The readings in this module discuss the topics of inequity, discrimination, and work-life balance. As students and using the broader concept, we can discuss your experiences with inequity or discrimination as well as managing work-life-school interactions.
Based on the text readings, how would you define microaggressions? Do they impact your work/life balance?
In what way(s) do you experience work-life-school conflict? Make sure you answer using the conflict types in the article.
In what way(s) do you experience work-life-school enrichment?
Please share your personal experience.
A good paper will be 3-4 pages long (double-spaced) and it will cite sources using the APA guidelines. Review the page “Resources for Success” in the Course Information section of the course for more assistance with research, writing, and formatting of your assignment. Before you submit your assignment, make sure to put your last name in the filename of the work you submit. Refer back to the Written Assignment Instructions in the Course Information for additional general information on written assignments for this course. For details on how you will be evaluated, please refer to the Written Assignment Rubric.
Microaggressions
Subtle or overt forms of racism or sexism, known as microaggressions, could be as simple as an inappropriate joke or a small insult. These are “everyday verbal, nonverbal, and environmental slights, snubs, or insults, whether intentional or unintentional, which communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages to target persons based solely upon their marginalized group membership” (Sue, 2010, para. 2). Microaggressions are often directed toward a person’s gender or race but can also be targeted toward marginalized social groups. These micro messages may appear hidden yet focus on invalidating or demeaning group identity by emphasizing that one does not belong to or is inferior to the dominant group.
Many women, especially women of color, people with disabilities, and lesbian women, face microaggressions frequently; 64% of women say they face these disrespectful and demeaning overtures in the workplace (Women in the Workplace, 2019). Bell and Nkomo (2003) found that Black women managers were so frequently marginalized or humiliated that they termed the occurrences “daily doses of racism” (p. 345). From racist jokes to saying that inappropriate words were mistakes, the everyday experiences felt almost mundane. Examples of microaggressions may include needing to provide more evidence of one’s competence, being talked over by men in the room, or being thought of as lower status/rank in the organizational hierarchy, due to being a woman, or woman of color. The higher up in the organization a woman of color goes, fewer people look like her. In this case, a woman of color may be expected to be an expert on all things related to being “Black.” In a very basic case, a woman leader may be asked to get the coffee for a meeting, assuming she is support staff.
DeFrank-Cole, L., & Tan, S. J. (2021). Women and Leadership. SAGE Publications, Inc. (US). https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9781071833940
