The Time-Lagged Impact of Microaggressions at Work on the Emotional Exhaustion of Transgender and Gender Diverse Employees

BackgroundDespite the widespread adoption of workplace protections for transgender and gender diverse (TGD) individuals, past research has suggested that microaggressions still occur. Previous literature indicates that microaggressions have a deleterious and cumulative impact on mental health. However, little is known about how microaggressions affect TGD employees over time.MethodUsing a longitudinal design with lagged measures over a period of three months, we explored the current forms of workplace microaggressions against TGD individuals, as well as their prospective impact on emotional exhaustion. We also examined perceived social support, identity centrality, and identity pride as moderators of the effects of microaggressions on emotional exhaustion as these may inform us of potential mitigating factors and targets for interventions.ResultsTGD employees chronically experience various types of microaggressions which, in turn, lead to emotional exhaustion over time. None of the hypothesized factors moderated the time-lagged relationship of microaggressions on emotional exhaustion, but direct effects of perceived social support and identity pride on exhaustion were found.ConclusionThe findings highlight the urgency to develop strategies that directly reduce microaggressions in organizational settings. In order to provide a safe space for gender minorities in the workplace, we recommend that organizations address microaggressions directly and explicitly within their human resource management policies in an authentic non-tokenistic way. In doing so, organizations should incorporate the experiences of various gender identities and gender expressions, while also defining clear processes for assessment and monitoring, corrective action, and best practice sharing.