Self-Estrangement Pattern Within Microaggressions

Self-Estrangement Pattern within Microaggressions Shenyi Yu Lehigh University Abstract Racial microaggression is a problem that is increasingly being experienced in the current society, having replaced the explicit humiliation on the black community that was common in the past. Racial microaggressions can be defined as the minor indignities that commonly occur, whether behavioral, verbal, or environmental, and may be either intentional or unintentional. Studies done Sue et al. (2008) indicate that there are three different types of racial microaggressions and all of them are related to various dilemmas experienced by the victims. Research shows that with higher level of social well-being or educational level, black people encounter more white-predominant environment with more microaggressions, and thus are more negatively impacted by microaggressions. Microaggressions also worsen the level of anxiety. The scope of the paper includes the different forms of dilemmas associated with racial microaggressions. Also examined is how various social and environmental factors contribute to worsening cases of racial microaggressions. The results show that microaggression tends to worsen the problem of self-estrangement, especially when the affected individuals are unable to effectively handle the impacts. In conclusion, the paper finds that racial microaggressions have a negative impact on the physical and psychological health of the affected individuals, resulting to self-estrangement. Keywords: Racial microaggression, self-estrangement, physical and psychological health. Self-Estrangement Pattern within Microaggressions Introduction The time when black people would be explicitly humiliated and physically beaten has gone. Instead, in present time, racial microaggressions is replacing, but not deleting racial assaults with its “brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral and environmental indignities” (Sue et al., 2008, p. 273). In the scholarly article entitled “Racial Microaggressions in Everyday Life—Implications for Clinical Practice," Sue et al. categorize racial microaggressions into three different types. More importantly, the scholars also propose four dilemmas within interpreting microaggressions that hinder people from understanding the context of people of different ethnic groups. Microaggressions include acts or words against black people that develop stress and worsen three fields of life, including physical health, level of well-being, and people’s psychology. Most of the time, readers have an impression of microaggressions only at conversational occasions, and because it is micro, it is not severe. However, research that uncovers the increasing impact of microaggressions in a more educational environment suggests that readers refresh their knowledge on this subject. The aim is to discover the severity of microaggressions, to explore how the issue affects black people negatively from the interpreting pattern, and how further studies could resolve the issue and cure the related injuries. Sufficient experiments are found to examine the extent of the problem, and some discuss coping methods to lessen the harm after microaggressions have influenced the recipient (Sue et al., 2008). Although scholars put many efforts into reviewing interactions with microaggressions and practices to reduce their effects, their inconspicuousness promotes their existence anywhere in daily life, where people are not quite aware of them. Hence, people are hurt and confused by the issue, but few people decide to point it out and solve the problem. To summarize, this paper develops a pattern within four interpretation dilemmas of microaggressions, which include perception of microaggressions, unintentional racist tendencies, white attitudes toward microaggressions, determination of ambiguous microaggressions, all of which renders self-estrangement in black people. This paper specifically examines the severity of microaggressions and the pattern of misinterpretation and seeks methods to reduce its impacts on the affected individuals. The main point in this paper is that there is an interpretation pattern from the dilemmas, and it leads to feelings of self-estrangement of black people. Thus, microaggressions along with the interpretation pattern worsens physical health and psychological health. This is because the nature of microaggression is common and unnoticeable and it is rooted in daily life. Literature Review Sue et al. (2008) identify racial microaggression themes, using a focus-group analysis of self-identified black participants. Six categories of demeaning and invalidating messages reflected beliefs of white supremacy that were unintentionally conveyed by perpetrators and manipulated into black people’s minds. An interpretation pattern is developed from the list of dilemmas that was presented by Sue et al. and which worsen the sense of being insulted. According to the scholars, the pattern is integrated from the following dilemmas. Dilemma 1 proposes different perceptions toward microaggressions, according to different races. For example, white people are likely to think more positively about microaggressions than people of color do. Therefore, black people may perceive more racist attacks than they experience. Moreover, black people may be concerned more about microaggression issues, with fewer positive attitudes compared to white people. In that way, they may consider the issues more severely than white people and thus take more severe actions against microaggression as well as feel self-estranged. Dilemma 2 states that people who show racist tendencies might act as such, unintentionally, because the underlying racism is invisible to them. Dilemma 3 shows that when facing microaggressions, white people tend to take it with attitudes that are more carefree, while people of color may act less aggressively toward the microaggressions they have experienced. In this way, black people may be more sensitive to microaggressions. The research findings are in agreement with Sue et al. since it believes that due to the frequent misunderstanding of African American’s cultural background and history from society, not only are black people more likely to react against such disputes, but they are also more willing to risk overreacting. The risk of overreacting causes black people to experience more hopelessness and thus become more self-estranged. The urge by black people to react like white people exacerbates the feelings of self-estrangement. Dilemma 4 depicts that people of color are forced to confront the ambiguity of microaggressions and to determine whether this ambiguity is racist and how they should respond. Research studies suggest that black people exhaust a lot of effort on microaggressions and lose patience on measuring the extent of their responses (Sue et al). Racist tendencies are diverse and ambiguous. Therefore, many difficult choices exist for black people in determining microaggressions and confronting them. Research shows that with higher level of social well-being or educational level, black people encounter more white-predominant environment with more microaggressions, and thus are more negatively impacted by microaggressions. Microaggressions also worsen the level of anxiety. According to Sue et al. (2008), the nature of racial microaggressions are common, everywhere and unnoticeable. The scholars develop a reasoning that black people are often hurt by microaggressions. The pattern in interpreting microaggressions contribute greatly to isolating black people, and thus feelings of self- estrangement presents as forms of harm in physical health, level of well-being, psychological health, and so on. Wong, Derthick, David, Saw, and Okazaki (2014) have also reviewed the article by Sue, et al (2008) and they reemphasize the three main aspects of microaggressions. Some of the pertinent questions addressed by these scholars include: What are racial microaggressions and whom do they affect? Why are racial microaggressions essential to examine? How are racial microaggressions currently studied as well as how might scholars improve the methodologies used to explore racial microaggressions? Based on the understanding of Sue et al. (2008), Wong at al. (2014) analyze articles that are related to microaggressions in one table. They examine if each article has definitions of microaggressions that corresponds to Sue et al.’s concept, while determining the influence of microaggressions within the article. The table applies the definition and taxonomy by Sue et al. (2008) and Torres, Driscoll, and Burrow (2010). Wong et al. (2014) approve that Sue et al.’s (2008) research is in agreement with both articles. On one hand, Sue ...