How positive racial stereotypes can harm your career
by Carmen Van Kerckhove
People of your racial or ethnic group are stereotyped as good employees with a solid work ethic. That should bode well for your career, right?
Not necessarily. Even so-called “positive” racial stereotypes could spell trouble for you in the workplace. Here are some adverse effects you could experience.
1. You get pigeonholed
If people at your workplace buy into a racial stereotype, it could influence the type of positions for which they think you are best suited. Say, for example, you’re Asian-American, and your colleagues believe that all Asians are good at science and math. You could have a hard time moving into a client-facing position because your boss thinks you’d be better suited crunching numbers in a back office.
2. You don’t get accurate feedback
Professionals need a clear understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses if they want to take their careers to the next level. But if your boss buys into a racial stereotype about your racial and ethnic group, that could contribute to a halo effect in which she feels as if your performance is better than it actually is. As a result, you won’t receive an accurate performance evaluation, and won’t know what you need to work on. In the long term, it will hinder your career prospects.
3. Your colleagues resent you
Every “positive” stereotype has a negative flip-side. If Asians are perceived as hard-working, the unspoken implication is that blacks and Latinos are not. If black women are supposed to be strong, it’s assumed that white and Asian women are weak. You may be benefiting from a racial stereotype, but most likely, your colleagues are being put at a disadvantage because of that same stereotype — and that can lead to tension in the workplace.
Ultimately, all stereotypes are limiting and dehumanizing — even “positive” ones.
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of 
Momentor » Blog Archive » 7/17/08: Top Career Posts this Week on 17 Jul 2008 at 10:53 am
[…] From Carmen Van Kerckhove at Race in the Workplace: How positive racial stereotypes can harm your ca… […]