement of negative group stereotypes and beliefs. Importantly, studies with lower risk of bias yielded stronger effects. There was also strong evidence of no publication bias. However, the cross-sectional nature of the studies limits causal interpretations, and it remains unclear whether low self-esteem leads individuals to internalize racism or vice versa. Additionally, since our meta-analysis was limited to ethnoracial minorities, the extent to which these findings extend to ethnoracial dominant groups remains an open question. These results offer a deeper understanding of self-esteem-internalized racism relationship, and emphasize the need for further research, particularly those involving non-U.S. populations and using longitudinal designs.