Patrick Bergemann studies the reporting of wrongdoing, broadly conceived. Understanding when and why people report wrongdoing is fundamental to understanding how organizations and polities address problematic behavior, prevent malfeasance and function effectively. Reporting wrongdoing is also an important way that individuals can deter and punish discrimination, harassment and victimization in the workplace. In particular, Patrick focuses on the ways in which the institutional and social environment impacts whistleblowing and other types of reporting behavior. 

His research has been published in the American Journal of Sociology and the American Sociological Review. His book, Judge Thy Neighbor: Denunciations in the Spanish Inquisition, Romanov Russia, and Nazi Germany, was published by Columbia University Press.