Work Place Bullying - Organizational Change Interface

Figure 1: Workplace Bullying: Organizational Change Interface

   

'People strive for cognitive consistency in their attitudes and perceptions, particularly in triadic interpersonal relationships' Fritz Heider (19 February 1896 – 2 January 1988)

 

"Survival" is the most delicately connected factor with the evolution of mankind.

This concept dates back thousands of years.

However, the great development of this concept took place with the development of psychology, the Industrial Revolution, and modern sophisticated communication methods.

All our actions depend on "Survival" and the main thing we do to achieve that concept is ‘Occupation’.

But just like any action has a counteraction, just like there are two sides to a coin, the factors affecting "Survival" can be classified as favorable and unfavorable.

An extremely negative factor that humans do for the sake of "Survival" is considered here from the perspective of corporate human resource management.

"Workplace Bullying"

Bullying is unwanted, sometimes aggressive, behavior from one person (the bully) to another (the victim). In this case, this type of behavior happens in the workplace.

This can be an office, a factory, or an external site, depending on the nature of the work.

However, as workplace bullying generally covers adults, and sometimes older teens, some of the ways people are bullied can vary from what we’ve known as children. (Kaori Takano, Workplace Bullying and International HR Management, The Journal of International Business Research and Practice)

 

Examples Of Workplace Bullying

There are several different ways people can be bullied within the workplace. These can include:

1.      Intimidation

To frighten or threaten someone, usually in order to persuade them to do something that you want them to do

2.      Microaggressions

A statement, action, or incident regarded as an instance of indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of a marginalized group such as a racial or ethnic minority

3.      Sexual harassment

Behavior characterized by the making of unwelcome and inappropriate sexual remarks or physical advances in a workplace or other professional or social situation

4.      Gossiping

A person who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts about others

5.      Power plays

An attempt to gain an advantage by showing that you are more powerful than another person or organization

6.      Incivility

Rude or unsociable speech or behavior.

7.      Exclusion

The act of not allowing someone or something to take part in an activity or to enter a place

8.      Degrading jokes

Self-deprecating humor

9.      Cyberbullying

The use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages of an intimidating or threatening nature (Sophia Waterfield, 13 January 2022)

Figure 2: Definition of Work Space Bullying 

                                                      

                                    Figure 3: Impact Ratio

                                            

Figure 4: Bullying Key Traits

                                                      

According to the Workplace Bullying Institute, workplace bullying consists of repeated, harmful mistreatment by one or more perpetrators who target their victims with conduct that is threatening, humiliating, abusive, isolating, and/or sabotaging. More than 50 percent of bullying is committed by perpetrators who outrank their targets; around one-third is conducted by the target's peer(s)

Figure 5: Impact Ratio

Symptoms of workplace bullying include:

Stress-related health issues such as cardiovascular problems, anxiety, headaches, stomach issues, loss of appetite, insomnia, depression, panic attacks, and frequent illness

 

• Low morale, self-doubt, and low self-esteem, both at work and outside of it
• Trouble regulating emotions, concentrating, or making decisions
• Feeling ill every night before work, or upon waking up for work in the morning, or generally dreading going to work
• Feeling drained of energy and constantly needing mental health days
• Making errors at work or avoiding the bully even if it compromises productivity
• Feeling afraid to share ideas in front of the bully for fear of criticism or humiliation
• Feeling helpless, depressed, ashamed, or like there is no way out
• The important thing is that no matter how miserable a target may feel, they still have worth and agency.

  

 Bullying and the overall health/productivity of an organization

 

• Increased absenteeism
• Increased turnover
• Increased stress
• Increased costs for employee assistance programs (EAPs), recruitment, etc
• Increased risk for accidents/incidents
• Decreased productivity and motivation
• Decreased morale (Premilla D'Cruz, The workplace bullying-organizational change interface: emerging challenges for human resource management)

HR responsibility for Creating a Professional Workplace

 

• Professional Workplace Culture Training
• Help to overcome The Entitlement Complex
• a sense of deservingness or being owed a favor when little or nothing has been done to deserve special treatment
• End Rumours and Gossip - Turn down invitations to pick others apart.
• Implicit Bias
• Avoiding Block-out Syndrom
• Block-out syndrome is when you are suddenly not thinking clearly, during a highly stressful situation, and you make really bad decisions. Avoiding it will make a better environment.
• Improve the Positive Behaviour of Employees by being an example

    

Figure 6: Unity will make the Organization Strong

Organizations are recognizing the significance of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) within the workplace and seeking ways to improve EDI overall.

