Microaggression:
Types, Examples, Comparison & Guide

Microaggressions at work are everyday verbal, nonverbal, and environmental slights, snubs, or insults, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages to target persons based solely upon their marginalized group membership. These subtle behaviors affect members of marginalized groups and can accumulate over time to create significant conflicts and harm in the workplace.

Workplace microaggressions are subtle behaviors that may not outright appear disrespectful but communicate insensitivity to identity stereotypes. The aggression can be difficult to pinpoint and resolve because it is not always outright, obvious, or malicious. In many cases, microaggressions are unconscious behavior from the perpetrator who doesn't realize they are being insulting.

Related terms: subtle acts of exclusion (SAE), unconscious bias, microassaults, microinsults, microinvalidations

Workplace microaggressions fall into 3 distinct categories: microassaults, microinsults, and microinvalidations. Each type has a lasting effect on the target's ability to experience belonging or social acceptance in work and at home.

• Microassaults: Explicit verbal or non-verbal attacks meant to hurt the intended victim through name-calling, avoidant behavior, or purposeful discriminatory actions. This type of microaggression is the most likely to be enacted purposefully. Examples include telling somebody to "go back to their country," using homophobic language, or displaying White supremacist symbols.
• Microinsults: Verbal or nonverbal communication that subtly conveys rudeness and insensitivity in a way that demeans a person's heritage or identity. These often take the form of subtle snubs that the perpetrator is unaware of, but the recipient is fully cognizant of. Examples include telling a Black person "You're so articulate" or complimenting a non-White colleague's English under the assumption they weren't born in an English-speaking country.
• Microinvalidations: Communication characterized by intent to exclude, negate, or nullify the psychological thoughts, feelings, or experienced reality of a person from a marginalized background. Examples include telling a Black person "We are all human" or saying "I don't see color," which denies the target their racial identity.

Microaggressions manifest verbally, behaviorally, or environmentally in workplace settings. Verbal microaggressions occur when someone says something offensive or disrespectful to a marginalized group, such as asking a lesbian co-worker "Who is the man in your relationship?" or making stereotyped comments like telling a Black person "You like fried chicken, right?"

Behavioral microaggressions are insensitive or problematic actions that play into identity stereotypes. Examples include mistaking a Latinx colleague for a service worker, giving only personality-based feedback such as "You should smile more" to a female employee during her performance review, or excluding a coworker with a disability from an after-work event due to the assumption they aren't capable of participating.

Environmental microaggressions are expressed through a lack of representation, inclusion, and diversity. This manifests through excluding people of color from executive positions, not offering accessible facilities or buildings, naming all the buildings or rooms after White men, or not establishing any protocol for sharing gender pronouns.

Microaggressions negatively affect the victim's health over time and have been referred to as "death by a thousand cuts." People who experience microaggressions often experience them frequently, and the cumulative impact can be measured on a macro scale.

The consequences include racial trauma or race-based traumatic stress (RBTS), depression, stress, and anxiety, fatigue and decreased motivation, low self-esteem and feelings of being a "second-class" citizen, mistrust of others, and traumatic reminders of past historic injustices. Microaggressions can also undermine organizational health by creating a toxic work culture that corrodes employee engagement and overall employee experience.

Workplace microaggressions limit professional opportunities through discrimination and unconscious bias, leaving people who don't fall into privileged categories behind. Constant microaggressions strip victims of their motivation or belief in their abilities to succeed professionally. The more unconscious bias goes unchecked, the more common it becomes, promoting an intolerant and discriminatory culture.

Addressing microaggressions at work requires taking specific steps depending on the severity and context. You can address the microaggression directly with the perpetrator if the aggression is minor enough to address head-on, which shows the aggressor you've given them the benefit of the doubt before filing a complaint.

When addressing directly, keep things professional by stating facts: "I found what you said/did unacceptable and ask you to please not let it happen again as a friend/co-worker." Let them know that a simple apology and correction of the behavior is needed to resolve the situation.

Writing down your thoughts can help you level set how you feel about an issue and how others perceive it. Document each microaggression as it occurs with details about the incident, which helps you explain the situation when asked to provide specific examples. Contact HR to set a general appointment with someone trained in conflict resolution and management. Introduce the issue without naming names initially as an effective approach to understanding how to navigate a particular issue, then ask for guidance or assistance.

Responding to microaggressions requires pausing to consider how you want to respond. Take a deep breath and consider whether you want to confront the microaggressor in the moment or bring it up later. Ask the person if you can talk about it calmly if you decide to address the issue.

Describe what was said or done to check your own assumptions before confronting them about their behavior. Focus on the person's behavior rather than who they are as a person, staying focused on the matter at hand. Invite them to share their perspective by exploring their actions and the beliefs behind them, which can help both parties better understand why they behave as they do.

Explain the effect their behavior has by guiding them through your reaction to what they said or done. Describe how their behavior made you feel and the effect it could have over time. Appeal to their values and sense of empathy, as most people don't want to cause harm and don't realize the impact their behavior can have on others. Connect them with educational resources if you feel compelled, such as books, podcasts, articles, or websites that can help educate them further about the topic.

