[WikiEN-l] Admin / experienced user flameout - how do we talk people down off the ledge?

[Marc Riddell]

on 7/11/10 3:29 PM, George Herbert at george.herbert at gmail.com wrote:

> Admin Rodhullandemu just retired after being blocked for blocking
> Malleus Fautorum to win a dispute
> 
> For reference:
> https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Wikipedia:Administrators'_notic
> eboard#Block_review
> 
> On and off wiki I have mentioned before that we are really bad, as a
> project, at identifying people who have worked themselves into an
> angry corner and feel that they must blow up and leave, and then
> talking them down and defusing the situation.  This is in my
> experience the typical (or at least, a major and common) exit mode of
> longtime highly involved contributors.
> 
> Our existing policy and precedent really don't address this problem.
> We have had individual admins and experienced editors spot the pattern
> start and work to calm situations down on an individual basis, with
> mixed results.  But typically the pattern is not really recognized
> until it's too late.
> 
> Posed for consideration - This is a problem worth putting more time
> and effort into, and which the project will benefit significantly from
> getting right over the long term.
> 
> The question is - what exactly do we do about it?
> 
Many, if not most, companies, major non-profit organizations and virtually
all government agencies have a Human Resources department. Or, as I have
established for many of them, a Person & Team Relations section. This
consists of a group of persons trained in the art & science of human
behavior; most especially in inter-personal & inter-group relations. They
are persons not involved in, but are knowledgeable of, the day-to-day
activities & demands of the organization. Their sole purpose is to prevent
valuable employees who are experiencing acute burnout, or feel they have
reached impasse in a particular situation, from leaving the organization.

Would this be a possibility for the Wikipedia Project?


Marc Riddell, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy