Prevalence of bullying in academic medical libraries in the United States.

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Title: Prevalence of bullying in academic medical libraries in the United States.
Authors: Lane, Todd Allen1 toddlane918@gmail.com, Albro, Maggie2 malbro@utk.edu, Forbes, Carrie S.3 forbesc@ecu.edu
Source: Journal of the Medical Library Association. Jul2026, Vol. 114 Issue 3, p246-254. 9p.
Subjects: Cross-sectional method, Academic libraries, Work environment, Questionnaires, Peer relations, Violence in the workplace, Descriptive statistics, Bullying, Analysis of variance, Hospital libraries, Psychology of librarians, Data analysis software, Externalizing behavior, Social isolation
Geographic Terms: United States
Abstract: Objective: Previous research has found bullying present across the library profession, with documented instances in school, public, and university literature, but not in academic medical and hospital library literature. This study aims to determine the prevalence of workplace bullying among academic medical and hospital librarians. Methods: An anonymous survey was distributed to members of the Medical Library Association, the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries, and the Association of College & Research Librarians Health Sciences Interest Group containing the Short Negative Acts Questionnaire. Quantitative analysis was conducted using the Real Statistics Resource Pack software (Release 8.9.1). Results: One-hundred eighteen survey responses met inclusion criteria. 49.2% of the sample met the threshold for selfidentifying as victims of workplace bullying. This was significantly higher than the prevalence among the general librarian population (40.1%) in 2017 (p = 0.029) and consistent with findings in 2022 (51.8%; p = 0.31). More participants perceived themselves as not experienced bullying (69%) than the prevalence rate found. Those who perceived themselves as victims identified colleagues as the most frequent perpetrators (35%), followed immediate superiors (22%) and other superiors/managers within the organization (25%). Conclusions: This study showed nearly half (49.2%) of academic medical and hospital librarians included in the sample experience bullying. These findings highlight the need for an increased understanding of bullying behaviors, education on prevention, and for library leaders to develop interventions to mitigate bullying in their institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of the Medical Library Association is the property of University of Pittsburgh, University Library System and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Engineering Source
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  Data: Prevalence of bullying in academic medical libraries in the United States.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lane%2C+Todd+Allen%22">Lane, Todd Allen</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><i> toddlane918@gmail.com</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Albro%2C+Maggie%22">Albro, Maggie</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo><i> malbro@utk.edu</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Forbes%2C+Carrie+S%2E%22">Forbes, Carrie S.</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo><i> forbesc@ecu.edu</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+the+Medical+Library+Association%22">Journal of the Medical Library Association</searchLink>. Jul2026, Vol. 114 Issue 3, p246-254. 9p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cross-sectional+method%22">Cross-sectional method</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Academic+libraries%22">Academic libraries</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Work+environment%22">Work environment</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Questionnaires%22">Questionnaires</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Peer+relations%22">Peer relations</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Violence+in+the+workplace%22">Violence in the workplace</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Descriptive+statistics%22">Descriptive statistics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Bullying%22">Bullying</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Analysis+of+variance%22">Analysis of variance</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Hospital+libraries%22">Hospital libraries</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Psychology+of+librarians%22">Psychology of librarians</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Data+analysis+software%22">Data analysis software</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Externalizing+behavior%22">Externalizing behavior</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Social+isolation%22">Social isolation</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22United+States%22">United States</searchLink>
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  Data: Objective: Previous research has found bullying present across the library profession, with documented instances in school, public, and university literature, but not in academic medical and hospital library literature. This study aims to determine the prevalence of workplace bullying among academic medical and hospital librarians. Methods: An anonymous survey was distributed to members of the Medical Library Association, the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries, and the Association of College & Research Librarians Health Sciences Interest Group containing the Short Negative Acts Questionnaire. Quantitative analysis was conducted using the Real Statistics Resource Pack software (Release 8.9.1). Results: One-hundred eighteen survey responses met inclusion criteria. 49.2% of the sample met the threshold for selfidentifying as victims of workplace bullying. This was significantly higher than the prevalence among the general librarian population (40.1%) in 2017 (p = 0.029) and consistent with findings in 2022 (51.8%; p = 0.31). More participants perceived themselves as not experienced bullying (69%) than the prevalence rate found. Those who perceived themselves as victims identified colleagues as the most frequent perpetrators (35%), followed immediate superiors (22%) and other superiors/managers within the organization (25%). Conclusions: This study showed nearly half (49.2%) of academic medical and hospital librarians included in the sample experience bullying. These findings highlight the need for an increased understanding of bullying behaviors, education on prevention, and for library leaders to develop interventions to mitigate bullying in their institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of the Medical Library Association is the property of University of Pittsburgh, University Library System and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.5195/jmla.2026.2244
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 9
        StartPage: 246
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Cross-sectional method
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Academic libraries
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Work environment
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Questionnaires
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Peer relations
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Violence in the workplace
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Descriptive statistics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Bullying
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Analysis of variance
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Hospital libraries
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychology of librarians
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Data analysis software
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Externalizing behavior
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Social isolation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: United States
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Prevalence of bullying in academic medical libraries in the United States.
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            NameFull: Lane, Todd Allen
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            – D: 01
              M: 07
              Text: Jul2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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