Identity Work by First-Generation College Students to Counteract Class-Based Microaggressions

Using an interactional approach to studying organizations, we explore how social class differences alone and coupled with racial minority status generate identity threats for first-generation college students who are already underprivileged with respect to educational attainment. For these students the markers of social class are omnipresent and, like racial minorities, they experience microaggressions that require them to engage in identity work to counter these threats. We detail manifestations of social class differences on and off campus and identify the kinds of microaggressions these students encounter including those generated by the intersection of race and class that can destabilize students' identities and lead to what we refer to as identity collapse. Our results also reveal four types of identity work including mining core identity strength, passing (via dodging and code switching), and developing peer support networks that allow some first-generation students to be resilient in responding to identity threats. We consider the implications of this class work for first-to-college students and offer suggestions for future research that expands our work to workplace organizations and inquires about the potential lasting effects of social class stigma.