The act of repeatedly inflicting intentional harm on another person is considered a violation of their rights. Microaggressions can also have an impact on a victim's emotional state and overall wellbeing.
There are still debates about whether they amount to a moral erosion of social empathy.
To explain this phenomenon, let's start by defining what it means to be empathetic. Empathy involves understanding how someone else feels, including their experiences, emotions, thoughts, beliefs, and values. It is different from sympathy because it requires active engagement with another person's perspective.
If you see a friend crying and assume that he is sad without asking why, then your reaction would be sympathetic but not necessarily empathetic. On the other hand, if you take the time to listen and try to understand why they are upset, then your response becomes more empathic.
Repeated microaggressions towards a person could lead to a gradual disregard for their feelings. This can occur when the perpetrator continues to ignore or invalidate the victim's concerns.
The victim may become numb to their reactions and stop caring about them, which can create a sense of detachment from the people around them. In some cases, this can even result in a lack of care for themselves.
But can we really say that this constitutes a loss of empathy? After all, empathy requires conscious effort, and it isn't always easy to maintain consistent concern for others. While repeated microaggressions might make it harder to show genuine empathy, it doesn't mean that individuals suddenly lose all compassion for those around them. Rather than seeing a sudden decline in empathy, we should view it as an erosion over time. The longer someone is exposed to these incidents, the less likely they will be able to empathize with those affected by them.
This is why addressing microaggressions is so important. By creating a culture where everyone feels respected and valued, we can foster empathy in our communities. And while empathy isn't something we can force upon others, we can strive to cultivate environments where it is possible to feel safe expressing one's emotions without fear of judgment or dismissal.
Can the repetition of microaggressions be considered a moral erosion of social empathy?
Although some people may view repeated experiences with microaggressions as a type of "wear" on one's moral empathy for others, this is not a widely held belief within psychology or sociology research. The notion that exposure to stressors such as microaggressions can lead to a deterioration in empathic responses has been examined extensively in various fields.