Silvia Bonaccio (she/her)

Full Professor

Ian Telfer Professorship of Workplace Psychology
Vice-Dean (Research)

B.A. (McGill), M.Sc.A. (Concordia), Ph.D. (Purdue)

Location: DMS 5149
Telephone: 613-562-5800 x 4690

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

FOR ALL INQUIRIES RELATED TO RESEARCH PROGRAMS:: vdres@uottawa.ca

Biography

Dr. Bonaccio earned a Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Purdue University. She also holds a M.Sc. from Concordia University's John Molson School of Business and a B.A. in Psychology from McGill University. She is cross-appointed to the University of Ottawa’s School of Psychology and is also an Adjunct Scientist at the Institute for Work and Health (Toronto, Canada), an independent not-for-profit research organization dedicated to promoting and protecting occupational health and safety.

She is past Chair of the Canadian Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and past Division Chair for the Organizational Behaviour Division at the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada. In recognition of her significant contributions to teaching and research, the University of Ottawa awarded her the Excellence in Education Prize. She is also the 2020 recipient of the Telfer School of Management Established Researcher Award. Finally, she is a Fellow of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology and of the Canadian Psychological Association.

Publications

Dr. Bonaccio’s work focuses on the influence of anxiety and emotions in the personnel assessment and selection process. She is also interested in the facilitators of positive work experiences for employees living with disabilities. Furthermore, she is known for her work on advice and decision-making.

She has published in leading journals of her field including Human Resource Management, the Journal of Management, Journal of Business Ethics, and Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. She has also contributed to the Encyclopedia of Industrial and Organizational Psychology and has made numerous presentations at national and international conferences. She is Associate Editor at Personnel Assessment and Decisions, she is on the editorial board at the Journal of Business and Psychology, Personality and Individual Differences, and Journal of Personnel Psychology, and she serves as an ad hoc reviewer for several other journals on a regular basis. Her work has been featured in outlets such as Bloomberg BusinessWeek, The Globe & Mail, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), and The New York Times among others.

Research Areas

Decision Making Diversity and Inclusion Employee Selection Test and Interview Anxiety

Teaching Areas

Human Resources Organizational Behaviour

Publications during the last 7 years

Papers in Refereed Journals

Fisher, S.L., Bonaccio, S. and Connelly, C.E. 2024. AI-based tools in selection: Considering the impact on applicants with disabilities. Organizational Dynamics, 53(1): 101036.
Ginis, K.A.M., Sinden, A.R., Bonaccio, S., Labbé, D., Guertin, C., Gellatly, I.R., Koch, L., Mortenson, W.B., Routhier, F., Basham, C.A., Jetha, A. and Miller, C. 2024. Experiential Aspects of Participation in Employment and Mobility for Adults With Physical Disabilities: Testing Cross-Sectional Models of Contextual Influences and Well-Being Outcomes. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 105(2): 303-313.
Belanger, C., Chreim, S. and Bonaccio, S. 2024. The Experience and Implications of Meaningless Work in the Public Sector. Journal of Business Ethics, 1-16.
Jetha, A., Bakhtari, H., Rosella, L.C., Gignac, M., Biswas, A., Shahidi, F.V., Smith, B.T., Smith, M.J., Mustard, C., Khan, N., Arrandale, V.H., Loewen, P.J., Zuberi, D., Dennerlein, J., Bonaccio, S., Wu, N. and Smith, P.M. 2023. Artificial intelligence and the work-health interface: A research agenda for a technologically transforming world of work. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 66(10): 813-908.
Jetha, A., Bonaccio, S., Shamaee, A., Banks, C.G., Bültmann, U., Smith, P., Tompa, E., Tucker, L. and Gignac, M. 2023. Divided in a digital economy: Understanding disability employment inequities stemming from the application of advanced workplace technologies. SSM - Qualitative Research in Health, 3: 100293.
Fisher, S., Bonaccio, S., Jetha, A., Gignac, M., Winkler, M and Birch, G. 2023. Guidelines for conducting partnered research in applied psychology: An illustration from disability research in employment contexts. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 72(4): 1367-1391.
Fisher, S., Bonaccio, S. and Connelly, C.E. 2023. Reactions of applicants with disabilities to technology‐enabled recruitment and selection: A research agenda. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 32(2): 182-194.
Mastrella, S.J., Powell, D.M., Bonaccio, S. and McMurthy, C.M. 2023. The Impact of Interviewees’ Anxious Nonverbal Behavior on Interview Performance Ratings. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 22(2): 99-110.
Jetha, A., Shamaee, A., Tompa, E., Smith, P., Bültmann, U., Bonaccio, S., Tucker, L., Norman, C., Banks, C.G. and Gignac, M. 2023. The role of the future of work in shaping the employment inclusions of young adults with disabilities: A qualitative study. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 42(9): 75-91.
Ho, J., Bonaccio, S., Connelly, C.E. and Gellatly, I.R. 2022. Representative-negotiated i-deals for people with disabilities. Human Resource Management, 61(6): 681-698.
Zhang, I., Powell, D.M. and Bonaccio, S. 2022. The role of fear of negative evaluation in interview anxiety and social‐evaluative workplace anxiety. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 30(2): 302-310.
Michalowski, M., Wilk, Sz., Michalowski, W., O'Sullivan, D., Bonaccio, S., Parimbelli, E., Carrier, M., Le Gal, G., Kingwell, S. and Peleg, M. 2021. A Health eLearning Ontology and Procedural Reasoning Approach for Developing Personalized Courses to Teach Patients About Their Medical Condition and Treatment. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(14): 7355.
Jetha, A., Shamaee, A., Bonaccio, S., Gignac, M., Tucker, L., Tompa, E., Bültmann, U., Norman, C., Banks, C.G. and Smith, P. 2021. Fragmentation in the future of work: A horizon scan examining the impact of the changing nature of work on vulnerable workers. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 64(8): 649-666.
Powell, D.M., Bourdage, J.S. and Bonaccio, S. 2021. Shake and Fake: The Role of Interview Anxiety in Deceptive Impression Management. Journal of Business and Psychology, 36: 829-840.
Bonaccio, S., Connelly, C.E., Gellatly, I.R., Jetha, A. and Martin Ginis, K.A. 2020. The Participation of People with Disability in the Workplace across the Employment Cycle: Employer Concerns and Research Evidence. Journal of Business and Psychology, 35: 138-158.
Bonaccio, S., Lapierre, L.M. and O'Reilly, J. 2019. Creating work climates that facilitate and maximize the benefits of disclosing mental health problems in the workplace. Organizational Dynamics, 48(3): 113-122.
Donia, M.B.L., Ronen, S., Tetrault Sirsly, C.A. and Bonaccio, S. 2019. CSR by Any Other Name? The Differential Impact of Substantive and Symbolic CSR Attributions on Employee Outcomes. Journal of Business Ethics, 157(2): 503-523.
Schneider, L., Powell, D.M. and Bonaccio, S. 2019. Does Interview Anxiety Predict Job Performance? International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 27(4): 328-336.
Bonaccio, S., Connelly, C.E., Fisher, S., Gellatly, I.R., Gignac, C. and Jetha, A. 2018. Beyond Managing Research Partnerships: Partnered Research as an Integrated Methodological Approach. Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, 11(4): 613-619.
Peleg, M., Michalowski, W., Wilk, S., Parimbelli, E., Bonaccio, S., O'Sullivan, D., Michalowski, M., Quaglini, S. and Carrier, M. 2018. Ideating Mobile Health Behavioral Support for Compliance to Therapy for Patients with Chronic Disease: A Case Study of Atrial Fibrillation Management. Journal of Medical Systems, 42(11): 234.