Microaggressions become harassment when they are blatant, persistent, and occur on a regular basis, which could justify filing a lawsuit claiming a hostile work environment. If an employee rarely experiences a microaggression, this probably would not rise to the level of harassment that could justify legal action.

Microaggressions that are constant and pervasive take a toll on mental or physical health and create a continuously hostile work environment. Categories of workplace microaggressions that can escalate to harassment include those that appear as overt discrimination, prejudicial behavior, abuse, or harassment. Everyone deserves to work in a fair and comfortable workplace without suffering through a hostile work environment.

When deciding how to respond to microaggressions, consider your connection to the aggressor. Your relationship with the aggressor helps you decide whether to confront them and how. If they're in your friend group and you see one another often, it may be worth addressing the problem. If they're a stranger, it may not be worth your emotional energy.

Consider the aggressor's experience with you and your background. What may have led them to behave the way they did? What experiences might they have had that could lead them to believe their behavior is acceptable? Think about what assumptions you hold about them and the type of person they are, and how you can extend compassion towards them.

Think practically about what effect your response could have in the future. If the aggressor is someone you work with, consider how confronting them will affect your experience in the workplace. If they're generally an open, well-intentioned person you can trust, talking to them may make the workplace more tolerant and harmonious. If they're generally stubborn and defensive, trying to hold them accountable could cause friction and make your work life more stressful.

If you've committed a microaggression, pause for a moment and take a deep breath. Your immediate reaction may be to go on the defense, but instead consider what the person is telling you with openness and curiosity. Listen calmly even if you think your intentions were good, and take their concerns at face value.

Believe the person and trust that they may understand the implications of your behavior better than you. Separate your intentions from the actual impact your behavior has had. Own up to your behavior and apologize by accepting that you've made a mistake. Try saying "I'm sorry, I didn't realize what I said carried those implications. I'll really try to do better in the future."

Consider asking them if they'd like to keep talking, respecting their answer either way. Talk to people you trust for their perspective, choosing someone who will listen carefully and nonjudgmentally. Keep learning on your own by challenging previous perspectives, exploring books, podcasts, articles, and websites that offer new and nuanced perspectives on the issue.

Organizations can stop microaggressions by implementing specific strategies and policies. Human resources managers are trained to resolve communication and behavioral issues that arise in the workplace, and they learn these skills while obtaining a degree in HR management.

HR managers can take 5 key actions to resolve microaggressions:

1. Educate themselves on the different types of microaggressions
2. Recognize their own biases and prejudices
3. Become an ally by advocating for others when they see microaggression in the workplace
4. Hire an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist to provide training to employees about how harmful microaggressions are and how to avoid them
5. Update company policies

Companies can foster a culture in which employees firmly believe the job they're doing is meaningful while also highlighting the importance of collaboration and inclusion. The more companies encourage healthier resolutions around microaggressions, the better for productivity and teamwork.

Workplace relationships can recover from microaggressions under certain conditions. Microaggressions don't always doom workplace relationships, under the right conditions, targets and perpetrators can repair and even strengthen their relationships after an incident.

Past positive interactions matter significantly. When targets have previously had more positive than negative interactions with the perpetrator, they are more likely to consider mending the relationship. If a target feels close to the perpetrator before the transgression or has a reason to maintain the relationship, such as working together on a big project, the pair is more likely to get on a healthier trajectory.

The perpetrator's response is critical. After they commit an alleged microaggression, perpetrators are more likely to adopt a less defensive stance if they've had more positive interactions with the target. They may also be more open to relationship repair if they feel close to the target or are invested in a future relationship with their co-worker. When both a target and perpetrator adopt a relationship-promotive stance rather than a self-protective stance, they can do the deepest work to mend their relationship.

Microaggressions are often compared to 3 related workplace concepts:

Microaggressions vs. Unconscious Bias

Unconscious bias refers to the deeply-rooted prejudices and stereotypes that people hold without conscious awareness, often as a result of upbringing and societal conditioning. Microaggressions are the outward expression of these biases, the actual words, actions, or environmental factors that communicate these prejudices to others. While unconscious bias is an internal state, microaggressions are the external behaviors that impact others.

Microaggressions vs. Harassment

Harassment occurs when microaggressions become blatant, persistent, and occur regularly enough to create a hostile work environment. A single microaggression or infrequent incidents typically don't rise to the level of harassment. Harassment has legal implications and can justify filing a lawsuit, while isolated microaggressions, though harmful, may not meet the legal threshold for actionable harassment.

Microaggressions vs. Discrimination

Discrimination involves overt, systemic unfair treatment based on protected characteristics and often violates legal protections. Microaggressions are more subtle, often unintentional, and may not outright cross boundaries that would be considered discrimination based on legal protections. Discrimination is easier to document and prove, while microaggressions can be difficult to pinpoint given the social context and lack of obvious malicious intent.