Dustin Sleesman

Biography

Dustin J. Sleesman is an associate professor of management at the University of Delaware’s Lerner College of Business and Economics. He holds a Ph.D. from Michigan State University, as well as a B.S. and B.A. from Ohio State University.

Dr. Sleesman’s research explores organizational behavior and psychology, focusing on decision-making, negotiation, conflict resolution, teams and leadership. His work has appeared in top academic journals including Academy of Management Journal, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Journal of Applied Psychology and The Leadership Quarterly. With over 1,500 citations, Dr. Sleesman’s insights have been featured in Forbes, Harvard Business Review, European Business Review and Dispute Resolution Magazine.

He serves as secretary for the International Association for Conflict Management. An award-winning researcher and educator, he blends evidence-based knowledge with practical skills across undergraduate, graduate and professional training programs.

Education

• Ph.D. in organizational behavior & human resource management, Michigan State University, 2012
• B.S. in human resources, The Ohio State University, 2007
• B.A. in psychology, The Ohio State University, 2007

Select Publications

• Sleesman, D. J. & Pinkley, R. L. (2027). The evolving science of negotiation alternatives: New contexts, new perspectives. Current Opinion in Psychology, 73, 102471.
• Barsness, Z. I., Sleesman, D. J., Pinkley, R. L., & Bhatia, N. (2027). Examining the layered veil of pay transparency: Implications for perceived ambiguity, sensemaking, and negotiation. Current Opinion in Psychology, 73, 102436.
• Barrett, C. A., Sleesman, D. J., & Amin, T. (2024). A mixed methods examination of decisionmaking during program exploration and implementation in schools. Prevention Science, 25, 459-469.
• Bear, J. B., Pinkley, R., Barsness, Z., Mazei, J., Bhatia, N., & Sleesman, D. J. (2023). Gender, pay transparency, and competitiveness: Why salary information sometimes, but not always, mitigates gender gaps in salary negotiations. Group Decision and Negotiation.
• Sleesman, D. J. & Cronin, C. E. (2023). From microbe to metaphor: Virus-like problems in organizations. Frontiers in Psychology.
• Sleesman, D. J., Hollenbeck, J. R., Davison, R. B., & Scott, B. A. (2024). Leader intuition: Good or bad for multiteam system performance? The roles of information load and introversion. Group & Organization Management.
• Barrett, C. A., Sleesman, D. J., Spear, S. E., Clinkscales, A., & Amin, T. (2023). Sticking with programs that do not work: The role of escalation of commitment in schools. Prevention Science, 24, 567-576.
• Nederveen Pieterse, A., Hollenbeck, J. R., van Knippenberg, D., Spitzmuller, M., Dimotakis, N., Karam, E. P., & Sleesman, D. J. (2019). Hierarchical leadership versus self-management in teams: Goal orientation diversity as moderator of their relative effectiveness. The Leadership Quarterly, 30(6), 101343.
• Sleesman, D. J. (2019). Pushing through the tension while stuck in the mud: Paradox mindset and escalation of commitment. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 155(1), 83-96.
• Pinkley, R. L., Conlon, D. E., Sawyer, J. E., Sleesman, D. J., Vandewalle, D., & Kuenzi, M. (2019). The power of phantom alternatives in negotiation: How what could be haunts what is. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 151(1), 34-48.
• Sleesman, D. J., Hollenbeck, J. R., Spitzmuller, M., & Schouten, M. E. (2018). Initial expectations of team performance: Specious speculation or framing the future? Small Group Research, 49(5), 600-635.\
• Sleesman, D. J., Lennard, A. C., McNamara, G., & Conlon, D. E. (2018). Putting escalation of commitment in context: A multilevel review and analysis. Academy of Management Annals, 12(1), 178-207.
• Sleesman, D. J. & Conlon, D. E. (2017). Encouraging prosocial decisions: The role of fairness salience and uncertainty. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 30(2), 502-515.
• Sleesman, D. J., Conlon, D. E., McNamara, G., & Miles, J. E. (2012). Cleaning up the big muddy: A meta-analytic review of the determinants of escalation of commitment. Academy of Management Journal, 55(3), 541-562.

Awards & Honors

• Featured speaker, Eastern Shore of Maryland Educational Consortium, 2026
• Featured speaker, Policy & Practice Institute: Delaware’s Conference on Public Education, 2025
• Featured speaker, Center for Plastics Innovation & Artificially Intelligent Manufacturing Paradigm for Composites, 2025
• Featured speaker, Inspiring Women in STEM Conference, Delaware BioScience Association, 2024
• Keynote speaker, Employee Development Advisory Committee, University of Delaware, 2023
• MBA Teaching Award Honorable Mention, 2023
• UD-SWUFE Joint Institute Fellowship, Lerner College of Business and Economics, 2022
• Best Paper Proceedings, Conflict Management Division, Academy of Management, 2022
• Nominated for MBA Teaching Award, University of Delaware, 2022
• Nominated for Excellence in Teaching Award, University of Delaware, 2020
• Keynote Speaker, Executive Reception, Delaware BioScience Association, 2019
• Outstanding Junior Faculty Award, Lerner College of Business and Economics, 2019
• Outstanding Research Award, Department of Business Administration, 2019
• Dean’s Office Research Recognition Award, Lerner College of Business and Economics, 2019
• Best Empirical or Theoretical Paper Award, Conflict Management Division, Academy of Management, 2017

Curriculum Vitae

Download Dustin J. Sleesman’s CV (PDF)