(Renee L. Cowan, It’s Complicated: Defining Workplace Bullying From the Human Resource Professional’s Perspective )

 

 Conclusion

         

Building a better EDI program -

 

1.      Improving EDI In the Workplace

            2.      Assess And Address Unconscious Bias

 

3.      Review And Revise Hiring Practices

 

4.      Establish Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)

 

5.      Promote Training and Development Opportunities

 

6.      Encourage Mentoring and Sponsorship Programs

(Laura Newcomer,  How to squash workplace bullying without bullying back)

  

Final words:

Workplace bullying as we experience it might be a far cry from the ‘sticks-and-stones’ approach commonly reckoned by theories; but indeed, is no less harmful.

With repeated subtle bullying behavior, the victim often second-guesses the severity of their experience, leaving them feeling confused, anxious, and isolated.

Without a doubt, becoming aware of the inconspicuous bullying behaviors can help start some much-needed conversations and help your team work together to create a more resilient internal culture, where everyone feels psychologically and physically safe.

Reference list

 

Sophia Waterfield.(13 January 2022). Workplace Bullying: A Guide With Examples Of Bullying At Work [Online]

Available at:https://makeadifference.media/culture/workplace-bullying-guide-examples [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

Patrick Rockett, Susan K. Fan, Rocky J. Dwyer, Tommy Foy. (10 April 2017). A human resource management perspective of workplace bullying [Online]

Available at:https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JACPR-11-2016-0262/full/html [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

Premilla D'Cruz. (08 Jan 2014). The workplace bullying-organizational change interface: emerging challenges for human resource management [Online]

Available at:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09585192.2013.870314 [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

Cristian Balducci, Paul Maurice Conway & Kate van Heugten. (05 January 2021). The Contribution of Organizational Factors to Workplace Bullying, Emotional Abuse, and Harassment [Online]

Available at: https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-981-13-0935-9_1 [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

D'Cruz, Premilla; Noronha, Ernesto. (May 2010). Protecting My Interests: HRM and Targets' Coping with Workplace Bullying [Online]

Available at: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ887897 [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

Renee L. Cowan. Volume 26, Issue 3. (April 3, 2012). It’s Complicated: Defining Workplace Bullying From the Human Resource Professional’s Perspective. [Online]

Available at: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0893318912439474?journalCode=mcqa [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 Kaori Takano. (July 2018). Workplace Bullying and International HR Management, The Journal of International Business Research and Practice, 12, 1-10. [Online]

Available:https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327346996_Workplace_Bullying_and_International_HR_Management_The_Journal_of_International_Business_Research_and_Practice_12_1-10 [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

Jessica Strick. (5th April 2022). 5 Subtle Behaviours That Might Actually Be Workplace Bullying. [Online]

Available at: https://www.ecoportal.com/blog/workplace-bullying [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

RITE Academy LLC. (2015-2021). Stop The Workplace Bully With A Duty To Intervene. [Online]

Available at: https://riteacademy.com/stop-the-workplace-bully-with-a-duty-to-intervene/ [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

University of Mary Washington. (2015-2023). Workplace Bullying [Online]

Available at:https://adminfinance.umw.edu/hr/employee-relations/respectful-workplace-policies/workplace-bullying/ [Accessed 25 October 2023]

  

Margaret Hodgins, Sarah MacCurtain, Patricia Mannix-McNamara. (3 August 2020). Power and inaction: why organizations fail to address workplace bullying. [Online]

Available at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/IJWHM-10-2019-0125/full/html [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

Laura Newcomer. How to squash workplace bullying without bullying back [Online]

Available at:https://www.quill.com/content/index/resource-center/healthcare/tips-and-tricks/how-to-squash-workplace-bullying-without-bullying-back/default.cshtml [Accessed 25 October 2023]

 

Chris Witthoft. (2023). How To Improve EDI In The Workplace [Online]

Available at: https://www.shineinterview.com/improve-edi/ [Accessed 25 October 2023]