Nature And Anecedents Of Workplace Bullying

Bullying can produce and maintain a poisonous work environment. Nurses who bully can wear down the job satisfaction of their co workers which can result in a loss of productivity and increased absences in the workplace (Stokowski, 2010). Victims of bullying often have a feeling of impending doom and dread when they think about their upcoming work days. Each time the bullying reoccurs, the victims usually

The article provide five table illustrations. Table one is about the demographic characteristic of the targets of the workplace bullies. The table displays the characteristics of social workers ranging by age, gender, and demographic. Table two is about organizational settings and roles of targets. The table displayed supervisors, colleagues, subordinates, and clients were all identified as bullies. It showed that women were more than twice as likely (67%) to be identified as bullies as were men (33%). Table three is about the most troubling bullying behaviors. It showed that verbally and covertly hostile actions were the most troubling bullying behaviors in the workplace. In addition, being treated with disrespect and having work de-valued as the hardest aspects of being bullied at the workplace. Table four was the summary characteristics of bullies. The study showed the characteristic were either passive or assertive by the Coping Scale. The passive behavior had a ranging score of 24 and assertive was of 60. The median and mean scores were 42.5, and a multiple modal score. Table five was the classification of responses to coping scale as passive or assertive

Bullying which is the intentional act to inflict harm, threaten or abuse of others, can range in many ways. Kathryn Hawkins on the article the Office Bully, outlines various issues of this concept. Kathryn states that sometimes people become overconfidence that they left bullies in their past lives maybe high school, but later found out the bullies have ultimately become their bosses. Secondly, bullying may occur when bullies wants to dominate and gain back their powers if they feel endangered. So they tend to overcome their fear by threatening others. Also Kathryn articulates that even the conditions of the workplace can cause bullies to abuse their targets and workplace bully can be difficult to deal with. Although Kathryn has suggested some solutions about these issues, the claim presented does not put up with the issues, rather an encouragement.

Cleary, M., Hunt, G. E., Walter, G., & Robertson, M. (2009). Dealing with bullying in the workplace. Journal of psychosocial nursing and mental health services, 47(12), 34-41. doi:10.3928/02793695-20091103-03

This paper compares three studies on workplace bullying. The studies were conducted because workplace bullying is an epidemic that needs to be addressed and it needs to be understood to help future organizations prevent workplace bullying.

Unfortunately there is not only bullying in schools, there is bullying in the workplace as well. These are unacceptable behaviors that arise within a workplace situation. Bullying the workplace can take many forms and it’s not easy to always identify. The Fair Work Act 2009 made recent amendments that came into effect in January 2014 to define workplace bullying as occurring when an individual; group of individuals; repeatedly behaves unreasonably towards the worker, group of workers of which the worker is a member; and the behavior creates a risk to health and safety (Le Mire & Owens, 2014). This definition focuses on three main elements of bullying behavior, it is repeated, unreasonable, and creates a risk to health and safety. All three elements must be satisfied in order for bullying at the workplace to be found. Bullying behaviors could be things that are victimizing, humiliating, intimidating or threatening, but it is not limited to just those behaviors.

Workplace bullying is a widespread issue in which people need to be educated on in order to put an end to it. Its causes are complex and multi-faceted and yet preventable. Workplace bullying puts unnecessary strain on the employees It is the employer and organizations responsibility to provide a bully free environment for their employees. Employees should have the right to feel safe in their work environment and be free from workplace bullying. Employers need to be held accountable and have a plan in place to protect the employees from this type of violence. Unfortunately that is not always the case, in some instances the employer is the one doing the bullying. Workplace bullying carries many definitions in which will be

Adult bullying in the workplace has become quite commonplace and its consequences can be far-reaching. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 146 million Americans are employed in the United States, and an estimated 54 million of those are bullied at work (Namie, 2007). These statistics are staggering. Bullying is defined as a combination of verbal abuse and behaviors that are humiliating, threatening, or intimidating and create harm (health, social, or economic) to individuals and may interfere with their productivity at work (Namie, 2007). With a prevalence of bullying taking place in the workplace, it appears that organizations need to better provide a sense of community and psychological support to its employees to address this widespread issue. The appropriate communication within the organization can make all the difference.

