Navigating Gendered Racial Microaggressions: Exploring the Mediating and Moderating Pathways to Workplace Well-Being for Black Women

Abstract

The complex dynamics of racism and sexism in the workplace, particularly gendered racial microaggressions (GRMs), remain a critical concern for Black women. However, despite mounting research that experiencing GRMs predicts psychological distress and other adverse outcomes, the mechanisms through which GRMs influence workplace functioning and well-being remain understudied. Therefore, with a sample of working Black women (N = 156) from an online recruitment platform, we sought to identify mediators (sociopolitical participation and identity shifting) that explain the link from workplace GRMs to work well-being outcomes (workplace stress and work engagement). We also explored whether gendered racial identity centrality (GRI) and perceived organizational justice (POJ) moderated these indirect effects. Results indicated that identity shifting significantly mediated the relation between workplace GRMs and workplace stress, while sociopolitical participation significantly mediated GRMs and work engagement. GRI and POJ did not significantly moderate these paths. However, POJ was negatively associated with workplace stress and positively associated with work engagement, suggesting the importance of organizational fairness for Black women. Taken together, findings underscore the need for culturally responsive and equity-centered workplace practices that validate racial identity, reduce identity suppression, and encourage authentic sociopolitical expression.

Keywords

Black women identity shifting sociopolitical participation gendered racial identity centrality perceived organizational justice

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