‘You Have to Stay in Character’
Myles I. Durkee says he does it so often that it usually doesn’t occur to him that he’s code switching. As a Black man in a predominantly white workplace, he’s accustomed to adjusting his voice and mannerisms in ways that go beyond the universal desire to appear professional.
An assistant professor of psychology at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, Durkee has more insight into the behavior than most. He studies the way that people of color modify their behavior to fit in and be taken seriously, and the stresses this dynamic can cause.
In a recent interview, Durkee explained what college leaders should know about code switching and how they can help ease the burden on employees from marginalized groups. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
First off, can you explain what code switching is? Don’t we all do it to some extent?
When we talk about code switching, we refer to the process of adjusting one’s behavior, their style of speech, their appearance, their whole self-presentation, to accommodate the comfort of others.
Nearly all human beings tend to code switch between a more casual version of themselves around friends or family, and a more professional version of themselves at work or at school. So it’s easy to dismiss it as no big deal. But the pressure to code switch isn’t distributed equally. Typically the groups that are the most marginalized or stigmatized face the greatest pressure to code switch in order to mask aspects of their personal identities. If they don’t, it becomes easy to label them as “not the right fit” or “less professional.” A person might be very proud to be African American but might avoid discussing topics like Black Lives Matter or the racial unrest that occurred in 2020 because they don’t want to draw too much attention to their race. External pressure to code switch can be much greater for people from underrepresented or marginalized identities because when people from dominant identities code switch, it’s typically voluntary and less essential for inclusion.
I can see how this could play out in certain corporate settings, but do the same pressures exist in colleges that proclaim to value diversity and inclusiveness?
In academia, there are unspoken expectations for what a scholar is expected to look like or sound like. Say someone is an expert in their discipline but their dialect is more in the form of African American English, or they’re an international scholar with a heavy accent who also wears a hijab. These trivial characteristics may unfortunately encourage students or colleagues to doubt the intelligence and credibility of these scholars.
Women of color likely experience greater pressure to code switch compared to men of color. For example, Black males who occasionally express a little more blackness in contexts that are not used to it can be perceived as the “cool Black guy,” whereas Black women often do not receive the same perceptions when they break character in spaces where they typically code switch. They’re much more likely to be penalized. Our research also indicates that Black women are much more likely to be accused of “acting white” based on their style of speech, which indicates that their speech patterns are more heavily monitored and policed by others.
If you decide to code switch at work or at school, you have to also commit to maintaining the same presentation consistently because the moment you come out of character, all of your colleagues are going to notice and that’s going to raise questions. When code switching is not executed perfectly, people may begin to question which version is actually the true you. It can easily backfire if people think you’re pandering to them. Code switching is a demanding performance that requires you to stay in character consistently.
Are there any benefits to code switching?
It’s very unlikely Barack Obama would have been elected president if he did not code switch. Code switching can make it easier to connect with others and build personal relationships when they see themselves in you and recognize shared traits. However, code switching is very much a double-edged sword because it also becomes detrimental and extremely taxing when it is seen as a requirement for inclusion and respectability, rather than a voluntary strategy that underrepresented groups can engage in if they choose to do so.
What can colleges and other employers do to ease the burden?
We’re never going to fully eliminate the pressure that certain groups receive to code switch in society, but we should actively strive to reduce this pressure. The first action that can be taken is to periodically collect anonymous climate evaluations from all members within a school or organization to find out which groups are experiencing significant pressure to code switch.
Most schools and organizations encourage their members to bring their authentic selves to work or to the classroom. Diversity commitments are easy to publicly broadcast on your website, but it’s much harder to actually put this work into practice. Far too often, schools are not fully equipped with the cultural knowledge to accomplish the goals of diversity and inclusion, without further marginalizing individuals who choose to express their authentic identities. So a second action is to move beyond mandatory diversity trainings, which are frequently ineffective and do very little to change the climate over time. Instead, colleges can offer regular diversity dialogues stimulated by current events, artistic performances, guest speakers, or popular social media trends.
Third, schools and organizations need to reevaluate their codes of conduct and professional standards to ensure that these guidelines are inclusive. Professional standards that are based primarily on the norms and values of white middle-class individuals should be updated and revamped. For example, more inclusive hairstyles that reflect natural hair textures or head coverings like the hijab should be embraced as professional etiquette instead of traditional standards for straightened hair, which forced many people to use dangerous chemicals or hot irons to change the texture of their hair to fit a European aesthetic. Employers should still continue to maintain high professional standards, but these standards must be modernized to acknowledge that professionalism comes in many varieties with cultural flair. —Katherine Mangan
