# Perceived Ethnic Discrimination and Cognitive Function in Mexican-origin Adults

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · 2024 · $194,652

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Hispanic/Latinx (henceforth, Latinx) adults currently have a 50% greater risk for Alzheimer’s disease and
related dementias (ADRD) compared to non-Latinx White adults. Latinx populations experience greater social,
environmental, and economic disadvantage that heightens psychosocial stress, increasing vulnerability for
poor cognitive health outcomes. Perceived ethnic discrimination is a psychosocial stressor that reflects
individual experiences of being treated badly or unfairly because of their ethnicity, and may be a critical risk
factor for reduced cognitive health. Latinxs in the U.S. are diverse in multiple ways warranting a within
population study of Latinxs. Mexican-origin adults constitute 62% of the Latinx population in the U.S. Thus,
evaluating risk and protective factors in Mexican-origin adults will elucidate mechanisms of cognitive health
inequities in the largest portion of the Latinx U.S. population. Midlife is a critical time to evaluate precursors of
disparate cognitive health outcomes in late life and identifying predictors of cognitive health in this
developmental stage can inform early prevention and intervention efforts. The proposed research will uncover
how perceived ethnic discrimination is associated with cognitive function in Mexican-origin adults in midlife by
implementing a within day, ecological momentary assessment, protocol to measure discrimination and
cognitive functioning throughout the day. This R21 study will break new ground in understanding increased risk
of ADRD within the Latinx population by examining cognitive functioning associated with discrimination when it
occurs in daily life, by incorporating linguistically and culturally appropriate ambulatory assessments of daily
experiences and cognition using mobile devices. The proposed protocol will be inclusive and accessible on the
language of surveys and assessments used, and will accommodate baseline data collection settings to garner
inclusivity and reduce selection bias in this area of research. Study investigators will collect data from 100
Mexican-origin adults between the ages of 45 to 65 who live in Central Texas, to test the aims of the study.
Aim 1 will evaluate daily associations between experiences of discrimination and performance on cognitive
tasks of attention and memory. This aim will also test if the observed links vary across age. Aim 2 will test
psychological mechanisms (e.g., increased negative affect) from experiences of discrimination to cognitive
functioning. Aim 3 will investigate psychosocial sources of resilience in the association between experiences of
discrimination and cognitive function in Mexican-origin adults by testing the moderating role of individual
differences in psychological (e.g., purpose in life) and social (e.g., familism) resources. This study will increase
understanding of risk and protective factors for reduced cognitive health among Mexican-origin adults—a
priority sub-population in the National I...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10817926
- **Project number:** 5R21AG078846-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
- **Principal Investigator:** Elizabeth Munoz
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $194,652
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-04-01 → 2026-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10817926

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10817926, Perceived Ethnic Discrimination and Cognitive Function in Mexican-origin Adults (5R21AG078846-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10817926. Licensed CC0.

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