Micro-Aggressions
Micro-aggression is subtle aggression against an individual who is different from the perpetrator regarding race, gender or other factors (Moore, Calvin & Beale 2015). It occurs due to stereotypes, bias and negative assumptions which limit one’s value and humanity. I recently witnessed micro-aggression at the workplace whereby my female teammate was ridiculed and demoralised by our male supervisor.
Women often suffer micro-aggression at the workplace such as being sexualised by their male counterparts or being demeaned through suggesting they are unable to handle both motherhood and office duties (Moore et al. 2015). Since I was not the receiver of micro-aggression, I did not take the situation personally and offered the benefit of the doubt by not considering the receiving party as a victim. I also encouraged the individual who experienced micro-aggression to toughen out to establish the illusion of strength thus discouraging the aggressor from disempowering her.
Since my cultural values encourage behaviours such as integrity, honesty and openness, I was able to apply ethical decision-making characteristics which prevented me from acting irrationally by quickly accusing the perpetrator. Therefore, it was vital that I remain calm and take a deep breath before jumping to conclusions.
If I were to observe or experience a similar micro-aggression incidence in the future, I would focus on the event and not the aggressor to reduce the possibility of sensitivity. By doing so, I would eliminate the power struggle that grants privilege to the perpetrator when the victim becomes offended and defensive. I would also clarify the factors that surround the micro-aggression to assist in analysing my next steps strategically instead of emotionally thus eliminating personal biases (Moore et al. 2015).
Reference
Moore, K., Calvin, J. R., & Beale, R. L. (2015). A global imperative for achieving managerial
strength and synergy through the mitigation of micro-aggression workplace behavior.