Select Journal Articles
The Impact of Racial Microaggressions across Educational Attainment for African Americans
Abstract
While separate bodies of research have emerged regarding racial microaggressions in postsecondary settings and the relationship between race-related stressors and health outcomes for African Americans, there is a dearth of empirical investigations that test the effects of “general happiness,” “job satisfaction,” and race-related stress based on the educational attainment of African Americans. This study examines the experiences of 3,320 African Americans who participated in the National Survey of American Life (NSAL) conducted by the Program for Research on Black Americans at the University of Michigan. Using a multigroup structural equation modeling approach, findings suggest that experience with more racial microaggressions tends to lead to less general happiness. Furthermore, greater racial microaggressions lead to less job satisfaction regardless of educational attainment. Findings demonstrate that racial microaggressions are entrenched in many parts of society that impact the health and education of African Americans. Authors provide suggestions for addressing racial microaggressions and disrupting whiteness.
Coping with Racial Battle Fatigue: Differences and Similarities for African American and Mexican American College Students.
Abstract
Students of Color often reference racial microaggressions when asked to describe their post-secondary experience. The racial battle fatigue framework assists in understanding the cumulative, negative effect of racial microaggressions on psychological, behavioral, and physiological outcomes. This paper assesses the racial battle fatigue framework for African American and Mexican American college students and the impact of coping on racial stress. Results demonstrate that racial microaggressions negatively impact stress responses for African American and Mexican Americans differently, but coping may help alleviate the impact of racial battle fatigue. Universities can address racial microaggressions and negative health outcomes by educating campus constituents about racial microaggressions, addressing Whiteness, and providing education about adaptive coping strategies.