What are microaggressions?

Microaggressions encompass a spectrum of verbal, nonverbal or environmental interactions. They can manifest as subtle, sometimes unintentional, instances of prejudice or discrimination that communicate negative or derogatory messages based on a person’s protected characteristics.

Microaggressions can be split into three categories:

1. Microinsults: Comments or behaviours that are rude or insensitive and demean a person’s heritage or identity.
2. Microinvalidations: Comments or behaviours that exclude, negate, or nullify the thoughts, feelings or experiences of individuals in relation to their protected characteristics or lived experiences.
3. Microassaults: Microassaults are damaging or discriminatory comments made to a person or group (verbally or nonverbally) that are motivated by that person's or that group's identity. Unlike microinsults and microinvalidations, microassaults can be either intentional or unintentional and are more overt.

What does a microaggression look like?

As we have discussed, microaggressions can be subtle, using hints, tone of voice, or body language to communicate discrimination. This can include:

• dismissing someone by using ‘colour blindness’ (example: “I don’t see colour”)
• sexual objectification, assuming traditional gender roles, and physical or intellectual inferiority based on a person’s gender

Watch: What is a microaggression and what does it look like in architecture?

For the individual or group who has been targeted, microaggressions can: 

• invalidate their lived experiences 
• humiliate them on a personal or group level or communicate they are lesser human beings 
• suggest they do not belong with the ‘majority’ group or are an outsider 
• threaten and intimidate 
• make them feel they are of a lower status and will be given lesser treatment than peers 

Long term impacts of microaggressions

Although microaggressions may not always be intentional, they do cause harm and offence. They might appear small, but their impact is significant and can accumulate over time. 

The consequences of microaggressions are challenging for everyone involved. Here are some examples of what might happen over time: 

1. If the person receiving the microaggression is regularly experiencing discrimination, even in a subtle form, they may begin to disengage from their workplace and might also start to doubt themselves and their abilities. 
2. In severe cases, the psychological distress caused by microaggressions can have long-lasting consequences, impacting the individual's personal and professional life.  
3. The individual(s) committing the microaggression may find that their relationship with colleagues or stakeholders begins to deteriorate, leading to inadequate engagement and poor project outcomes. 
4. The individual(s) observing the microaggressions may find the intentions of the person committing the microaggression difficult to interpret. This can lead to difficult interactions or learned behaviour that also perpetuates the microaggression. Over time, these may accumulate and impact the individual’s decision-making and own self-esteem. 
5. Left unaddressed, others in the workplace may deem microaggressions as acceptable behaviour. This can result in a team or practice taking actions or making decisions based on bias. In turn, this can lead to poor workplace culture, a lack of progression for certain groups, unhappy colleagues, increased staff absences, recruitment or retention issues, and potential for reputational damage.