New Series, Vol. 2, No. 12
While accounting for more than 12% of the U.S. adult population, Black workers in 2021 composed only 9% of workers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, a slow increase from 7% in 2011. Looked at it another way, 18% of all Black workers were in STEM fields, contrasted with 25% of white workers and 39% of Asian workers. This study gathered and analyzed evidence about Black STEM workers interacting with coworkers and clients via enterprise social media (ESM)—Microsoft Teams, Slack, Yammer, Jive, etc. Workers have control over how they present themselves on ESMs, but don’t have control over privacy, psychological safety, and algorithm biases concerns that may arise. This study drew on extant research on communicative management of social identity (including intersectionality—overlapping identities resulting in complex experiences of oppression) and technological affordances, and evidence was analyzed using the constructivist grounded theory approach. (Affordances refers to usage options that a technology allows humans. Constructivist grounded theory refers to analysis circling repeatedly between theory and evidence.)
Previous research has shown that Black STEM workers experience both overt and covert forms of racism and threats to their social identity, resulting in Black workers employing various techniques of identity and emotion management. Black workers are already underrepresented in some STEM fields (5% of engineering workers, 7% of computer workers) and not overrepresented in any (highest percentage is health-related at 11%; Black STEM workers’ salaries average only $73,000, contrasted with Asian STEM workers averaging $107,000, according to a 2023 report. Many studies concluded pay discrimination exists [structural racism]). Various other studies have found not only racism/hostility, but also imposter syndrome, stereotyping, and lack of sense of belonging among Black STEM workers and anxiety, burnout, reduced productivity, resentment, and alienation among Black STEM students. In response, Black STEM professionals have started their own professional associations and tried to move from defense (stereotype management) to increased self-definition that complements their racial identities. As authors Nyawaga and Mitra write,
“These performances of identity management include formal training, cerebral work, managing emotions, service orientation, adopting specific clothing and hair styles, particular embodied behaviors and gestures, efficiency and flaunting social status, among others. Black works both appropriate and resist such strategies, for instance, by using their ‘white voice’ to suppress emotions or calibrate their assertiveness, modifying their language to signal their in-group status, and embracing their (in)visibility through nuanced and tensional tactics.”
Goals include monitoring one’s self-image, motivation to reduce discrepancies between self-image and preferred self-image, and constructing a desired image.
Previous research also has shown that workers use computer-mediated communication (not only ESMs, but also email, LinkedIn and others) for individualized language, manipulated images, distancing themselves from devalued identities, and codeswitching (moving back and forth between different versions of the same language). ESMs include discussion threads, user profiles, online workplace communities, file repositories, activity feeds, and direct messaging, and are designed to improve knowledge sharing, collaboration, team communication, and social interaction. Communication is clearly different on private ESMs than on public social media. ESMs also have different affordances than other computer-mediated communication, with one study identifying visibility, editability, association, persistence, personalization, and information control. Previous research on ESMs and their affordances have omitted any consideration of race.
Thirty Black U.S. STEM workers with bachelor’s degrees and who used ESMs in their work were recruited by a combination of nonrandom methods. Ages ranged up to 62, with three under 25. Eighteen men and 12 women were included, with 20 of them working fully remote and 10 hybrid. All used Microsoft Teams, five used Yammer, and four used Slack; other ESMs were also used. Semi-structured interviews were held on Zoom or Teams, with questions ranging from general to specific; no new themes emerged after the first 25 interviews. The transcript was 474 pages. Initial coding revealed themes of getting to know non-Black people, helping defuse workplace tension, deflecting questions, self-censoring, reducing ESM use, testing ESM surveillance, forming Black-only groups, and advocating for the next generation of Black STEM workers. Six affordances also emerged from the evidence: (in)visibility, awareness, information control, persistence (permanence of content), association (connecting people or content), and personalization.
The authors concluded that there were three clusters of communicative strategies, protective, connective, and self-affirming, and that specific affordances facilitated those strategies. Protective strategies were resisting stereotypes and evading surveillance. Connective strategies were enclaving with other Black workers and bridging with non-Black workers. Self-affirming strategies were “showing up ‘fully,’” personal branding, and engaging in Black advocacy. Nyawaga and Mitra also concluded that Black STEM workers’ identity management strategies are rooted in four situational stressors:
“1) the prevalence of racist stereotypes and microaggressions in STEM fields and organizations, 2) the relatively low numbers of Black workers in STEM, 3) their perceived precarity in STEM, where they remain last among demographic groups in terms of rank and salary, and, finally, 4) the perception of being watched by employers via ESM technologies.”
They also made observations or drew conclusions about affordance theory and intersectionality theory, the latter about their unique sample of 30. For instance, they reported,
“Particularly interesting was how participants’ national origin intersected with race; while many foreign-origin participants foregrounded their racial-national identity in their personal brand and/or when connecting with non-Black coworkers/clients, often using humor to break the ice, U.S.-born participants were wary of talking about race to bridge with non-Blacks, and/or did so defiantly to advocate for Black STEM workers.”
Communication Currents Discussion Questions
- This study included a range of Black STEM workers, from entry level to senior, but no analysis was performed to compare/contrast workers at different points in their careers. How do you think social identity management might differ by age or professional level and why?
- How might social identity management strategies differ for other groups in the minority in STEM fields, such as women or Latino Americans? How about at a STEM employer where a minority group such as Asians are the majority of STEM workers?
- Social identity management is frequently used in workplaces by minority groups resisting stereotypes and other racism, evading surveillance, advocating for their group, and other reasons as shown. Consider your own efforts to manage your social identity in social media and private texting outside the workplace.
For additional suggestions about how to use this and other Communication Currents in the classroom, see: https://www.natcom.org/publications/communication-currents/integrating-communication-currents-classroom
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Christine Nyawaga is Assistant Professor of communication studies at the University of Memphis.
Rahul Mitra is Associate Professor of organizational communication at Wayne State University.
This essay, by Dane S. Claussen, translates the scholarly journal article, Christine Nyawaga and Rahul Mitra (2025): Black STEM Professionals’ Identity Management on Enterprise Social Media, in Communication and Race, 1-29. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/28346955.2025.2471110
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