Abstract
Racial discrimination is an important developmental context for racially minoritized young adults, contributing to the formation of societal beliefs and civic commitments. While discrimination is understood to motivate anti-racist action in young adults, the contributions of young adults' belief in a fair society toward this relationship remain unclear. This study examined fair-society belief as a mediating mechanism through which Asian American young adults interpret experiences of discrimination and translate them into various anti-racist actions. Using data from Filipino American (n = 265, M(age) = 22) and Korean American (n = 347, M(age) = 21) young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022, we conducted path analyses to test the mediating effects of fair-society belief in the relationships between COVID-19-specific and general discrimination and anti-racist action. Discrimination was found to motivate Asian Americans to engage in anti-racist actions, although fair-society belief served as a significant mediating factor only for Filipino Americans, particularly those who are U.S.-born, in the link between COVID-19-specific discrimination and interpersonal anti-racist action. These findings suggest heterogeneity in Asian Americans' response to discrimination and underscore the importance of considering specific ethnic contexts when developing programs to promote anti-racist action in Asian American young adults.