Introduction
I would like to submit written evidence on "plagiarism" at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU). I have been fighting for years to expose the truth about plagiarism at the University but to no avail. I have recently written to the Rt. Hon Mr John Denham MP, Secretary of State for DIUS and Professor Paul Ramsden, Chief Executive for HEA regarding this issue. I have also formally written to HEFCE (evidence enclosed:[346] electronic correspondence with Professor David Eastwood) and QAA (evidence enclosed letter from Mr Peter Williams to the Chairman of Select Committee on IUSS) asking for the issue to be thoroughly investigated.
It was made clear to HEFCE and QAA that I am unwilling to disclose the substantive, compelling and indisputable evidence of plagiarism at the University without protection against future litigation (please see Mr Peter Williams letter to the House of Common on 30 October 2008).[348] The position of these organisations is that they cannot investigate my revelations without disclosing my identity to the University, nor can they offer me protection against future litigation.
I understand the only available pathway to divulge the truth to the public about plagiarism at the University is through the "Parliament Protection Privilege". To this end, enclosed please find a very small sample of the plagiarised students' course work reports as evidence.
1. Background information
I am Professor of Applied Physiology and worked at the University till I was summarily dismissed on 3 January 2007. I have contributed significantly to the British Education over the last 30 years in the teaching and research domains (please see enclosed statements by colleagues). This encompassed academic and administrative commitments including the supervision of several Ph.D. and MSc students to successful completion. I have published more than 200 refereed articles, scientific correspondence items, and meeting abstracts. My capability as a teacher and researcher furnish the grounds for my personal written evidence to IUSS on plagiarism at the University…
3. Plagiarism: the case
As it was advised by [committee staff], I sent to the Committee a very few course work of the students' plagirised reports. I would be happy to send substantially more plagiarised reports if this is required at this stage. These reports clearly and unambiguously exhibit the following:
— The verbatim copying of another's work within reports without clear identification and acknowledgements. This is defined as plagiarism according to the University's definition.
— That some or all of the students appear to have copied review articles and text books carelessly. Unidentified and unacknowledged quotations from another work are the main feature of the students' course work reports. This is plagiarism according to the University's definition.
— That some or all the references at the back of the report are not referred to within the text. This is plagiarism according to the University's definition.
3.1 The majority of students are tempted to lift sections of words from published papers or from textbooks. This is a very serious problem in the University. The students were clearly informed at the beginning of each academic semester and prior to the submission of the course work that this lifting is known as plagiarism and it is a very serious academic offence (please sees evidence attached). Students were also informed when they were handed back their course work reports to reinforce the point.
3.2 The first lecture of each new semester was allocated for an overview of the module syllabuses and the subject of the course work assignment. An over head projector was used to advise the students how to write their assignments and avoid plagiarism in line with the University's Modular Framework Assessment Regulations. A single printed sheet of A4 under the title "Assignment general and specific comments" was handed to the students at the commencement of the semester. This sheet contained a number of comments defining plagiarism and stating why it was unacceptable (please sees evidence attached). Students were advised to develop their own ideas and arguments and learn how to express themselves. They were informed about the seriousness of plagiarism and how to avoid it. The enclosed "Assignment general and specific comments" sheet was clearly explained to the students and at the commencement of each new semester, during the semester, and prior to the submission of the course work.
3.3 Students were also referred to the University's Modular Framework Assessment Regulations (Section D Appendix C) regarding academic impropriety and that their course work should conform to those regulations. Students were advised to show that they have learnt about and can use other people work. They were taught how to quote and reference to show where they got the material from. Students were clearly informed that, in their assignment, when discussing other people ideas, they should acknowledge where the ideas came from with supporting references.
3.4 Students were advised that they must avoid direct copying from published papers or textbooks as this practice may suggest that they are incapable of using ideas for themselves. Students were also informed not to rely heavily on copying out segments from printed literature as copying the literature obscure whether the students understand the topic of the course work. Students, when submitted their course work reports, were required to sign a declaration that all sources consulted have been appropriately acknowledged (evidence submitted as attached to some of the plagiarised course work reports already sent to the Committee).
4. Although plagiarism is a very serious academic impropriety as clearly stated in the University's Modular Framework Assessment Regulations (Section D Appendix C), the University management has not taken this issue seriously.
