Lilia M. Cortina, Ph.D., is University Diversity and Social Transformation Professor of Psychology, Women’s and Gender Studies, and Management & Organizations at the University of Michigan. An organizational psychologist, she investigates the many ways in which people are subordinated, violated, and relegated to the margins of organizational life. These interpersonal indignities range from subtle social slights to general incivility to blatant harassment and violence. Professor Cortina’s scholarship spans the full spectrum, with a particular focus on incivility and harassment based on gender/sex. Her publications on these topics number over 100. In recognition of unusual and outstanding contributions to the field, Professor Cortina has been named Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology.

Professor Cortina’s research on workplace harassment has won awards, but its impact stretches beyond academia and into other professional spheres. She has served as an expert witness in a range of venues, translating findings from social science to inform policy and legal decision-making. For example, she provided expert testimony to the U.S. Department of Defense Judicial Proceedings Panel, commissioned by Congress to review military judicial procedures surrounding sexual assault. She also testified to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the Workplace. In addition, Professor Cortina joined colleagues in co-authoring a landmark report on sexual harassment for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.