Dear Faculty and Fellow Ph.D. Students,

I cordially invite you to attend my dissertation defense scheduled for Wednesday, July 2nd from 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM (EST), in Scheller, COB Room 314. Please find an overview of the dissertation included below. Copies will be made available upon request.

You are also welcome to join remotely, using the following Zoom link: https://gatech.zoom.us/j/95742326314?pwd=37ya883hWqE0UCHXAg3zsyonRvGewH…

Warmest regards,
Natasha D. Reed | Ph.D. Candidate
 

Area: Organizational Behavior

Committee: Dr. Katie Badura (co-chair), Dr. Tiffany D. Johnson (co-chair), Dr. Terry Blum, Dr. Hyunsun Park, Dr. Enrica Ruggs (University of Houston)

Title: When Mental Illness is Mistaken for Intentional Misconduct among Under-Represented Groups

Dissertation Overview: 
The growing presence of mental illness within the workplace, particularly in the aftermath of the pandemic, has become a pressing concern. These concerns become more complex when mental illness intersects with other marginalized identities, such as belonging to an underrepresented racial group. Drawing on attribution theory, I examine when and why the same exhibited behavior induced by mental illness might lead to varying workplace outcomes. Across three experimental studies, I test whether leaders perceive employee misconduct differently depending on whether a mental illness is disclosed, ambiguous, or absent, and whether these perceptions shape disciplinary leniency. While most hypothesized effects were not supported, one consistent exploratory pattern emerged: employees with a diagnosed mental illness were perceived as less intentional in their misconduct than those with no mental illness. Ambiguous mental illness did not consistently increase perceived intent, and race did not significantly moderate these effects. Findings contribute to research on managerial attribution, workplace mental illness, and the dynamics of concealable identities in organizational contexts.