4.1 The University strategies to identify plagiarism were inadequate and the procedures available to combat plagiarism were ineffective. I repeatedly tried to have my concerns about excessive toleration of plagiarism considered by the University. However, I was constantly put off by the University Management. All my complaints were ignored despite a litany of requests for action and no penalties were sanctioned when plagiarism was suspected and detected.
4.2 I had numerous grounds of grievances in relation to plagiarism over the years against colleagues and Management at the University. Most notably in May and December 2003 I have attempted to have my grievances about excessive toleration of plagiarism dealt with and investigated under the University's grievance procedures. This never happened.
4.3 When I suspected and identified plagiarism, the University should have taken my concerns seriously and a thorough investigation should have been conducted promptly in line with the University's regulations. This never happened.
4.4 I was only allowed to down mark the plagiarised assignment by 10% (see attached evidence entitled "Disciplinary Case"). I was not allowed to sanction more severe penalty or to fail any plagiarised course work during the consultation and moderation processes. Following my suspension, two Managers at the School alleged that they have remarked the assignments and came to the conclusion that no plagiarism had taken place (evidence would be provided on request). The external examiner confirmed the Managers conclusion (evidence would be provided on request)! I viewed this as an unacceptable practice. I believe that the managers at the University in collaboration with the external examiner were trying to cover up plagiarism.
4.5 I raised my concern about plagiarism through the University's procedures but it was then converted into a disciplinary against me with allegations that I had not followed University procedures, which is not true (see attached evidence entitled "Disciplinary Case"). There has been not the merest hint of actually dealing with the issue of plagiarism and I was stopped from providing the evidence I had gathered (abundant compelling evidence is available on request). This demonstrates, I believe, disregard for professional standards to an extent that should be intolerable in a British University.
4.6 Instead of investigating and determining my concerns of May and December 2003 in respect of plagiarism, managers at the University chose to suspend me on 10 December 2003. I was suspended for an unimaginable long time while the most dilatory "investigation" imaginable was conducted. This is viewed as the worst kind of sharp practice. Then I was accused of gross professional misconduct. The University managers made up false allegations against me to justify "Gross Professional Misconduct". I was eventually dismissed in January 2007 following an investigation and grievance and disciplinary hearing in October 2006. In April 2007 I appealed to the University's Board of Governors against the dismissal, but my appeal was not upheld and the final dismissal decision was conveyed to me in May 2007. The investigation was flawed in design and substance. The grievance and disciplinary and the appeal hearings were discriminatory and I was unfairly dismissed.
5. Through the University College Union (UCU) Legal Services Department, three claims (one in 2005 and two in 2007) were lodged with the Employment Tribunal and 20 days have been allocated for hearing the case commencing 14 January 2008. These complaints were based, among other issues, on protected disclosures in relation to plagiarism and overseas students' bench fees and unfair dismissal.
5.1 The Employment Tribunal hearings to a full trial never took place as I was virtually forced to enter into a compromise agreement with confidentiality clauses attached. The compromise agreement was signed on my behalf by the UCU's Director of the Legal Department as I was in a hysterical state and heavily sedated with medications and utterly refused to sign the compromise agreement.
6. My health disintegrated further as can be established by reference to several medical reports including one by the University's own occupational health doctor.
6.1 My academic career is now completely ruined, my health is ruined and the normal social fabric of my family is in a state of turmoil. The damage to my reputation and to my name and career is immense.
7. Conclusion and Recommendation
I do believe that the unfortunate story of plagiarism at Liverpool John Moores University is in the public interest and it is therefore my responsibility to bring the above facts to the IUS Select Committee Attention. The corrupted practices by the University are a threat to the public interest and to the reputation of British Education standard nationally and internationally.
I believe that the allegations about plagiarism presented in this written evidence are very serious and warrants further considerations and investigation by IUSS Select Committee…
Submission from Professor MS El-Sayed
Friday, October 1, 2010
Tribunal finds in favour of Gloucestershire whistleblower
The University of Gloucestershire has lost a tribunal case brought by a manager who claimed she was sidelined after blowing the whistle on the state of the institution’s finances.
Jan Merrigan, business development manager at Gloucestershire’s Faculty of Education, Humanities and Sciences, said she had suffered professionally after drawing attention to financial problems, particularly at the faculty.
She claimed at an employment tribunal in Bristol this week that public money was being spent inappropriately on overseas travel for academic staff and part-time payments for workers already in full-time contracts. She added that Gloucestershire was losing money on courses run in partnership with London-based international colleges.
