Perceptions of Microaggressive Behavior Across the Ideological Spectrum

Harper, Craig A., 2018. “Perceptions of Microaggressive Behavior Across the Ideological Spectrum”. PsyArXiv. April 2. doi:10.17605/OSF.IO/973V8

Abstract: Microaggressions–subtle slights that communicate implicit bias–have become a widespread concern in recent years.However, the empirical credibility of microaggression theory has been questioned due  to a lack  of  conceptual  clarity  and  the  prevalence  of methodological  biases within   microaggression   research. Challenging   the   empirical   validity   of   the traditional demographics-based microaggression  concept,  this  study  examined  the  potential  for  cross-spectrum  microaggression perception being  a  method  for  derogating  opposition  viewpoints, consistent with existing work on ideological prejudice. Using an experimental online survey (N= 404), there was a significant association between participants’ ideological orientation and their judgements of the ‘perpetrators’and ‘victims’of microaggressions when ‘victims’were associated with leftist causes, but not right-wing causes. These associations were not moderated by emotional investment in ideological orientation (i.e., collective narcissism). Implications for microaggression  theory, diversity  training  programs, and  the  study  of  politically-salient individual differences are subsequently discussed.

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