Bullying in academia: why it happens and how to stop it
Working Scientist28 Kesä 2023

Bullying in academia: why it happens and how to stop it

Morteza Mahmoudi witnessed bullying behaviours during a series of lab visits following his PhD in 2009, and now studies the topic alongside his role as a nanoscience and regenerative medicine researcher at Michigan State University in East Lansing. In 2019 he co-founded the Academic Parity Movement, a non-profit which aims to end academic discrimination, violence and bullying across the sector.


In the seventh episode of this podcast series about freedom and safety in science, Mahmoudi tells Adam Levy that bullying is triggered by workplace power imbalances and is particularly prevalent in academia with its hierarchical structure, often causing targets to stay silent.


Bullying can cause a range of physical and mental health problems, he says. Perpetrators damage individuals, institutions’ reputations and wider society. He outlines steps to take if you find yourself bullied, and how academic institutions can tackle the problem.


Mahmoudi is joined by geoscientist Chris Jackson, who left academia in 2022 for a role at engineering consultancy Jacobs, based in Manchester, UK. Jackson welcomes the fact that bullying harassment and discrimination in academia is now more talked about, but says its root cause is an individual’s inability to put themselves in someone else’s position and identify with their personality and experience.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jaksot(221)

Can academia handle my religious faith?

Can academia handle my religious faith?

Elaine Howard Ecklund, a sociologist who studies attitudes towards religion in academic workplaces, says that scientists often feel they cannot be open about their faith at work. In the fourth episod...

30 Tammi 20min

‘Bodies like ours aren’t considered in academia’

‘Bodies like ours aren’t considered in academia’

Theo Newbold featured in a 2022 careers article about sizeism in science which discussed some accommodations that could make a difference in the workplace. Some follow-up comments on the discussion pl...

22 Tammi 25min

Campus protests and civil disobedience: does academia have a problem with activism?

Campus protests and civil disobedience: does academia have a problem with activism?

In May 2024, Uli Beisel signed what she thought was a fairly innocuous petition. But it led to her face being printed in a national tabloid. This was after student demonstrators at the Free University...

15 Tammi 35min

'Coming out as a transgender scientist made me the best teacher I’ve ever been'

'Coming out as a transgender scientist made me the best teacher I’ve ever been'

In 1997 Shannon Bros came out as a transgender woman to students and colleagues. “When I transitioned, everything stopped,” says Bros of her research career. “I had a huge friend base by that time. I ...

8 Tammi 29min

The problem with career planning in science

The problem with career planning in science

In June this year developmental biologist Ottoline Leyser stepped down as chief executive of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the country’s national research funding agency. In the final episode of ...

16 Loka 202532min

How to pause and restart your science career

How to pause and restart your science career

In the penultimate episode of this six-part podcast series about career planning in science, Julie Gould discusses some of the setbacks faced by junior researchers, including political upheaval, finan...

9 Loka 202541min

Keep, lose, add: a checklist for plotting your next career move in science

Keep, lose, add: a checklist for plotting your next career move in science

In the fourth episode of a six-part podcast series about science career planning, Julie Gould investigates "planned happenstance," a theory which encourages workers to embrace chance opportunities dur...

2 Loka 202530min

When life gets in the way of your meticulously-planned career in science

When life gets in the way of your meticulously-planned career in science

In the third episode of this six-part Working Scientist podcast series about career planning, Sam Smith, a behavioral oncologist at the University of Leeds, UK, reflects on his plan as an early career...

25 Syys 202530min

Suosittua kategoriassa Liike-elämä ja talous

sijotuskasti
mimmit-sijoittaa
rss-rahapodi
psykopodiaa-podcast
herrasmieshakkerit
ostan-asuntoja-podcast
rahapuhetta
rss-rahamania
rss-seuraava-potilas
rss-lahtijat
rss-merja-mahkan-rahat
rss-40-ajatusta-aanesta
rss-porssipuhetta
rss-levosta-kasin-yrittajyys
rss-vaikuttavan-opettajan-vierella
rss-draivi
rss-ma
inderespodi
leadcast
raksapodi