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Pamela
Lutgen-Sandvik ,
Ph.D. |
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Ph.D., University of Arizona, 2005
Office: Room 236
plutgen@unm.edu |
Associate Professor
Communication |
Research:
I currently study the issues of workplace bullying and employee emotional
abuse, particularly the impact of abuse at work on targets and the
ways in which employees resist bullying. I am currently working on
projects to explore the impact of one family member's abuse at work
on the other family members and their relationships, impact of bullying
on identity, and how people make sense of the experience. My approach
is interpretive/critical in nature and predominantly focused toward
employee-advocacy rather than organizational productivity, although
these are certainly not mutually exclusive. Furthermore, I strongly
adhere to a collaborative action inquiry/participative action research
perspective in which academics work with organizational stakeholders
to "grow" workplace systems and communication that ease
workplace tensions, improve interpersonal interactions, and enhance
individual and organizational performance (i.e., reduce/bullying and
aggression). As such, I am interested in appreciative inquiry, positive
organizational scholarship, and further exploring positive interactions
in organizations based on a strengths perspective of improving human
systems. I fundamentally believe that our best efforts to make workplaces
more humane will be through exploring, underscoring and building upon
worker, workgroup, and organizational strengths rather than focusing
all our energy on problems or weaknesses.
Sample Publications:
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P., & Sypher, B. D. (Eds.). (2009). Destructive organizational communication: Processes, consequences, and constructive ways of organizing. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis.
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P., Namie, G., & Namie, R. (2009). "Workplace bullying: Causes, consequences, and corrections." In P. Lutgen-Sandvik & B. D. Sypher (Eds.), Destructive organizational communication: Processes, consequences, and constructive ways of organizing. (pp. 27-52). New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P. (2008). "Intensive remedial identity work: Responses to workplace bullying as trauma and stigma." Organization Special Issue (Managing Identities in Complex Organizations), 15(1), 97-119.
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P., Tracy, S.J., & Alberts,
J.K. (2007). "Burned by Bullying in the American Workplace:
A Study of U.S. Prevalence and Delineation of Bullying 'Degree'." Journal
of Management Studies. September.
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McDermott, V.M. & Lutgen-Sandvik,
P. (forthcoming). "Communicating subtle messages: Creating hostile
and supportive environments." In B. Brushan (Ed.), Communication
in Perspectives. Amani: Germany.
- Lutgen-Sandvik, P. (January,
2007). "How Employees Fight Back Against Workplace Bullying." Communication Currents, 2(1). http://www.communicationcurrents.com/.
National Communication Association.
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P. (2007). "But words will never hurt me: Abuse and bullying at work, a comparison between two worker samples." Ohio Communication Journal, 45, 27-52.
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P., Tracy, S. J., & Alberts, J. K. (2007). "Burned by bullying in the American workplace: Prevalence, perception, degree, and impact." Journal of Management Studies, 44(6), 835-860.
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P. (2006).
"Take This Job and: Quitting and Other Forms of Resistance
to Workplace Bullying." Communication Monographs, 73, 406-433.
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Tracy,
S. J., Lutgen-Sandvik, P. & Alberts,
J.K. (2006). "Nightmares, Demons and Slaves: Exploring
the Painful Metaphors of Workplace Bullying." Management
Communication Quarterly.
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Lutgen-Sandvik, P. (2003). "The cycle of employee emotional abuse: Generation and regeneration of workplace mistreatment." Management Communication Quarterly, 16, 471-501.
- A complete list is available at her cv
site.
Methods:
My perspective as rooted in an interpretive perspective.
As such, I predominantly use qualitative methods in my research. However,
there are many questions that can only be answered using quantitative
approaches, so I adapt methodologies to suit the topic of interest
and the research questions/project at hand. I am particularly interested
in focus group research, in-depth interviewing, and ethnographic/participant
observation approaches. The latter is particularly enlightening for
the exploration of employee resistance to abuse by organizational
powerholders, since this type of bottom-up change generally occurs
over an extended period of time. On the other hand, I am invested
in measuring the prevalence of bullying in the U.S. workplace and
exploring the impact of bullying on family dynamics, human health,
and social functioning.
Teaching:
My beliefs about teaching, and what makes someone a good
teacher, are grounded in my beliefs about how all human beings should
treat one another. Teaching necessarily engages the emotions of actors.
It means challenging learners to answer questions like: What is the
contribution you will make to the world? What difference will you
make in the lives of those you touch? How can I, as a teacher, assist
in your learning journey? My teaching style is, in many ways, rooted
in my beliefs and training as a social worker. Students are most successful
when they can focus on and build upon their strengths rather than
"work on" their weaknesses. I believe their greatest room
for growth is in the area of their greatest strengths. I focus first
on what I want students to achieve in class and second on how that
can be done with the talents available to students. Last, and equally
as important as the rest, I love to laugh and want to have fun during
the process.
Service:
My service to the department includes three years as the faculty senator and serving on a number of department committees (e.g., M.A. applications, faculty merit, faculty advisory committee, etc.). At the disciplinary level, I currently serve as WSCA Organizational Communication Interest Group secretary, have been a paper reader for NCA and WSCA for the past three years, and, as previously mentioned, am a board member and the treasurer of the International Association on Bullying and Harassment in the Workplace. Additionally, I have reviewed manuscripts for Management Communication Quarterly; Communication Yearbook; Communication Monographs; and Gender, Work and Organizations and refereed proposals for workplace bullying service grants in New Zealand and substance abuse treatment grants in Albuquerque, N.M.
My grant writing experience is extensive, having served as the CEO of two grant-funded not-for-profit organizations prior to entering academia (see CV link on my homepage: http://www.unm.edu/~plutgen/). I have also received two research grants; the first was as a student at Arizona State. In 2007 I received one of only two Dean’s Summer Research Grants for junior faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences at UNM. These funds provided resources for editing/writing the Destructive Organizational Communication book. On a personal note, I have a great sense of humor, have a well-developed sense of empathy, make friends readily, and am an excellent parliamentarian (if needed). I am direct but thoughtful, helpful, organized, and driven to excellence and success.
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