At the Intersection of Stereotype and System: The Working Conditions of Bicultural and Bilingual Asian Human Service Workers

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This qualitative study examines how systemic racism and organizational practices shape the working conditions of bicultural Asian human service workers (HSWs). Guided by Asian Critical Race Theory (CRT) and the Job Demands–Resources model, semi-structured interviews with eleven workers revealed four interrelated themes: expansive and ambiguous job roles in which unofficial language and cultural brokerage extended beyond formal duties without compensation; a dual burden of racial stereotypes in which the model minority myth normalized overperformance while the perpetual foreigner stereotype reinforced marginalization; intersectional vulnerabilities shaped by gender, ethnic subgroup, and nativity; and a helping professional paradox in which vocational commitment coexisted with chronic depletion. These dynamics, intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic, produced unsustainable working conditions and elevated burnout risk. By integrating Asian CRT with the JD-R model, this study advances a racially informed occupational stress framework specifying how racialization functions as both a source of job demand and a constraint on job resources.