In 2008-09, the university’s overall deficit was £6.3 million, and the early indications are that it suffered another large deficit in 2009-10.
The university disputed any evidence of unlawful practice during the tribunal hearing, which also heard claims that Paul Bowler, Gloucestershire’s former deputy vice-chancellor, had “plotted a coup” against Patricia Broadfoot, its former vice-chancellor.
Mr Bowler, who left the post in December after a period on suspension, denied the allegation, although he told the tribunal that when the vice-chancellor had asked him whether he thought she should resign, he told her she should.
Professor Broadfoot retired in August.
The tribunal panel upheld the claim lodged by Ms Merrigan, who still works at the university, and ordered Gloucestershire to pay £6,000 in compensation.
Ms Merrigan said: “I am delighted I have won, but most importantly, that my concerns were taken seriously. I never wanted to take my case to an external tribunal, but the internal procedures were flawed and despite my best efforts, the university did not want to hear what I had to say or address my serious concerns over financial flaws.”
Gloucestershire was unavailable for comment.
From: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk
UNISON Press Release
Jan Merrigan, business development manager at Gloucestershire’s Faculty of Education, Humanities and Sciences, said she had suffered professionally after drawing attention to financial problems, particularly at the faculty.
She claimed at an employment tribunal in Bristol this week that public money was being spent inappropriately on overseas travel for academic staff and part-time payments for workers already in full-time contracts. She added that Gloucestershire was losing money on courses run in partnership with London-based international colleges.
In 2008-09, the university’s overall deficit was £6.3 million, and the early indications are that it suffered another large deficit in 2009-10.
The university disputed any evidence of unlawful practice during the tribunal hearing, which also heard claims that Paul Bowler, Gloucestershire’s former deputy vice-chancellor, had “plotted a coup” against Patricia Broadfoot, its former vice-chancellor.
Mr Bowler, who left the post in December after a period on suspension, denied the allegation, although he told the tribunal that when the vice-chancellor had asked him whether he thought she should resign, he told her she should.
Professor Broadfoot retired in August.
The tribunal panel upheld the claim lodged by Ms Merrigan, who still works at the university, and ordered Gloucestershire to pay £6,000 in compensation.
Ms Merrigan said: “I am delighted I have won, but most importantly, that my concerns were taken seriously. I never wanted to take my case to an external tribunal, but the internal procedures were flawed and despite my best efforts, the university did not want to hear what I had to say or address my serious concerns over financial flaws.”
Gloucestershire was unavailable for comment.
From: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk
UNISON Press Release
Thursday, September 30, 2010
I fired my periodontist today
If you want to know why, you can read this open letter I wrote to him, the jerk. Since I wrote that letter, however, I've had time to think that if only I could have a dialogue with him, maybe all would not be lost. I thought we could communicate (when I was not under local anesthetic and emotional duress), and find some common ground.
The best part of this plan was getting to use my newly-acquired feedback giving skills (thanks Phoenix!). First, I asked him if now was a good time to talk about what transpired during the surgery, then, I asked him if I could give him some feedback. He actively hemmed and hawed. Have you ever seen anyone actually make the sounds, "hemm" and "haw" while they cock their head sideways? Well, I have. But he agreed. So I put my discourse on.
I had him for about four minutes. He was following along my line of reasoning, and sort of nodding, and sort of watching me suspiciously. I think it was around the word "misogynistic" that I lost him. He glazed. I kept going like an adrenaline-powered steamroller. I had to say my piece! But in the middle of my speechifying, he got up, interrupting me mid-sentence, and killed a fly on the window. I am not joking. He actually did.
And then I knew that was it. So, using my awesome feedback-giving skill-set, I summed up what I thought he was saying: "So, you are telling me that you will make absolutely no effort to change, nor will you suspend your need to talk during surgical procedures, nor will you apologize?" He answered in the affirmative. So I fired him.
I feel vindicated. I feel like I have asserted my right to be a girl, to have feelings, to be treated nicely, to express myself, and to fucking fire someone who refuses to make my life (and dental aesthetics) better.
The best part of this plan was getting to use my newly-acquired feedback giving skills (thanks Phoenix!). First, I asked him if now was a good time to talk about what transpired during the surgery, then, I asked him if I could give him some feedback. He actively hemmed and hawed. Have you ever seen anyone actually make the sounds, "hemm" and "haw" while they cock their head sideways? Well, I have. But he agreed. So I put my discourse on.
