Conference on Workplace Mobbing Invitation
March 18, 2024
Dear colleague:
We warmly invite you to join us, either in person or virtually, at the hybrid Conference on
Workplace Mobbing scheduled for Monday to Wednesday, July 22-24, 2024, at Niagara University, Niagara Falls, in New York, USA. This conference initiates an effort to establish workplace mobbing as a comprehensive scholarly discipline.
More than half a century has passed since Lorenz and Heineman first identified mobbing behavior in animals and then in children. As we approach the half-century mark of Leymann’s (1996) groundbreaking extension to adult workplace behavior, and with Kenneth Westhues (2004) and Westhues and Jansen’s (1999) cutting edge Eliminating Professors and The Envy of Excellence: Administrative Mobbing of High Achieving Professors (2005) now at its quarter-century mark (Kenneth Westhues’ Mobbing Website), the study of mobbing has evolved into a vibrant field (e.g., Branch, Ramsay, & Barker, 2013; Yamada, Duffy, & Berry, 2018).
Amidst an abundance of scholarly work, numerous case studies, and a multitude of unreported and underreported instances of mobbing, it is imperative and critical to formally recognize workplace mobbing as a distinct phenomenon and differentiate it from other forms of abuse, such as bullying, harassment and discrimination. This conference serves as a platform to comprehensively address the urgent need to establish workplace as a dedicated discipline.
This conference aims to establish a connected and interactive community of mobbing scholars, labor experts, and committed attorneys, with the following objectives:
• A clear conceptualization of workplace mobbing: Identify clear empirical distinctions that set mobbing apart from the broader term of bullying, emphasizing the multidimensional structural framework of workplace mobbing.
• Mobbing as a scholarly subfield: Establish a disciplinary framework for mobbing, acknowledging its presence in psychology, sociology, administration, political science, economics, and many other disciplines.
• Scientific research on workplace mobbing: Encourage theory and research on root causes and common consequences, profiles of mobbers, and implications for organizations, aiming for generalizable findings and effective anti-mobbing policies and laws.
• Policy impact: Publish an edited collection of carefully selected papers as an outcome of the conference. Prospective publishers include Routledge, Emerald, and Bristol University Press. This book will identify directions for future research and promising initiatives for policy.
Niagara University has graciously offered to host this inaugural event alongside the nonprofit Conference on Workplace Mobbing Ltd. (N.Y. incorporation pending). We are privileged to have several co-sponsors, including the Society of Socio-Economists. While we encourage in-person attendance for the opportunity to connect, reconnect, and exchange ideas, amidst the scenic splendor of the world-famous Niagara Falls scenery, we recognize that some who want to take part lack time and resources for travel. Therefore, the conference will be held in a hybrid format, allowing for both in-person and virtual participation.
For in-person participants, the registration fee is $100. This includes a place at the conference dinner scheduled for Tuesday evening, July 23, 2024, and a complimentary tour of attractions on Wednesday, July 24, 2024. For virtual participants, registration fee is $50. This includes the opportunity to hear all presentations, to raise questions, give feedback, and participate in discussions. Due to space limitations, the number of in-person participants is limited to 100.
The following is the deadlines:
May 1, 2024 – Deadline for submission of abstracts for those wishing to make presentations
July 1, 2024 – Deadline for conference registration ($50 virtual; $100 in person)
Please note that there are only 100 spaces, and that registration may have to be closed before July 1. To secure your place, please register as soon as possible.
For conference registration information, go to the Conference Website:
https://www.niagara.edu/workplace-mobbing-conference/
As a summer tourism hub, Niagara Falls has an abundance of hotels, motels, and inns. As July is high season, we encourage in-person participants to secure the accommodation you desire sooner rather than later. Direct all questions and inquiries to the Conference Registrar, Dr. Qingli Meng, at qmeng@niagara.edu.
With collegial regards,
The Scientific Committee of the International Conference on Workplace Mobbing:
Chair: Richard Peltz-Steele, Law, University of Massachusetts
Registrar: Qingli Meng, Criminology, Niagara University
Robert Ashford, Law, Syracuse University
Walter S. DeKeseredy, Criminology, West Virginia University
Joseph Donnermeyer, Criminology, The Ohio State University
Tim Ireland, Provost, Niagara University
Kenneth Westhues, Sociology, University of Waterloo
Technical/Logistical Support:
Yonghong Tong, PhD, Niagara University
Michael Jeswald, MBA, Niagara University
Valerie Devine, Assistant Director of Support and Web Development, Niagara University
Michael Ebbole, Audio Visual Systems Coordinator, Niagara University
William Stott, Audio Visual Systems Specialist, Niagara University
Chang Huh, PhD, Niagara University
References
Branch, S., Ramsay, S., & Barker, M. (2013). Workplace bullying, mobbing and general harassment: A review. International Journal of Management Reviews, 15(3), 280-299.
Leymann, H. (1996). The content and development of mobbing at work. European journal of work and organizational psychology, 5(2), 165-184
Westhues, K. (Ed.). (2004). Workplace mobbing in academe: Reports from twenty universities. Edwin Mellen Press.
Westhues, K. (2005). The envy of excellence: Administrative mobbing of high-achieving professors. (No Title).
Westhues, K., & Jansen, S. D. (1999). Eliminating professors: A guide to the dismissal process. The Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 29(2/3), 216.
Yamada, D., Duffy, M., & Berry, P. A. (2018). Workplace bullying and mobbing: Definitions, terms, and when they matter. Workplace bullying and mobbing in the United States, 2(1), 2-6.