Humiliation [Neurosurgery Wiki]

This page is read only. You can view the source, but not change it. Ask your administrator if you think this is wrong.
====== Humiliation ======

**Humiliation** is a powerful negative emotional experience in which a person feels degraded, shamed, or disrespected—usually in front of others. In clinical environments like neurosurgery, humiliation can severely damage morale, learning, and team trust.

===== 🔹 Definition =====

Humiliation involves:
  * A perceived loss of dignity or status
  * Public exposure of error or inadequacy
  * Imbalance of power between the one humiliating and the one humiliated

It goes beyond embarrassment by adding **intentionality**, **publicness**, and **power dynamics**.

===== 🔹 Examples in Neurosurgical Context =====

  * A resident being mocked in front of peers for a wrong answer.
  * A scrub nurse being yelled at in the OR over a minor mistake.
  * A junior surgeon’s complications being presented in M&M rounds with sarcasm or ridicule.

> ''“He was not just corrected—he was humiliated in front of the whole OR team.”''

===== 🔹 Impact on Team and Training =====

  * Decreased psychological safety
  * Suppression of questions and communication
  * Emotional [[distress]], [[burnout]], and [[disengagement]]
  * Long-term impairment in professional development

===== 🔹 Distinguishing Feedback from Humiliation =====

| Constructive Feedback                    | Humiliation                               |
| Focuses on behavior/performance          | Attacks person or character               |
| Delivered privately or respectfully      | Delivered publicly with ridicule          |
| Intended to teach or improve             | Intended to shame or assert dominance     |
| Encourages future learning               | Discourages participation and openness    |

===== 🔹 How to Prevent Humiliation in Surgical Education =====

  * Promote a culture of **[[respectful teaching]]**
  * Correct privately when possible
  * Use **[[debriefing]]**, not **degrading**
  * Model humility and vulnerability as a leader
  * Train attendings and seniors in **[[mentorship skills*]]*

===== 🔹 Quote =====

> “Teaching through humiliation produces silence, not excellence.”