I had him for about four minutes. He was following along my line of reasoning, and sort of nodding, and sort of watching me suspiciously. I think it was around the word "misogynistic" that I lost him. He glazed. I kept going like an adrenaline-powered steamroller. I had to say my piece! But in the middle of my speechifying, he got up, interrupting me mid-sentence, and killed a fly on the window. I am not joking. He actually did.
And then I knew that was it. So, using my awesome feedback-giving skill-set, I summed up what I thought he was saying: "So, you are telling me that you will make absolutely no effort to change, nor will you suspend your need to talk during surgical procedures, nor will you apologize?" He answered in the affirmative. So I fired him.
I feel vindicated. I feel like I have asserted my right to be a girl, to have feelings, to be treated nicely, to express myself, and to fucking fire someone who refuses to make my life (and dental aesthetics) better.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Cafes In Damascus
 |
| View from the Bosphorous, Istanbul |
| LANGUIDLY the night-wind bloweth From the gardens round, Where the clear Barrada floweth With a lulling sound. Not the lute-note's sweet shiver Can such music find, As is on a wandering river, On a wandering wind. There the Moslem leaneth, dreaming O'er the inward world, While around the fragrant steaming Of the smoke is curled. Rising from the coffee berry, Dark grape of the South; Or the pipe of polished cherry, With its amber mouth. Cooled by passing through the water, Gurgling as it flows— Scented by the Summer's daughter, June's impassioned rose. By that rose's spirit haunted Are the dreams that rise, Of far lands, and lives enchanted, And of deep black eyes. Thus with some sweet dream's assistance, Float they down life's stream; Would to heaven our whole existence Could be such a dream! • The cafes are perhaps the greatest luxury that a stranger finds in Damascus. Gardens, klosquel, fountains, and groves, are abundant around every Eastern capital; but cafes on the very bosom of a rapid river, and bathed by its waves, are peculiar to this ancient city : they are formed so as to exclude the rays of the sun while they admit the breeze. ---Letitia Elizabeth Landon |
Having never read any L.E.L. before, I chose this poem because the title reminds me of Byron's sumptuousness and the East-meets-West quality of hanging about in Istanbul. It was Ramadan when I was there. At the call to prayer, as the sun descended, Turkish families would begin eating elaborate picnics under the backlit-beauty of the Blue Mosque. That, or they would tear open bags of take-away McDonald's-- as the time to break the fast approached, there was a line-up around the block.
Reading this poem aloud to myself, I am reminded of Keats more than of Byron. Perhaps it's the meditative quality, or the way this sensual experience-- looking onto the river, seeing the mosque in the distance, smelling the spicy coffee-- quickly becomes inward-looking and dreamlike. Like Keats, she writes a rich imagined life. Also, there is the feeling I get that L.E.L. herself never visited Syria (google scholar reveals no evidence... though she did sail to the Cape Coast in 1838 where she died of an overdose of prussic acid.) The Barada is the main river running through Damascus, the capital of Syria.
In the Memoir prefacing her collected works, she is described as the kind of woman with whom I would have gotten along, but I can imagine her butting heads with Wordsworth:
"...a creature of town and social life. The bulk of her existence was spent in Hans-place, Sloane-street, Chelsea. Like Charles Lamb, she was so moulded to London habits and tastes, that that was the world'to her. The country was not to her what it is to those who have passed a happy youth there, and learned to sympathize with its spirit and enjoy its calm. In one respect she was right. Those who look for society alone in the country, are not likely to be much pleased with the change from London, where every species of Intelligence concentrates; where the rust of intellectual sloth is briskly rubbed off; and old prejudices, which often lie like fogs in low still Books in the country, are blown away by the lively winds of discussion. Dr. Sam. Johnson, said on one occasion: " Sir, the man that is tired of London, is tired of life;" and on another, in reply to a question asked him of his preferences, while in Scotland, "the finest sight I saw, was the road to London."
