Scapegoats at Work: Taking the Bull's-Eye Off Your Back

Scapegoating is the identification--then blaming and punishing--of individuals for problems that rightly belong to the larger organization. Dyckman and Cutler offer a survival guide for people affected by workplace scapegoating. They show us the social and psychological roots of scapegoating and explain how the individual and system act together to enable this human drama. This book shows how both individuals and the workplace system contribute to scapegoating. This book follows the career of the scapegoat and presents ways that the pattern can be interrupted. Strategies to help remove the bull's-eye include understanding how to recognize scapegoating and break behavioral patterns that make one an attractive target. Also provided is information for workers and managers who wish to develop cooperative means of dealing with individual differences, creating a work environment that is more humane and efficient. People who feel victimized by work-related scapegoating will find this book of great interest, as will professionals working in human resources or employee assistance programs. It will help managers who have "problem employees" and want to improve workflow, reduce turnover, and reduce workers' comp claims. This clear and concise compendium of examples, tips, and strategies will also appeal to mediators, shop stewards, union officials, psychotherapists, and occupational medicine specialists.

Two HMO psytherapist describe the organizational processes by which individuals can be chosen as a scapegoat in the workplace. They then provide advice to workers and managers on how to recognize, counter, and avoid the phenomenon. Much of the material is of a self-help nature, explaining psychological concepts in a manner understandable to lay-people.
Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Dyckman and Cutler offer a survival guide for people on all sides of the scapegoating problem.

JOHN M. DYCKMAN is a psychotherapist at a large Health Maintenance Organization. He has been a professor of psychology, has conducted research and has run a private clinical practice for the past 25 years.JOSEPH A. CUTLER is a psychotherapist at a large Health Maintenance Organization and in private practice. He has taught university classes in marriage and family counseling and has worked as an Employee Assistance Counselor.