Rural and Remote Health

www.rrh.org.au
James Cook University ISSN 1445-6354

Original Research

A double-edged sword: Irish traveller community experiences of racism and discrimination on social media

AUTHORS

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Danielle AG Caffrey1

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Sharon Lambert1 PhD, Senior Lecturer * ORCID logo

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Rachel Coffey2

AFFILIATIONS

1 School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland

2 Traveller Visibility Group, Cork, Ireland

ACCEPTED: 1 November 2026


Early Abstract:

Background: The Traveller community in Ireland is one of the most marginalized ethnic groups in Ireland; facing daily racism and discrimination. The population is also experiencing a mental health crisis, with a suicide rate of over six times that of the settled Irish population. Systemic racism has fostered a mistrust of mental health services amongst the community. However, despite substantial existing literature, there remains a gap in understanding how experiences of racism and discrimination online are impacting Traveller mental health in Ireland. Aims: The study aims to explore the impact of racism and discrimination on social media on Traveller mental health. This research was conducted in collaboration with the (XXXX) in (XXXX). 
Methods: The study, which was granted ethical approval by the researchers’ institution, employed inductive thematic analysis to examine transcripts from a focus group of Traveller women (N = 8) and semi-structured interviews with Traveller men (N = 2). Data was collected from March 2025 to June 2025. Participants were service-users and staff from (XXX). 
Results: Two main themes were identified: Social Media as a Double-Edged Sword and A Need for Change. Participants reported significant distress due to online racism and discrimination yet also viewed social media as a tool for educating the settled population about Traveller culture. Key recommendations included applying community development principles for the Traveller community and extending hate speech legislation. 
Conclusion: The present study highlighted the dual role of social media in both harming and potentially educating about Traveller culture. Gender differences in the perception of the impact of social media on Traveller mental health emerged, though the findings were exploratory. Further research is required to address this due to the disproportionate gender ratio in the present study. 
Keywords: Indigenous discrimination, racism, social media, traveller mental health.