Self-stigma refers to the internalized stigma that individuals may have toward themselves as a result of their minority status. Not only can self-stigma dampen the mental health of individuals, it can deter them from seeking professional help lest disclosing their minority status lead to being shunned by service providers. No unified instrument has been developed to measure consistently self-stigma that could be applied to different concealable minority groups. The present study presented findings based on 4 studies on the development and validation of the Self-Stigma Scale, conducted in Hong Kong with community samples of mental health consumers, recent immigrants from Mainland China, and sexual minorities. Upon a series of validation procedures, a 9-item Self-Stigma Scale-Short Form was developed. Initial support on its reliability and construct validity (convergent and criterion validities) were found among 3 stigmatized groups. Utility of this unified measure was to establish an empirical basis upon which self-stigma of different concealable minority groups could be assessed under the same dimensions. Health-care professionals could make use of this short scale to assess potential self-stigmatization among concealable minorities, which may hamper their treatment process as well as their overall well-being.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused thousands of deaths in China. Prior research suggests that individuals’ perceived severity of COVID-19 is related to a range of negative emotional and behavioral reactions among the Chinese public. However, scant research has examined the underlying mechanisms. Drawing upon the risk-resilience model, this study proposes that self-control, as a resilient factor, would potentially moderate the association between perceived severity of COVID-19 and mental health problems. Data from a national survey was used to examine this idea. Participants were 4607 citizens from 31 regions in China (M_age = 23.71 years, 72.5% female) who completed a national survey at the beginning of February 2020. Results of hierarchical regression showed that after controlling for a number of demographic variables, perceived severity of COVID-19 and self-control were positively and negatively related to mental health problems, respectively. More importantly, self-control moderated the “perceived severity of COVID-19–mental health problems” association, with this link attenuating as the levels of self-control increased. These findings suggest that compared to those with high self-control, individuals with low self-control are more vulnerable and are more in need of psychological aids to maintain mental health in the encounter of the COVID-19 outbreak. Practically, enhancing individuals’ self-control ability might be a promising way to improve individuals’ mental health during the early period of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The present study tested a theoretical model of emotion regulation (Yap, Sheeber, & Allen, 2007) in a sample of Asian American and European American college students (N = 365). Specifically, the mediating role of anger suppression in the effect of temperament and family processes on depressive symptoms was tested across race and levels of interdependent self-construal (a culturally based self orientation emphasizing connectedness with others). Next, the moderation of the suppression-depression relation was tested by race and interdependent self-construal. Results indicated that the hypothesized model fit well across Asian American and European American students, as well as those with high versus low levels of interdependent self-construal. Anger suppression was a significant mediator of the hypothesized indirect effects on depressive symptoms. Moreover, race and interdependent self-construal moderated the suppression-depression link, such that Asian American status and a stronger interdependent self-construal attenuated the relation between anger suppression and depressive symptoms. Understanding both universal and culture-specific aspects of emotion regulation in the development of depressive symptoms will be essential for sound theory, future research, and effective prevention and intervention efforts across diverse populations.