Microaggressions are subtle forms of discrimination, often unconscious or unintentional, that communicate hostile or derogatory messages, particularly to and about members of historically marginalized social groups. While Sue's (2010a, 2010b) microaggression theory formed its foundation in studies based on racial microaggressions, the following review summarizes microaggression literature to date, as it pertains to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and genderqueer (LGBTQ) people. Searching PsycINFO and other databases between 2010 and 2015, we found 35 peer-reviewed papers or dissertations that concentrate on the negative impact microaggressions have on LGBTQ people. A comprehensive overview of the experiences of individual LGBTQ subgroups (e.g., lesbian women, gay men, bisexual people, transgender people, and genderqueer people) is included, as well as microaggressions based on intersectional identities (e.g., experiences of LGBTQ people of color). The significance of this review is that it is the only known article to comprehensively analyze the literature on LGBTQ people and microaggressions, examining the strengths and weaknesses of past literature while encouraging future areas of theory, research, and practice.

Racial microaggressions are subtle (often unintentional or unconscious) forms of racial discrimination that negatively affect victims’ mental health. Utilizing an undergraduate student sample (N = 225), the current study examined the relationship between racial microaggressions and self-esteem. Results indicate that racial microaggressions negatively predict a lower self-esteem, and that microaggressions that occur in educational and workplace environments are particularly harmful to self-esteem. Finally, findings reveal that individuals of various racial and ethnic minority groups experience racial microaggressions differently. Implications for student development and recommendations for further research involving racial microaggressions and college students are discussed.

Microaggressions are subtle forms of discrimination, often unintentional and unconscious, which send negative and denigrating messages to various individuals and groups. Previous literature has focused on microaggressions of singular identities, with little attention to the impacts of intersectional microaggressions (i.e., subtle forms of discrimination that may be influenced by more than 1 identity). The current study utilized a unique qualitative technique to address 2 central goals: (a) to explore whether qualitative analysis is an effective way to examine intersectional microaggressions and (b) to examine whether people with multiple identities could identify intersectional microaggressions in their everyday lives. Utilizing Qualitative Secondary Analysis (QSA) and Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) methods, the researchers analyzed data from 6 previous qualitative studies with self-identified lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, women, Filipino Americans, multiracial people, and Muslims (N ϭ 80). Sample themes include (a) Exoticization of Women of Color, (b) Disapproval of LGBT Identity by Racial, Ethnic, and Religious Groups, (c) Assumptions of Inferiority or Criminality of Men of Color, and (d) Gender-Based Stereotypes of Muslim Men and Women. Implications for psychology (particularly for research and practice) are discussed. Finally, the authors advocate for the use of secondary analysis of qualitative data, to understand concepts that would not have been studied or reported through a singular qualitative analysis.