Bullying, harassment and discrimination amount to core issues in all workplaces and are an integral connection between employee relations and effective human resource management. Bullying and harassment occurs when an employee is mistreated and victimized by fellow workers or supervisors through repeated negative instances of offensive slurs, detrimental feedback, verbal abuse and intended isolation through social exclusion. These instances correlate to “low satisfaction with leadership, work control, social climate, and particularly the experience of role conflict” (Einarsen et al. 1994). Not all departments within

Workplace Bullying Institute states, "many studies acknowledge that there is a “fine line” between strong management and bullying. Comments that are objective and are intended to provide constructive feedback are not usually considered bullying, but rather are intended to assist the employee with their work. If you are not sure an action or statement could be considered bullying, you can use the “reasonable person” test. Would most people consider the action unacceptable (Oppermann, 2009)?" The practice of bullying may be executed by an individual against the other, or can alternatively engage many individuals working as a group. Although, the border line that separates strong management and bullying can be indistinct, an individual who perceives that he or she is targeted for uneven treatment is possibly being bullied. The National Institute of Occupational Safety Health (NIOSH) indicates that mental disorders among the different workforce, said to be brought by workplace bullying, impacts to an employment loss which may reach the tune of $19 billion, as well as a decline in output of $3 billion Douglas (127). Workplace bullying happens anywhere within the workplace though; it flourishes in places where there exist weak inter-staff relations and workplace environments that experience increased cases of job insecurity. Workplace bullying may sometimes be practiced as a cultural principle, for instance, in the

An important descriptor of bullying is that it occurs repeatedly. There are many types of bullying whether it be physical or verbal, including gossiping and targeting in jokes, subjugating others to an inferior position, denying people from social groups, insulting, expressing derisive facial expressions, putting blame on that certain individual, being more closely scrutinized and unnecessarily criticized. Problems with bullying is that in the workplace this usually decreases the productivity and could lead to unnecessary resignations, which could cost the company even more money to find another person to fill that position. It’s not just work that suffers, the human body also does, as bullying also leads to emotion and physical problems. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries found that these problems include high stress, financial problems, lower self-esteem, and sleep and digestion irregularities. To deal with bullying, workplaces should be strict in regards to dealing with bullying. This means that they should make it clear that bullying will not be tolerated and remind the workers that bullying hurts the business. In addition, in certain cases, you should confront the bully and tell them to stop, as this is sometimes enough to stop them, though you have to be sure that there is no danger in proceeding. In addition, if you happen to be a bystander, you should stand up, though this could be difficult to

As I continued to contemplate each individual topic given in class, I found myself drawn to the topic of bullying in the work environment. I searched through the various bullying articles in the Leatherby Library, which ensured the credibility of the source. When I came across the article Relationships Between Machiavellianism, Organizational Culture, and Workplace Bullying: Emotional Abuse from the Target's and the Perpetrator's Perspective I was immediately intrigued. In reading this article, I found it will be very helpful when writing my research paper. I was able to obtain information on how the culture of an organization can ultimately support aggressive behaviors among employees, if those behaviors are deem to bring about productivity.

The frequency and duration of bullying are two aspects to consider to make a definition for this behavior. Despite few decades of research, the researchers still have not agreed upon the extent of frequency and duration to define bullying. More on the definition, the values and norms of the workplace need to be included as these influence how the employees perceive bullying. Cowie et al. explored three methods—the insider’s experience on bullying, the outsider’s experience, and the multi-method approach of both inside and outside perspectives. The researchers recommend future psychologists to apply the multi-method approach to assess, and mediate the

Heeman, V. (2007). Workplace Bullying: A Distinct, Interpersonal, and Communicative Phenomenon. Paper presented at the meeting of the National Communication Association.

At work, bullying is viewed as rehashed behavior, where it creates a risk to one’s well-being and security. It develops when one or a few people industriously over a time-frame see themselves to be forced to bear contrary activities from one or a set of individuals, in a circumstance where the one at the less than desirable end experiences issues in protecting him/herself against these activities (pdf 7). The term ‘bullying’ is most widely used in UK and Australia whereas in Germany, Scandinavia it is termed as ‘mobbing’ while in the US it is used as ‘workplace harassment’ (pdf 5).