Thursday, September 23, 2010
An Open Letter to my Periodontist
Dear Dr. ---,
After having a bone graft in the front of my mouth this morning, I felt inspired to write you this letter, to let you know that I am thinking of you. When I walked in the door and was greeted by your smiling secretary, it's true that I was not terribly excited to be there. But I smiled. Brave-faced, grinning toothlessly, I was going to face this day with fortitude and the Buddhist precepts of non-reaction I so admire.*
Your dental technician froze my mouth and your dental assistant industriously sterilized tools. She asked me if I needed to tell her anything, and when I waited for her to turn around and look at me while I responded (she never did) I began to feel less like a punchy PhD student with a personality and life-story all my own, and more like a piece of dental equipment in need of tuning up. She said, "I'm listening!" while scrubbing the countertop. To her vigorous shoulders I tried to explain my medical history.
Now, the star of the show, Dr. ---, you came in the door. I didn't smile at you, it's true. I was nervous. I had recurring images of the scalpel slicing my gum tissue apart like Dexter does to his victim's cheeks right before he saws their bodies into roast-sized pieces and throws them in the ocean. You asked me how I was and I think I responded, "wondrous." At the time, I believed that you would note the sarcasm and chuckle to yourself, thinking that those who use humor to relieve tension are often the most ill at ease. Uncomfortable. Scared, even. Now that I know you better, however, it is clear to me that you lack even the most basic level of human empathy.
There were more needles. You pricked in a carefree way, most unlike the dental technician, who had been gentle and slow. I winced. Your dental assistant asked you about your lawn. Had you gotten around to it? No, came your reply, you had to go look at some tables, and then get groceries, and had not had time for the lawn. Ah, said your assistant. Mine really needs some attention. Oh yeah? Yeah. It's a mess. How's your mother? Oh she's good. You know she's deaf in one ear. She had her hearing aid turned way up the other day and I scared her half to death when I turned the radio on, she was like, ---- (the dental assistant must have done a shocking rendition of her mother's half-dead face because you stopped working on my mouth to look up and chortle). How are the kids? Oh, good. You know. I'm taking Bobby golfing. Nine holes? No, he can do eighteen these days. That's great. He's a trooper. And it was at this point that I felt the pressure of the scalpel and the scraping of skin away from bone. There was no pain. Only a feeling of stress and discomfort as my heart started to race. As your especially inane conversation began to pick up again, I stopped you.
Excuse me? I said in a small, slurred voice.
Yes?
Could you please not gossip while you work on me, it's making me very nervous. I'm feeling really anxious.
At this point, you could have said something like, oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize that you were feeling so unhappy. Our conversation can definitely wait twenty minutes while we finish here. And I would have felt a little better, and probably would have focused more on my yogic breathing, and probably would not have started crying or hyperventilating. But instead, you, Dr. ----, chose to respond in this manner:
We're not gossiping. We do this all day every day, so we're going to just continue talking, thank you very much.
Your tone of voice was incredibly rude and haughty; there was no room for me in this room, apparently. I am just a mouth with teeth in it and I should shut up. As you continued to saw away at my jawbone and gums, I began to cry, because I was helpless.
You stopped working. You said, should I just close you up and we can do this another day then? You commanded me to close my mouth around some gauze, and then you got up and left the room. To give me time to "cool off."
The dental assistant asked me if I was okay. She lectured me about breathing. She told me to try harder and then to "try differently." You came back into the room and asked me if I was ready to "work together on this."
When I replied in the affirmative, you asked your assistant about her weekend. She was planning on going to a fortieth birthday party, perhaps. Perhaps? Like, you don't know whether or not you will go, or you don't know if you are actually invited (chuckle). Oh, I don't know if I am going to go. I've got a running schedule and I don't know if I can be bothered. You know, I like to run around MacKenzie. Lot's of trees. Oh yeah? Pine trees. Really? Yeah, it's lovely. Nice. ...And your brother? How's he? He's great. Tried to Skype him yesterday. Did it work? Not bad. Little grainy. Oh yeah, it can be like that.
As you are suturing my gumline, all I can think is how self-absorbed you are. No longer am I worried about my surgery. Congratulations, my mind is now on other things. Like, who can't stop the most boring conversation in the world for twenty minutes in order to make the life of one patient a little bit better? I am thinking about how little respect you have for me. I am thinking about how incredibly pointed all your questions are, as if you now have something invested in keeping the conversation going. And I am thinking about your dental assistant, and how she keeps inviting you to ask questions, and how she responds in kind. Both of you are assholes. That is what I am thinking. I start breathing rapidly. The remains of my tears have turned into that hyperventilating breathing thing that occurs at the end of a good cry.
