ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the effects of discrimination by exploring how people felt when they faced it, and reviews the diversity of coping strategies they employ when they talk about their experiences and about what they do to prevent or deal with discrimination. Coping with discrimination is an important and pervasive aspect in perceived discrimination discourse that is present in the way participants recount their experiences, as well as in their reflections on both their emotions and the people involved in the events. Social Psychology has divided coping into two broad domains: active coping strategies and passive coping strategies. Passive strategies were accommodative in that they minimised the experience, used avoidance and concealment to preserve self-esteem and protect the self. Among other feelings, participants reported a range of negative emotions extending from having felt annoyed, upset, angry, and furious, to sad, disconcerted, unsettled, and depressed. Shame is a self-conscious emotion difficult to admit and more common in cases of internalised rejection.
