Microaggressions — What allies get wrong

Microaggressions are arguably the most common type of workplace discrimination. They are small slights, but they have a big impact on health and productivity. While most people are familiar with term, they may not know how to respond to them. ALLY LAB’s recent survey reveals that when it comes to responding to microaggressions, allies often get it wrong.

Microaggression is a term used for commonplace verbal, behavioral or environmental slights, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative attitudes toward stigmatized or culturally marginalized groups. — wikipedia

We surveyed 200 full-time workers across the US and got a variety of perspectives and experiences on workplace microaggressions and responses to them. The vast majority of people in our survey, 77% of respondents, were at least somewhat familiar with term. However, just over half (54%) reported ever having witnessed a workplace microaggression targeting a coworker. That number was significantly higher for BIPOC respondents. 59.4% of those respondents reported having witnessed a microaggression targeting a coworker, compared to 51.1% of white respondents. It may be that white workers, who are not targets of racial microaggressions, are less sensitized and aware of microaggressions when they happen.

Doing Nothing

We asked respondents if they had intervened when they observed microaggression targeted at a coworker. Among the 108 respondents who had witnessed a microaggression directed at a coworker, 28% did nothing. Among self-identified allies, that number was lower, but still nearly a quarter of respondents (23%). And this is the first, and most obvious, way that allies get it wrong in responding to microaggressions–by not acting.

We asked people who had been victims of workplace microaggressions whether or not they had ever had an ally support them when a microaggression happened. Less than half, 43%, had experienced an ally standing up for them.

Not Doing Enough

The most commonly reported response was discussing with the targeted coworker after the fact. This response makes some some sense, as microaggressions can be highly sensitive and allies may be most comfortable expressing empathy to the targeted coworker in private.

However, this behavior stands in contrast to the preferences of people who are targets of microaggressions. When we asked how people wanted allies to respond if they were targeted, the two most requested actions were “Talk to management/HR” and “Respond to the perpetrator in the moment.”

While allies seem most comfortable talking with the targeted coworker after the fact, the targeted coworkers would prefer that allies speak up in the moment AND discuss the incident with management or HR. Talking to the targeted coworker afterwards came in third place, after those two actions. Respondents seem to be saying, “Don’t just talk to me. Do something about it.”

Allies may not speak up in the moment for any number of reasons, among them–not recognizing the microaggression immediately, not knowing what to say, not wanting to create conflict, or not wanting to risk their own status and social capital by being seen as overly sensitive. But if allies want to be allies, they need to act on the preferences of the people they purport to support.

Underestimating the Impact

The big gap between the preference for talking to managment/HR and allies taking that action points to another way that allies may get it wrong. Allies observing microaggressions may hesitate to escalate the incident because it seems small and insignificant, and escalation may feel excessive.

But while microaggressions are small slights, they create a big impact. The health and productivity impacts of microaggressions are well documented and significant. Studies of microaggressions have linked them to increased stress, reduced sleep, high blood pressure, and heart conditions.

In deciding how to respond, allies need to factor in these larger, more serious impacts of microaggressions. Basing decisions only on the moment or the particular incident will likely result in an inadequate response.

Doing Better

Allies who want to make a positive impact can do a better job of intervening when microaggressions happen. There are several ways to improve your response as an ally:

• Educate yourself about common microaggressions so that you can recognize them in the moment;
• Practice positive responses so that you’re ready to use them when needed;
• Put your social capital at risk by acting in the moment to address the incident;
• Recognize the aggregate impact of microaggressions and talk to management or HR when they occur. Know that what you are seeing and responding to is bigger than the momentary incident.

Our survey shows that allies have room to improve in their response, and by recognizing the macro impacts of microaggressions, they can learn to blunt the impact in the moment and reduce the frequency of microaggresions in the future.