Glenn College Colloquium - Service Shaming in Academia: Sources, Consequences, and Management

Service Shaming in Academia: Sources, Consequences, and Management with Dr. Cullen Merritt 

Faculty members at U.S. colleges and universities are often discouraged from addressing real-world concerns or societal problems through faculty service, which occupies a distant third place behind research and teaching. This study explores the sources and consequences of what I have coined as “service shaming”—a social phenomenon in academia where institutions and norms limit or discourage authentic faculty participation or leadership in activities categorized as service. These institutions and norms exist despite higher education’s mandate to employ faculty service to contribute to the public good. Service shaming is a form of academic bullying wherein faculty members who prioritize service are socially excluded or the subject of systemic negative social acts resulting in organizational withdrawal or lowered organizational commitment. As a result, the practice of service shaming, which is deeply connected to toxic and counterproductive norms in academia, poses a unique threat to the public value of higher education and must be eradicated.

Speaker Bio: Dr. Cullen C. Merritt is an associate professor and director of the undergraduate honors program in the O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) as well as an associate editor at Public Administration Review. He studies the implications of an organization's publicness on its management strategy and performance. Additionally, he illuminates the management competencies integral to addressing public service challenges and the strategies that enable organizations to develop these competencies. His research, teaching, and service are motivated by the desire to improve governance and empower managers to address public problems through innovative organizational design. Dr. Merritt's research appears in Public Administration Review, The American Review of Public Administration, Public Administration, Perspectives on Public Management and Governance, Public Performance & Management Review, and numerous other outlets. Dr. Merritt earned his Ph.D. in Public Administration and Master of Public Administration from the University of Kansas and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Texas A&M University.

No registration required. Attend in person at Page Hall Room 130 (LEC) or on Zoom by clicking "Join on Zoom".