The effects of identity-based discrimination on young people in the Global South

Abstract

Identity-based discrimination – unfair treatment by systems and individuals based on social status – is a recognized determinant of health and wellbeing, yet evidence centered on young people living in Global South contexts of exclusion, inequality and oppression remain limited. This article draws on a rapid review of 53 studies examining discrimination related to gender, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, (dis)ability, geography, and religion. Outcomes were assessed using the Gender and Adolescence Global Evidence (GAGE) framework spanning six domains: psychosocial wellbeing, bodily integrity, education, physical health, economic empowerment, and voice and agency. Most studies reported adverse psychosocial outcomes, with fewer documenting effects on bodily integrity, education, or physical health. Very few addressed economic disempowerment or barriers to voice and agency. The review highlights important gaps and identifies five priorities: expanding evidence on economic impacts; examining protective factors and interventions through intersectional approaches; comparative analyses between Global North and South youth; extending geographical, age and setting coverage; and advancing longitudinal and intersectional research that capture the cumulative effect of discrimination on Global South youth.