You push the chair back, stand up. As you leave the room again, Dr. ----, you say to me "You're being awfully high-maintenance."
If I was anyone other than a slender young woman, would that comment have left your lips? Let me respond, Dr. ----, by saying that you are misogynistic and your ego is so big it leaves no room for kindness or empathy. You are disrespectful because you make too much money doing a job that requires, apparently, so little effort that having a completely unrelated conversation while doing it is actually a necessity. You are mean, Dr. ----. If I am being perfectly honest here, you hurt my feelings by not respecting me, and while you were in a position of total power (if you don't shut-up your mouth will be fucked) you expect me to comply and treat me like nothing.
I am so angry at you, Dr. ----. I am sitting here, waiting for the freezing to wear off so I can pop a Tylenol 3, and I am seething with rage that you should be so awful. If I was a man, would you have acted thus? If I was even a middle-aged woman? I'm willing to guess not. I am shocked and amazed and angry.
My greatest wish, at the moment, is that this letter reaches you in a dream, or a nightmare.
Sincerely,
Carmen Faye
* see the Tibetan Book of Thoroughbred Training.
After having a bone graft in the front of my mouth this morning, I felt inspired to write you this letter, to let you know that I am thinking of you. When I walked in the door and was greeted by your smiling secretary, it's true that I was not terribly excited to be there. But I smiled. Brave-faced, grinning toothlessly, I was going to face this day with fortitude and the Buddhist precepts of non-reaction I so admire.*
Your dental technician froze my mouth and your dental assistant industriously sterilized tools. She asked me if I needed to tell her anything, and when I waited for her to turn around and look at me while I responded (she never did) I began to feel less like a punchy PhD student with a personality and life-story all my own, and more like a piece of dental equipment in need of tuning up. She said, "I'm listening!" while scrubbing the countertop. To her vigorous shoulders I tried to explain my medical history.
Now, the star of the show, Dr. ---, you came in the door. I didn't smile at you, it's true. I was nervous. I had recurring images of the scalpel slicing my gum tissue apart like Dexter does to his victim's cheeks right before he saws their bodies into roast-sized pieces and throws them in the ocean. You asked me how I was and I think I responded, "wondrous." At the time, I believed that you would note the sarcasm and chuckle to yourself, thinking that those who use humor to relieve tension are often the most ill at ease. Uncomfortable. Scared, even. Now that I know you better, however, it is clear to me that you lack even the most basic level of human empathy.
There were more needles. You pricked in a carefree way, most unlike the dental technician, who had been gentle and slow. I winced. Your dental assistant asked you about your lawn. Had you gotten around to it? No, came your reply, you had to go look at some tables, and then get groceries, and had not had time for the lawn. Ah, said your assistant. Mine really needs some attention. Oh yeah? Yeah. It's a mess. How's your mother? Oh she's good. You know she's deaf in one ear. She had her hearing aid turned way up the other day and I scared her half to death when I turned the radio on, she was like, ---- (the dental assistant must have done a shocking rendition of her mother's half-dead face because you stopped working on my mouth to look up and chortle). How are the kids? Oh, good. You know. I'm taking Bobby golfing. Nine holes? No, he can do eighteen these days. That's great. He's a trooper. And it was at this point that I felt the pressure of the scalpel and the scraping of skin away from bone. There was no pain. Only a feeling of stress and discomfort as my heart started to race. As your especially inane conversation began to pick up again, I stopped you.
Excuse me? I said in a small, slurred voice.
Yes?
Could you please not gossip while you work on me, it's making me very nervous. I'm feeling really anxious.
At this point, you could have said something like, oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize that you were feeling so unhappy. Our conversation can definitely wait twenty minutes while we finish here. And I would have felt a little better, and probably would have focused more on my yogic breathing, and probably would not have started crying or hyperventilating. But instead, you, Dr. ----, chose to respond in this manner:
We're not gossiping. We do this all day every day, so we're going to just continue talking, thank you very much.
Your tone of voice was incredibly rude and haughty; there was no room for me in this room, apparently. I am just a mouth with teeth in it and I should shut up. As you continued to saw away at my jawbone and gums, I began to cry, because I was helpless.
You stopped working. You said, should I just close you up and we can do this another day then? You commanded me to close my mouth around some gauze, and then you got up and left the room. To give me time to "cool off."
