Workplace Bullying |
Bullying can be defined as the act of repeatedly and deliberately putting a weaker person under stress. In August 1994, a two-day conference on Queensland’s Gold Coast, BEYOND BULLYING - Towards National Guidelines, focused on bullying as a major problem in Australian schools, homes and workplaces. It was organised and self-funded by a small group of four concerned individuals, now founding members of the Beyond Bullying Association. They are:
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Paul McCarthy, Lecturer in the School of Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management, Faculty of Commerce and Administration, Griffith University.
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Michael Sheehan, Lecturer in the same School of Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management at Griffith University.
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Susanne Wilkie, a psychologist with a special interest in children’s problems, including those resulting from being bullied at school.
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William Wilkie, a psychiatrist with a special interest in stress reactions, including the behaviour of victimised people.
The aims of Beyond Bullying Association are:
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To increase public awareness of bullying and victimisation and their consequences as endemic in our society
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To draw attention to the subtle yet destructive abuse of power in modern institutions, schools, workplaces and homes, and to promote relevant research
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To generate, update and circulate information to assist victimised people and those who support them, to gain advice and help
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To influence community, business and government leaders towards taking appropriate action to overcome the problem
The items below are authored by the members of the BEYOND BULLYING ASSOCIATION. More information on bullying can be found at their website.
Workplace Bullying (Click on the underlined item to view it.) |
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Psychological Abuse in the Workplace An article by Robyn Mann
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7 principles that could be adapted in the formation of national guidelines for Successful anti-bullying programmes
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PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE IN THE WORKPLACERobyn Mann When are actions, dismissed in the workplace as 'culturally acceptable behaviour', 'office politics', 'adjustment to culture', 'initiation to regime', and 'mentoring', really abuse of power in the workplace? Bullying in schools and in the home is out in the open, recognised as a problem within our society. In the workplace, legislation ensures that physical abuse and sexual harassment are seen as unacceptable, and perpetrators of this type of abuse face legal action. Yet, bullying in the workplace continues unrecognised, or at least justified as inevitable, in the world of corporate affairs and workplace politics. The level of abuse in the workplace is difficult to gauge. If the 'horror stories' surfacing at any mention of this subject indicate how widespread this problem is, then there is an urgent need to address this issue, by documenting incidents, finding the source of the abuse and what and who perpetrates it, and developing a procedure to eliminate the abusive behaviour. What forms may psychological abuse take in the workplace?This chapter discusses one form of abuse in the workplace: sustained psychological abuse. This form of abuse systematically undermines self-esteem and destroys self-confidence by undermining the rights of the person. Its subtlety is insidious; those people perpetrating the abuse are masters at disguising their actions and the effect on the victim is difficult to detect or to isolate. Furthermore, those inflicting the damage do not see their behaviour as wrong or unjust because they can justify their actions as being for the good of the company or the workgroup. If challenged about behaviour, the abuser twists blame away from themselves by crying victim of circumstance. The effect on the victim can be debilitating and long-lasting. Why do some people become perpetrators of abuse?Research on psychological abuse within close relationships, such as between spouses, family members, and child and adult, has shown that in many cases the abuser was once a victim. Abusers in domestic violence tend to have:
Furthermore, abusers tend to replay unresolved problems of their own by projecting them onto their victims. The same kind of abuse can happen in the workplace, with abusers believing they have a right to inflict their controls and expectations on others, perhaps because they had suffered at an earlier stage in their career. When I started here 17 years ago, I didn't get any help from anybody. I had to start at the bottom and do all the difficult jobs. Nobody ever encouraged me. I had to fight for everything I got. Once they are in a position to dominate others, they take the opportunity to retaliate. Abusers devalue the strengths, abilities, competencies, intelligence and integrity of others, because to acknowledge these qualities as ‘good’ is to damage their own, already low self-esteem. In a work situation, the abuser uses their position to exaggerate or fabricate weaknesses in others to cover up their own inadequacies and insecurities in the job. How do abusers reduce a confident, skilled worker to a state of helplessness?The abuser systematically destroys self-confidence and self-esteem over a period of time. The abuser is not always in a position of legitimate power but has power over resources and 'in house' knowledge and, particularly, power by association due to alliances with people in positions of legitimate power. In order to identify the process of abuse leading to complete compliance, I use a model based on the severest form of abuse-that of physical and mental torture-developed by Biderman after studying the breakdown of the American soldiers, through emotional and physical torture techniques during the Korean War. His work is reported by Amnesty International in their Report on Torture (1975). Amnesty International suggests there is no precise and scientific definition of torture because 'it describes human behaviour, and each human being is unique, with his own pain threshold, his own psychological make-up, [and] his own cultural conditioning’.(Biderman, 1975:33). However, they suggest that the following elements give the term torture its meaning and should be incorporated in any comprehensive definition:
The outcome of this process ensures that '[the] victim is trapped in a situation in which the stresses are manipulated so as constantly to frustrate this need to behave in a consistent, learned personal behaviour pattern and in accordance with an esteemed self-image-both of which are necessary for the protection of basic self-identity’.(Biderman, 1975:52). Elements of psychological abuse in the workplace correspond with elements of torture and the outcome of the torture process. The following chart parallels stages of psychological abuse in the workplace with those stages outlined in Biderman's Chart of Coercion.
