female therapist, she replies, “I understand. As a woman, I face discrimination also”
Your racial oppression is no different than my gender oppression.
A therapist's nonverbal behavior conveys discomfort when a bisexual male client is describing a recent sexual experience with a man; when he asks her about it, she insists she has “no negative feelings toward gay people” and says it is important to keep the conversation on him
I am incapable of homonegativity, yet I am unwilling to explore this
Myth of Meritocracy Statements that assert that race or gender does not play a role in succeeding in career advancement or education
A school counselor tells a Black student that “if you work hard, you can succeed like everyone else”
People of color are lazy and need to work harder; if you don't succeed, you have only yourself to blame (blaming the victim)
When a female client visits a career counselor to share her concerns that a male coworker was chosen for a managerial position over her, despite the fact that she was better qualified and has been in the job longer, the counselor responds that “he must have been better suited for some of the job requirements”
Women are incompetent and need to work harder; if you don't succeed, you have only yourself to blame (blaming the victim)
Pathologizing Cultural Values/Communication Styles The notion that the values and communication styles of the dominant/White culture are ideal Second‐Class Citizen When a member of the power group is given preferential treatment over a target group member Traditional Gender Role Prejudicing and Stereotyping When expectations of traditional roles or stereotypes are conveyed
When a Black client is loud, emotional, and confrontational in a counseling session, the therapist diagnoses her with borderline personality disorder
Assimilate to the dominant culture
When a client of Asian or Native American descent has trouble maintaining eye contact with his therapist, she diagnoses him with a social anxiety disorder
Asking a client, “Do you really think your problem stems from racism?”
Leave your cultural baggage outside
When a male client calls and requests a session time that is currently taken by a female client, the therapist grants him the appointment without calling the female client to see if she can change times
Male clients are more valued than female clients
A client of color is not welcomed or acknowledged by a receptionist
White clients are more valued than clients of color
A therapist continually asks a middle‐aged female client about dating and “putting herself out there” despite the client not having expressed interest in exploring this area
Women should be married, and dating should be an important topic/part of your life
A gay male client has been with his partner for 5 years; his therapist continually probes his desires to meet other men and be unfaithful
Gay men are promiscuous/cannot have monogamous relationships
A therapist raises her eyebrows when a female client mentions that she has had a one‐night stand
Women should not be sexually adventurous
Sexual Objectification When women are treated like objects at men's disposal
A male therapist puts his hands on a female client's back as she walks out of the session
Your body is not yours
A male therapist looks at his female client's breasts while she is talking
Your body/appearance is for men's enjoyment and pleasure
Assumption of Abnormality Occurs when it is implied that there is something wrong with being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ)
When discussing his client's bisexuality, a therapist repeatedly implies that there is a “crisis of identity”
Bisexuality represents a confusion about sexual orientation
When a lesbian comes in for career counseling, the therapist continually insists that she needs to discuss her sexuality
Your sexual orientation represents pathology
The therapist of a 20‐year‐old lesbian inadvertently refers to sexuality as a “phase”
Your sexuality is something that is not stable
MICROINTERVENTIONS: THE NEW THERAPEUTIC FRONTIER
With a solid foundation of support for the pervasive existence and harmful impact of microaggressions against all marginalized groups, recent work has begun to explore how microaggressions can be combated on the interpersonal level. Researchers refer to this as “microintervention” (Sue et al., 2019, 2021), defined as “everyday words or deeds, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate to targets of microaggressions (a) validation of their experiential reality, (b) value as a person, (c) affirmation of their racial or group identity, (d) support and encouragement and (e) reassurance that they are not alone.” Sue et al. (2019, 2021) have put forth a conceptual framework of microinterventions that serves to help targets, allies, and bystanders make the invisible visible and create a productive and potentially empowering experience when microaggressions occur. In counseling and psychotherapy, besides helping mental health providers from committing microaggressions, teaching minoritized clients to deal with them in the daily lives contributes to mental and physical well‐being.
Microinterventions are anti‐bias actions that fall under four strategic goals. Space does not permit us to cover the numerous best practices we have developed, so we describe only a few of them here.
1 Make the “Invisible” Visible. Most insensitive and hurtful comments and actions are outside the level of awareness of the perpetrator. Naiveté and innocence make it very difficult for offenders to change, if they do not perceive their actions as prejudicial. Microintervention tactics aimed at making the “invisible” visible take many forms. Undermining or naming hidden communications is an example of one of these tactics. For example, a White worker says to a third generation Asian American employee “you speak excellent English!” The hidden communication here may be “you are a perpetual alien in your own country. You are not a true American.” In using a microintervention tactic, the target responds, “Thank you. I hope so. I was born here.” Another response may be “Thank you John, you do too.”This tactic may seem simplistic, but it does several things. It acknowledges the conscious compliment of the perpetrator, lowers defensiveness for the comeback to follow, subtly undermines the unspoken assumption of being a foreigner, and plants a seed of possible future awareness of false assumptions. With some modification, this type of response can also be made by White allies or bystanders, as well, who hear or see the transgression.
2 Disarm the Microaggression. A more direct means of dealing with microaggression is to disarm them by stopping or deflecting the comments or actions through expressing disagreement, challenging what was said or done, and/or pointing out its harmful impact. One technique is to state emphatically, “Ouch!” This is a very simple tactic intended to (a) indicate to the coworker that they have said something offensive, (b) force the person to consider
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