Race,Education,and Microaggression Experiences in Everyday Life

Abstract

Microaggressions are subtle, discriminatory actions that occur in everyday interactions and play a significant role in the maintenance of racial hierarchies. Previous research has often focused on identifying these experiences among specific racial groups in distinct environments, such as schools or workplaces. Yet, there has been limited comparison of these experiences across various social domains, racial groups, and socioeconomic backgrounds. This study examines microaggression experiences among Black, Latinx, and White adults in the United States, highlighting how education influences these experiences. Building on prior research, we formulate and assess three plausible expectations for the intersectional relationship between education and microaggressions: race as a master status (education has no effect), education as a status protector (education reduces experiences), and differential exposure in White spaces (education increases experiences for people of color). Our results show no initial relationship between education and microaggressions. However, strikingly different findings emerge when examining the effect of education by race. For Black and Latinx people, consistent with predictions about White spaces, higher educational attainment increases their encounters with microaggressions. In contrast, for Whites, education reduces these experiences, acting as a status protector. Thus, education does not alleviate racial inequality in microaggression experiences; rather, it magnifies it.