Chinese academics in England face ‘microaggressions’

Chinese scholars working in England say microaggressions make them feel unwelcome, with many saying they are considering leaving their universities as a result, according to a new study.

A paper investigating Chinese academics’ experiences at English universities has found that 85 per cent say they have experienced or witnessed microaggressions.

Ming Cheng, professor of higher education at Sheffield Hallam University, conducted interviews with 41 Chinese academics at four universities in England to investigate the potential impact on their professional development.

Chinese nationals represent the largest group of international academics in the UK, and Cheng chose to focus on microaggressions because she felt it was a topic overlooked in the broader conversation about racial discrimination.

Cheng explained that there are three types of microaggressions: verbal, behavioural and environmental.

Verbal microaggressions were most often experienced by her research participants, with one respondent giving the example of their name being misspelled by a colleague who then refused to correct it, despite requests to do so.

“It’s like your name isn’t worth me spending time correcting it,” said Cheng. “I think that is the thing that makes people feel uncomfortable.”

Other examples given include complaining about someone’s accent, mandating language training, cultural stereotyping, hostile and condescending communication, and dismissing or undermining their contributions at work.

Another finding that Cheng said was “shocking” is how Chinese academics were concentrated in junior positions with fewer advancement opportunities despite their ability to “write articles”, deliver “excellent research projects”, “generate money” and “recruit Chinese international students”.

Cheng said: “It just feels like the current management is trying to maintain that racial hierarchy by being selective of international academics’ visibility.

“I did a thorough check of a lot of universities in England, especially the four universities I selected for interviews. I was really heartbroken because I noticed there is hardly any Chinese in senior management roles,” she said. Such roles include head of school, dean or vice chancellor.

Cheng progressed to a professor position 10 years after her PhD completion but said that she “had to change five universities to be promoted quickly”.

“But for many Chinese academics, if they stay in one university, it feels like promotion is extremely hard.”

According to Cheng, geopolitics and lack of trust could play a role in attitudes towards Chinese academics. “The media does not have very great positive image” of China, she said.

Cheng also raised other factors such as language. “A lot of Chinese are doing very well in academic English. But as for the daily language, the local culture, not everyone is excellent with it because people are busy with teaching and research all the time, they hardly have time to socialise.

“In England, there is a strong pub culture for informal networking. I think that culture is something a lot of Chinese academics are not a big fan of because we don’t drink that much”.

Of her 41 research participants, more than half are considering leaving their institutions, she said. “Twenty-four research participants, that’s 59 per cent, considered leaving the UK or the university…the challenges Chinese academics are facing are unique.”

rosalind.skillen@timeshighereducation.com