The dental assistant asked me if I was okay. She lectured me about breathing. She told me to try harder and then to "try differently." You came back into the room and asked me if I was ready to "work together on this."
When I replied in the affirmative, you asked your assistant about her weekend. She was planning on going to a fortieth birthday party, perhaps. Perhaps? Like, you don't know whether or not you will go, or you don't know if you are actually invited (chuckle). Oh, I don't know if I am going to go. I've got a running schedule and I don't know if I can be bothered. You know, I like to run around MacKenzie. Lot's of trees. Oh yeah? Pine trees. Really? Yeah, it's lovely. Nice. ...And your brother? How's he? He's great. Tried to Skype him yesterday. Did it work? Not bad. Little grainy. Oh yeah, it can be like that.
As you are suturing my gumline, all I can think is how self-absorbed you are. No longer am I worried about my surgery. Congratulations, my mind is now on other things. Like, who can't stop the most boring conversation in the world for twenty minutes in order to make the life of one patient a little bit better? I am thinking about how little respect you have for me. I am thinking about how incredibly pointed all your questions are, as if you now have something invested in keeping the conversation going. And I am thinking about your dental assistant, and how she keeps inviting you to ask questions, and how she responds in kind. Both of you are assholes. That is what I am thinking. I start breathing rapidly. The remains of my tears have turned into that hyperventilating breathing thing that occurs at the end of a good cry.
You push the chair back, stand up. As you leave the room again, Dr. ----, you say to me "You're being awfully high-maintenance."
If I was anyone other than a slender young woman, would that comment have left your lips? Let me respond, Dr. ----, by saying that you are misogynistic and your ego is so big it leaves no room for kindness or empathy. You are disrespectful because you make too much money doing a job that requires, apparently, so little effort that having a completely unrelated conversation while doing it is actually a necessity. You are mean, Dr. ----. If I am being perfectly honest here, you hurt my feelings by not respecting me, and while you were in a position of total power (if you don't shut-up your mouth will be fucked) you expect me to comply and treat me like nothing.
I am so angry at you, Dr. ----. I am sitting here, waiting for the freezing to wear off so I can pop a Tylenol 3, and I am seething with rage that you should be so awful. If I was a man, would you have acted thus? If I was even a middle-aged woman? I'm willing to guess not. I am shocked and amazed and angry.
My greatest wish, at the moment, is that this letter reaches you in a dream, or a nightmare.
Sincerely,
Carmen Faye
* see the Tibetan Book of Thoroughbred Training.
Faculty Experiences with Bullying in Higher Education: Causes, Consequences, and Management
...Surprisingly, university-based researchers have paid relatively little attention to bullying in their own backyards. This is an interesting oversight for a number of reasons. First, it stands in contrast to reliable evidence of other forms of hostile and demeaning behaviors on campus such as student and faculty incivility in the classroom (e.g., Braxton & Bayer, 2004). Second, the quality of interpersonal relations, such as collegiality, is an important factor in retention of faculty (Norman, Ambrose, & Huston, 2006). Third, the extensive literature on conflict and misconduct in higher education (Cameron, Meyers, & Olswang, 2005; Euben & Lee, 2006; Holton, 1998) highlights the structural and interpersonal opportunities for disagreement and potentially for hostility in such settings. Finally, the academic environment has a number of organizational and work features that increase the likelihood of hostile interpersonal behaviors (Neuman & Baron, 2003; Twale & De Luca, 2008).While academics have paid little systematic empirical research attention to bullying in academic settings, this has not been the case in several popular online outlets and more traditional trade publications. For example, http://bulliedacademics.blogspot.com and www.mobbingportal. com/index.html represent some online destinations. In terms of a respected “industry” publication, the Chronicle of Higher Education has published numerous articles recently on the hostility and mistreatment that occurs on campuses (e.g., Fogg, 2008; Gravois, 2006). This suggests that academic settings are worthy and in need of concerted attention by researchers in workplace aggression and bullying.
...First, the rates of bullying seem relatively high when compared to those noted in the general population, which range from 2% to 5% in Scandinavian countries, 10% to 20% in the UK, and 10% to 14% in the United States (Keashly & Jagatic, in press; Rayner & Cooper, 2006).
