Whistleblowers Learn From Reactions

Dana R. Anderson

Whistleblowers regularly face serious consequences and punishments for their efforts and risk taking. What that communicates to them and society is clear: come forward and speak up at great risk to your professional and personal well-being on multiple levels.

“Blowing the whistle may be one of your most difficult professional decisions and it can have long-lasting personal impacts for you and your loved ones,” according to the Office of the Whistleblower Ombuds. “You could be forced out of your chosen career fields, subjected to public smear campaigns and undergo severe psychological trauma.”

It was a painful experience to for the source for this article.

“My personal journey from blowing the whistle on jail misconduct and wrongdoing has given me a distinctive insight into the experiences of whistleblowers and the broader impact on society,” says Dana R. Anderson, PsyD, a forensic psychologist at Psychologydr.

“What do we really communicate when whistleblowers endure the, let’s say, less-than-arm reactions of those who’d rather not see their dirty laundry aired?” she rhetorically asks. “When a whistleblower faces backlash, society might as well send a message like, ‘Hey, we appreciate your honesty, but could you please keep that truth serum under wraps? We've got appearances to maintain!’ It’s almost as if we're saying, ‘We like the idea of whistleblowers, but could they just not make waves? We've got a well-crafted facade to protect.’”

Wrongdoers, their families, organizations and other stakeholders don’t always value communicated facts, evidence, proof and ‘the right thing.’

“What we are truly communicating is an ambivalent relationship with transparency,” Anderson says when whistleblowers are judged poorly and mistreated. “We applaud those who expose wrongdoing, yet we can’t resist scrutinizing their motives or blaming the messenger. You wanted the truth, but not the whole truth.”

There is a message for those exposing what is hidden. There is more going on than communication and blowback.

“To whistleblowers enduring the storms of negativity, remember this,” Anderson says: You’re not just exposing misconduct; you’re challenging a societal status quo,” Anderson states.

She briefly mentions what should be happening instead and would be more helpful to society. “It’s high time we embrace the catalysts for change, even if they do ruffle a few feathers along the way,” Anderson says. “We’ve got progress to make and it’s time to ditch the double-sided message.”

Publisher’s Note: Whistleblower Rights and Protections, per the U.S. Department of Justice, Officer of the Inspector General