Developed from Biderman's Chart of Coercion in Amnesty International (1975) Report on Torture, London, Gerald Duckworth & Co. p. 53. How can this happen in the work place?Abusers work their way into situations where they will have influence over the vulnerable-appointees, newly promoted staff, and those in highly stressful working situations where deadlines and client satisfaction are crucial. People become victims of these abusers when they are isolated from the rest of their colleagues. Once they are without a support system that can put unreasonable behaviour into perspective, they are vulnerable to the stages of abuse that lead to complete coercion. If other members are aware of the danger of this abuser, but unaware of how people become a victim to the abuser, they may see this early alliance as threatening and so ostracise the victim, expediting the abuser's aim. As the victim becomes reliant on the abuser, the victim is overwhelmed by the perceived power this person has over others. Other members of staff keep their distance which means the victim has no way of substantiating the stories of the abuser’s power. Because of the constant drive to meet unreasonable demands and expectations in order to gain approval and stop the abuse, the victim becomes physically, and in turn, emotionally weak which reinforces compliance rather than challenging the abusive behaviour. The victim knows that he or she is being treated unfairly, but feels powerless to do anything about it. Veiled threats and stories that lead to the demise of other members of staff are further incentives to comply with the abuser's demands. The victim believes that compliance means that the abuse will abate. By this stage victims blame themselves for their low self-esteem. They think they are not worthy to hold the position and so should be grateful for any tolerance offered. Positive comments or actions, often displayed in public, offer the victim a chance of respite from the abuse - the chance to believe that the worst is over. Yet in reality, the victim falls further into the coercive pattern of behaviour as the abuse returns. By this stage, the victim can see no way out of the situation. The victim is reduced to self-preservation tactics. Compliance with the requests and expectations seem the most reasonable. Once this pattern of compliance is established, it is difficult to break. Why is this type of abuse so difficult to detect and document?Psychological abuse is very difficult to document and even more difficult to prove. No tangible evidence exists. When the victim is asked: Well, what is happening to cause such stress? The answers are difficult to express, they seem trivial and pathetic:
Isolated incidents in the working day do not necessarily lead to degradation, but interlinked, continual episodes of abuse can. The victim is left feeling as if they have a serious problem coping with life. Lack of understanding, action or perception on the part of the superior, colleague, friend or doctor plunges the victim further into the belief that he/she owns the problem. Because of this, the victim usually keeps it all to him or herself for fear of being labelled. In many cases it is the GP who deals with the symptoms as the patient presents with symptoms of depression such as altered sleeping patterns, gain or loss of weight, relationship problems, periods of panic or dread, etc. However, the symptoms of depression and demoralisation can easily be blamed on stresses outside work because as the abuse continues, unhealthy stress affects all areas of the victim's life. The abuser always has an explanation to cover any query about the abused:
The abuser easily hides or justifies the abuse:
The abuser intimates that he/she is carrying more than a fair share of the workload:
What is being lost if this is allowed to continue?The cost to any organisation whose workers are suffering this type of abuse is substantial. Individual workers are not performing anywhere near their potential. Their enthusiasm, creativity, vision, participation in decision making and productivity is curtailed. Employees with high potential for developing the organisation are lost through unnecessary staff turnover. The symptoms of the abuse lead to increased demand on sick leave and eventually superannuation. Abuse affects the morale of all workers. If this type of abuse is rewarded in any way, it leads to more workers adopting abusive forms of behaviour to attract attention and gain whatever spoils are in the offering. The spiral of abuse must be stopped. What can the aware manager do?Those in positions of legitimate power can make change. In the first place, display appropriate leadership behaviour and make it known that you do not condone or tolerate coercive leadership practices. In identifying the source of the abuse, it is necessary to ask if psychological abuse is ingrained in the culture of the company or if it has been imported through individuals. Be aware and sensitive to instances where people are using their power in an abusive way. Relegate to the past, myths and stereotypes in the workplace that perpetuate abusive behaviour. Acknowledge that abuse of power exists and is not acceptable behaviour for any member of staff and reject the idea that all workplaces operate with abusive behaviour. The following cliches indicate tolerance of abuse:
