Yunzi (Rae) Tan, Ph.D.

Social-Organizational Psychologist | Educator, Researcher, and Consultant Specializing in DEI and Conflict Management in the Workplace

Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America

Research Interests

Team Conflict Management

Organizational Conflict

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Dynamical Systems

Social Psychology

Applied Psychology

Organizational Behavior

Strategy and Management

Communication

Organizational Psychology

Organizational Development

Organizational Change

About

I am a social-organizational psychologist by training, and have over 20 years of professional experience in higher education, organizational change and development, marketing, as well as diversity and inclusion in private and nonprofit sectors. As a researcher, I'm most curious about topics that intersect conflict management, diversity, equity, and inclusion at group and organizational levels. As a tertiary educator, I teach social science research designs and methods to help my students explore and address important conflict issues they care about. I also teach organizational conflict management systems to cultivate students' understanding and design of complex conflict management dynamics and processes in teams and organizations. Last but not least, I am actively involved in providing research-based advice and expertise to support organizations in advancing diversity, inclusion, and other pursuits of organizational excellence. My Top 5 StrengthsFinder Signature Themes: Analytical \| Restorative \| Responsibility \| Focus \| Discipline

Publications

Effective Diversity Training

The Oxford Handbook of Diversity and Work / Oct 01, 2013

Roberson, L., Kulik, C. T., & Tan, R. Y. (2013). Effective Diversity Training. In The Oxford Handbook of Diversity and Work (pp. 341–365). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199736355.013.0019

Personalization and differentiation as moderators of triggered displaced aggression towards out‐group targets

European Journal of Social Psychology / Feb 17, 2007

Vasquez, E. A., Ensari, N., Pedersen, W. C., Tan, R. Y., & Miller, N. (2007). Personalization and differentiation as moderators of triggered displaced aggression towards out‐group targets. European Journal of Social Psychology, 37(2), 297–319. Portico. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.359

Being Mindful May Not Make You a Team Player: Does Meditation Help or Hurt Online Group Work?

Journal of Educators Online / Jul 01, 2017

Tan, (Rae) Yunzi, & Molinari, C. (2017). Being Mindful May Not Make You a Team Player: Does Meditation Help or Hurt Online Group Work? Journal of Educators Online, 14(2). https://doi.org/10.9743/jeo.2017.14.2.4

Goal interdependence, subgroup formation, and conflict in Teams

International Journal of Organization Theory and Behavior / Apr 01, 2017

Tan, (Rae) Yunzi. (2017). Goal interdependence, subgroup formation, and conflict in Teams. International Journal of Organization Theory and Behavior, 20(4), 519–543. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijotb-20-04-2017-b004

Using participatory mixed methods to study "grand challenges": an illustrative case of diversity, equity, and inclusion change research in organizations

Handbook of Research Methods in Organizational Change / Aug 11, 2023

Kim, R., & Tan, Y. (Rae). (2023). Using participatory mixed methods to study “grand challenges”: an illustrative case of diversity, equity, and inclusion change research in organizations. In Handbook of Research Methods in Organizational Change (pp. 242–259). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800378520.00022

(De)Stigmatization and The Inclusive Organization

Academy of Management Proceedings / Aug 01, 2019

Arnold, K. A., Beard, R., Berkley, R. A., Daus, C., Hancock, A. J., Johnson, T. D., Kim, R., Lynch, J., Lyons, B. J., Negro, G., Pontikes, E., Tan, R. Y., Williams, M. J., Arnold, K. A., Beard, R., Berkley, R. A., Daus, C., Hancock, A. J., Johnson, T. D., … Williams, M. J. (2019). (De)Stigmatization and The Inclusive Organization. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2019(1), 15840. https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2019.15840symposium

A Dynamical Approach to Conflict Management in Teams

Mathematical Modeling of Social Relationships / Jan 01, 2018

Tan, (Rae) Yunzi, Michaels, J. L., & Strawinska-Zanko, U. (2018). A Dynamical Approach to Conflict Management in Teams. In Computational Social Sciences (pp. 119–146). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76765-9_7

Training Diverse Teams to Manage Conflicts Effectively Using Constructive Controversy

PsycEXTRA Dataset / Jan 01, 2012

Tan, R. Y. (2012). Training Diverse Teams to Manage Conflicts Effectively Using Constructive Controversy: (518332013-343) [dataset]. In PsycEXTRA Dataset. American Psychological Association (APA). https://doi.org/10.1037/e518332013-343

Variant Conflict Management: A Conceptual Model on Varying Conflict Management Approaches within Work Teams

SSRN Electronic Journal / Jan 01, 2011

Tan, R. Y. (2011). Variant Conflict Management: A Conceptual Model on Varying Conflict Management Approaches within Work Teams. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1872913

Education

Columbia University

Ph.D., Social-Organizational Psychology / 2013

New York, New York, United States of America

Columbia University

M.A., Organizational Psychology / 2008

New York, New York, United States of America

University of Southern California

B.A., Communication and Psychology (with Honors) / 2003

Los Angeles, California, United States of America

Experience

University of Baltimore

Founding Director, Urban Conflict Manager Program / January, 2024 — Present

Graduate Director, Master of Science in Negotiations and Conflict Management Program / August, 2018 — Present

Associate Professor, School of Public and International Affairs / August, 2020 — Present

Academic Director, Maryland Equity and Inclusion Leadership Program / April, 2018 — December, 2019

Assistant Professor, Negotiations and Conflict Management / August, 2013 — July, 2018

Teachers College, Columbia University

Adjunct Associate Professor, Psychology and Education / January, 2013 — May, 2005

Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Singapore Management University

Visiting Research Fellow / January, 2012 — February, 2012

PwC

Senior Associate, Change Management / May, 2008 — December, 2010

Senior Associate, Marketing and Sales / April, 2005 — April, 2008

Associate, Tax Marketing / February, 2004 — April, 2005

Catalyst, Inc.

Graduate Intern, Organizational Research (Diversity & Inclusion) / May, 2007 — July, 2007

The Walt Disney Company (Disney Direct-to-Consumer and International)

Associate, Technology Integration / August, 2003 — January, 2004

Independent Film & Television Alliance (f.k.a. American Market Film Association)

Market Research Assistant / July, 2002 — July, 2003

Links & Social Media

UBalt Faculty Profile Page

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