Microaggressions - the elephant in the room undermining psychological safety within your team.
The term microaggression feels like a contradiction captured within a single word. Something small yet fierce. Personal in scale, but as impactful as a gut punch. As we’ll see in this blog, what appears inherently inconsistent is actually an accurate way of capturing the corrosive harm that is caused by microaggressions. However, it also hints at the complexities of dealing with them when they show up within your team.
Microaggressions are more subtle than out-and-out discriminatory remarks or insults. A microaggression could be a request, a question, a passing comment or an action. They cause harm because they play into existing stereotypes or biases linked to a person’s membership of one or more groups that experience discrimination, based for example on the colour of their skin or their gender identity. Common examples include assuming the sole woman in the meeting will make the coffee, complimenting someone on their English when it’s in fact their native language or not thinking about access requirements for a team social, meaning some team members are unable to participate.
A key part of what makes microaggressions so harmful is how they show up without warning and with relentless, exhausting, frequency. Yet the person committing a microaggression - and those around them that do not belong to the marginalised group being referenced - might not even realise what they’ve done.
To understand the impact of microaggressions on an individual level, we need to explore what happens in our brain when we’re on the receiving end of one. Our brains have evolved to be incredibly sensitive to threats. We respond instantaneously and automatically when faced with either a physical threat to our safety or to our emotional wellbeing.
In both cases, our amygdala - essentially a giant panic button - is activated, leading to a fight, flight, freeze or fawn response. In a work context, this may show up as a quick flash of anger, trying to swiftly exit the conversation, shutting down, or making it clear you’re in on the joke in order to move through the moment as quickly as possible. Depending on your work culture, you might not even observe that much. But whether you spot it or not, this ‘amygdala hijack’ will be at play underneath the surface, causing dysregulation of the recipient’s nervous system and blocking their ability to focus on anything but how to respond or self-regulate.
Over time, the impact of microaggressions can contribute to chronic stress, feelings of isolation and a lack of belonging at work. It can also reduce team members' ability to reach their potential by forcing them to focus on fitting in and staying quiet rather than taking risks, speaking out or being more visible.
Microaggressions can also have a negative impact on the culture within your team. Failing to address these incidents sends a signal about what behaviour will be tolerated within your organisation. For example, if a colleague who takes time out for their well being is called ‘lazy’, this may also impact others who are experiencing poor mental health and discourage others from speaking up when they need support.
When you notice a microaggression taking place, it can be hard to come up with an appropriate response immediately. But having some simple tools in your back pocket can help.
Here are 3 techniques to try:
If you suspect your own behaviour might constitute a microaggression, then the most important thing you can do is own it and apologise as quickly as possible, showing that you understand why what you said or did was inappropriate.
Addressing microaggressions may be awkward or uncomfortable - but it’s important to remember that part of the reason they’re so commonplace is because those not impacted by them regularly prioritise their own comfort over being an effective ally. If being an inclusive leader is important to you then it’s vital you learn how to spot microaggressions and deal with their impact.
We think you’ll like these other related articles.
Join the list.
Every two weeks our community newsletter is released to spark curiosity about the world around you and challenge your thinking. Sound good?