About the abuserIf the abuse can be isolated to an individual or small group, then the power and opportunity to abuse can be reduced. Where possible change the job role of the abusers and remove them from any activity where they will have influence over workers who could be vulnerable. Induction programs, mentoring programs, leaders of small task groups and controlling the work schedules of individuals are not the places for these people. Do not reward any outcome that has been completed at the expense of someone else's health. Identify specific behaviour and, wherever possible, document the abusive behaviour. Challenge the behaviour at every opportunity. Back up the challenge with documented evidence. Challenge the abuser's explanation with clarifying questions and insist on specific answers to questions. Unless the abuser takes responsibility for abusive behaviour, no change can occur. Violence is the responsibility of the abuser. Professional help would benefit abusers once they come to the stage of taking responsibility for their actions and wanting to change. For the victimsThe most productive action in these abusive situations is to intervene to release the victim from the cycle of abuse. Even though these strategies may not address the cause of the abuse, the victim must not be neglected in the interim. Remove the victim from under the control of the abuser. Set up a support system of colleagues. Begin to restore self-esteem, set tasks that ensure success and respect from a wider group of the workers, then provide opportunities for the abused to take control of their tasks and responsibilities free of ridicule, doubt and innuendo. Support the victim by acknowledging that abusive behaviour is not condoned. What they experienced was real: they did not imagine it. Help the victim to reassess the power base of the abuser from the new perspective. Continue to support the victim as he or she develops coping strategies for dealing with psychological abuse. ConclusionPsychological abuse exists in the workplace. Workers suffer sustained degenerative abuse that undermines their self-confidence and leads to debilitating life changes. The abusers affect workers above and below them and are usually well-known for their behaviour. Abuse of others in the workplace is not acceptable. The abuse needs to be recognised in all its ugliness, documented and brought out from behind the 'respectable' roles and actions that disguise it. Effective policies must be guided by research. Policy makers need far more information than is presently available on such issues as:
Bassman and London (1993) offer the following challenge to researchers: Finally, we need to learn more about organizational policies and practices towards abuse, to identify the types of responses available to targets of abuse and the effectiveness of these policies and practices in curtailing and preventing abuse. They offer policy makers the following challenge: Given this uncharted territory, organisations should be open to management researchers who wish to investigate abusive managerial behaviours. This requires executives to admit that managerial abuse can occur, and acknowledge that learning about abuse and taking corrective and preventive actions are needed.
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Towards National GuidelinesWe hope the reader has been able to experience from this book, some of the impact the conference had on the participants. The messages are clear. Bullying is endemic, costly and damaging our society. We must begin to do something about it. During the conference, a glimmer of hope emerged from reports of British and Scandinavian success in curbing bullying in schools and also in the juvenile offenders’ wing of Cardiff prison. Most of the papers at the conference indicated that bullies tend to employ similar methods whether the victim is a school child, a battered wife, whistleblower or political prisoner. Could we adapt the strategies proven to be useful in school anti-bullying programmes as a basis for national guidelines for dealing with bullying in general? We learned, for example, from Delwyn and Eva Tattum that successful anti-bullying programmes:
How might these principles be adapted in the formation of national guidelines? 1 Successful anti-bullying programmes come from the top.
2 Successful anti-bullying programmes are supervised and regularly reviewed by a committee appointed for that purpose.
3 Successful anti-bullying programmes are based on a clear awareness of the extent and nature of the problem.
4 Successful anti-bullying programmes have a written policy.
5 Successful anti-bullying programmes change basic attitudes towards unfair aggressive behaviour. They teach people to report incidents of victimisation promptly.
6 Successful anti-bullying programmes involve the whole community.
7 Successful anti-bullying programmes put strict limits on bullying behaviour, encouraging the use of strong and consistent, but not violent, discipline.
The Beyond Bullying AssociationThese comments on guidelines for reducing bullying nationally, arose from the experience of people from different fields commenting on their own experiences of victimisation. We have suggested some national guidelines as a result of this experience. The Beyond Bullying Association will continue to organise similar conferences and publications focusing on victimisation endemic to our society. Hopefully, a range of options will arise from such a creative melting pot. People interested in joining the Beyond Bullying Association may write to the Secretary, Beyond Bullying Association, P.O. Box 196, Nathan Qld 4111. Source: Beyond Bullying Association |