Chapters in Books

Lefcoe, A., Bonaccio, S. and Connelly, C.E. Managers’ reactions to job applicants and employees with disabilities. In Beatty, J., Kulkarni, M. and Hennekam, S.. Handbook of Disability and Management. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2023.
Bonaccio, S., O'Reilly, J., O'Sullivan, S. and Li, Y. Nonverbal Communication in Work Contexts. In Griffin, R.. Oxford Bibliographies in Management. New York: Oxford University Press, 2023.
Bonaccio, S. and Paik, J.E. Advice in the Workplace. In MacGeorge, E. and VanSwol, L.. The Oxford Handbook of Advice. New York: Oxford University Press, 2018.
Bonaccio, S. Judgment and Decision making Process: Advice Giving/Taking. In Rogelberg, S.G.. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Industrial/Organizational Psychology, 2nd edition. USA: Sage Publications, 2017.
O'Reilly, J. and Bonaccio, S. Nonverbal Communication. In Rogelberg, S.G.. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Industrial/Organizational Psychology, 2nd edition. USA: Sage Publications, 2017.
Bonaccio, S., O'Reilly, J. and O'Sullivan, S. Nonverbal Communication in Work Contexts. In Griffin, R.. Oxford Bibliographies in Management. New York: Oxford University Press, 2017.
Bonaccio, S. and Connelly, C.E. Physical disabilities at work. In Rogelberg, S.G.. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Industrial/Organizational Psychology, 2nd edition. USA: Sage Publications, 2017.
Bonaccio, S. Social Loafing/Free-Riding . In Rogelberg, S.G.. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Industrial/Organizational Psychology, 2nd edition. USA: Sage Publications, 2017.

Funded Research during the last 7 years

Funded Research during the last 7 years
From-To	Source	Title	*	**	Role	Amount
2022-2026	SSHRC	Les défis de l'allongement de la vie professionnelle : détecter l'âgisme au travail, en mesurer les impacts et identifier les meilleures pratiques de rétention des travailleurs âgés canadiens	R	C	Co-I	$ 158,726
2022-2025	SSHRC	Intelligent machines and human worker inequities: Examining the implications of artificial intelligence in the workplace	R	C	Co-I	$ 200,000
2020-2024	SSHRC	Informal Accommodations as Social Exchange: Canadian Managers' Reactions to Employees with and without Disabilities	R	C	PI	$ 170,463
2019-2021	Tri-agency Institutional Programs Secretariat: New Frontiers in Research Fund	Future-Proofing young Canadians with disabilities for the changing labour market	R	C	Co-I	$ 247,361
2018-2023	SSHRC	How can managers support and ensure the positive consequences of employees' disclosure of a mental health challenge	R	C	Co-I	$ 207,576
2017-2022	SSHRC	Are Job Interviews Missing the Boat? Essential Unanswered Questions Regarding Interview Anxiety	R	C	Co-I	$ 135,125
2016-2018	Telfer School of Management Research Fund (SMRF)	The Antecedents, Manifestations, and Consequences of Mental Illness Disclosure at Work	R	I	Co-I	$ 50,000
2014-2021	SSHRC	Enhancing community participation in Canadians with physical disabilities: development, implementation and	R	C	Co-I	$ 2,643,997
2014-2017	Faculty of Social Science	Strategic Decision-Making: A test of the SLS Game	R	I	Co-I	$ 20,000

LEGEND:

Role
PI = Principal Investigator | Co-I = Co-Investigator | Co-PI = Co-Principal Investigator

Pillars

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