...in our recent study conducted with university employees (Keashly & Neuman, 2008), colleagues were more likely to be identified as bullies by faculty (63.4%), while superiors were more likely to be identified as bullies by frontline staff (52.9%). Contrary to the current emphasis on student incivility, faculty concern about workplace harassment was more likely to be associated with colleagues (especially senior colleagues) and superiors much more frequently than with students. These findings support the importance of focusing on faculty behaviors in understanding bullying in academic settings.
Another observation is that the experiences reported involved two or more actors, that is, mobbing. Westhues (2004), in discussing the mobbing of professors by their colleagues and administrators, has argued that the experience of being mobbed is very different from the experience (however upsetting) of being harassed by a single actor. In our 2008 sample, we found that rates of mobbing differed as a function of the occupational group being studied. Faculty members were almost twice as likely as staff to report being the victims of mobbing by three or more actors (14.5% vs. 8%, respectively). Frontline (nonacademic) staff members, on the other hand, were 1.5 times more likely to be bullied by a single perpetrator. These occupational group differences, and the possibility of some differences in antecedents, consequences, and dynamics, support our focus on faculty experiences for this article.
When bullying/mobbing occurs, it tends to be long-standing. McKay et al. (2008) found that 21% of their sample reported bullying that had persisted for more than five years in duration. In our 2008 study, 32% of the overall sample (faculty, staff, administrators, etc.) reported bullying lasting for more than three years. This percentage increased to 49% when we focused on faculty. It may be that academia is a particularly vulnerable setting for such persistent aggression as a result of tenure, which has faculty and some staff in very long-term relationships with one another... Further, while ensuring a “job for life,” tenure may also restrict mobility so that once a situation goes bad, there are few options for leaving.
...Of all the types of bullying discussed in the literature (e.g., Einarsen & Mikkelsen, 2003), the behaviors most frequently cited in academia involve threats to professional status and isolating and obstructional behavior (i.e., thwarting the target’s ability to obtain important objectives)...
Proposition 1: When faculty bullying does occur, aggression will be indirect (as opposed to direct) in form, given the norms of academic discourse and collegiality...
Proposition 2: Tenured faculty exposed to bullying will be more likely than untenured faculty to “retire on the job,” or lower the quality of their courses, or less likely to engage in “discretionary” service-related behavior...
In sum, the studies reviewed here suggest that workplace aggression, bullying, and mobbing are part of the academic landscape, and their impact not only can be damaging to the targets and bystanders, but also may adversely affect the learning environment and the institution itself...
Proposition 3: In general, perceived norm violations will result in higher levels of direct aggression and bullying on the part of senior (as opposed to junior) tenured faculty members.
Proposition 4: Senior (tenured) faculty members will direct their aggression and bullying against untenured faculty members who are lower in rank, students, or staff.
Proposition 5: Senior faculty members will be more likely to engage in indirect forms of aggression against colleagues of equal rank, department chairs, and other senior administrators...
Proposition 6: The experience of frustration and stress among junior (untenured) faculty will result in higher levels of indirect and passive aggression against the perceived source(s) of that frustration and stress...
Proposition 7: Increased levels of cost-cutting measures will be associated with increased levels of negative affect, unpleasant physiological arousal, and, ultimately, workplace aggression and bullying by faculty...
This analysis suggests that faculty may have little motivation (or perceive themselves as not having the “legitimate” authority) to handle issues with “difficult” colleagues—allowing situations to escalate, resulting in a toxic climate and an increased likelihood of aggression and bullying. Recent research suggests that faculty find such circumstances difficult and often intolerable. For example, Ambrose, Huston, and Norman (2005) found that lack of collegiality was a key influence in the dissatisfaction of current and former faculty, resulting in their decisions to leave their institutions...
We believe that we have demonstrated that aggression and bullying is part of faculty experiences, and the potential consequences of these behaviors... Over the past 10–15 years, researchers have learned quite a bit about workplace aggression and bullying in a variety of organizational settings, but very limited attention has been focused on bullying in the academy. We have suggested there are contextual factors that seem unique to institutions of higher education that have been strongly linked to the onset of aggression both theoretically and empirically. Consequently, we believe that there is sufficient justification for pursuing more systematic research on bullying and aggression to better understand the nature, causes, consequences, and management of such damaging behaviors within institutions of higher education...
Keashly, L. & Neuman, J.H. (2010). Faculty Experiences with Bullying in Higher Education: Causes, Consequences, and Management. Administrative Theory & Praxis, Vol. 32, No. 1, pp. 48–70.
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