Through the Lens of Moral Safety
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy begin with the evolutionary purpose for morality and the inherent connection between moral development and relational influence. They delineate the struggles faced by a society in which moral absolutism thwarts efforts to account for the complexities of modern life, citing moral injury and distress as consequences often experienced by […]
Learned Helplessness and Disempowerment
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy teach the biological basis of learned helplessness and its inherent connection to traumatic experiences, whether in childhood or adulthood. Discussing learned helplessness in organizations, they associate bureaucratic, hierarchical systems with disempowered staff, and even observe the enactment of learned helplessness by the systems themselves – particularly in health and […]
Complex PTSD and the Little Deaths
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy discuss the often unprocessed grief that accompanies childhood abuse and neglect, and the ways in which that grief translates into pathological responses in adults. They go on to explain that many trauma disorders are actually disorders of disrupted attachment, and how losses in childhood metabolize physically, mentally, and emotionally […]
Worldview, Beliefs, and Terror Management Theory
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy dive deep into Terror Management Theory and the impact that the certainty of death has on how we live our lives. They explain how our “mortality salience” predisposes us to resist change – even positive change – as it reminds humans of our mortality, strengthening our current worldviews and […]
Communication and Collective Disturbance
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy define the health of organizations by the flow of communication within them, emphasizing the significance of diverse perspectives when it comes to complex problem solving. They go on to describe the structure and warning signs of collective disturbances and their root in communication breakdown, typically between the highest levels […]
The Danger of Silencing Dissent
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy explain the consequences of communities and organizations under stress, noting an incapacity for long-term learning and knowledge integration. They discuss the power of confirmation bias to lead to extremism, often creating group polarization through effectively discouraging or silencing dissent. As a result, decision-making and problem analysis deteriorate significantly. The […]
Trauma and Collective Memory
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy connect collective trauma with organizational amnesia and the subsequent inability to learn from the past. Making the distinction between tacit and explicit knowledge, they discuss the dangers of short term organizational memory and the factors that contribute to it, including massive layoffs and our cultural norm of short term […]
Authoritarianism and Bogus Empowerment
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy lay out the fundamental characteristics of those who are high in authoritarian traits and how they perpetuate the destructive impact of authoritarian leaders – whether in organizations, systems, or countries. Then, the hosts describe types of toxic leaders and their use of bogus empowerment to feign democratic participatory practice. […]
Bullies, Bosses, and Psychopaths
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy explain some of the reasons for various antisocial behaviors and what they look like in children and adults. On this topic, they discuss the four “dark traits” and what happens when individuals possessing these traits infiltrate our organizations and systems. Finally, the hosts describe the concept of a social […]
Intersections of Trauma Responsiveness and Anti-Racism
Dr. Sandra Bloom and Sarah Yanosy discuss the wounds of othering widely experienced by BIPOC and offer guidelines for having safe and effective discussions about race. Drawing connections between trauma-reactive organizations and systems that rely on white supremacy, they conclude with strategies to disrupt those destructive systemic patterns and create organizations that truly value and […]