ABSTACT:
Workplace bullying has been studied extensively in the United States, Austria, Germany, Scandinavia, and the United Kingdom.
Previous studies of bullying have focused on types of bullying (Einarsen, Hoel, Zapf, & Cooper, 2003; Keashly, 1998; Pearson, Andersson, & Wegner, 2001), frequency of bullying (Zapf, Einarsen, Hoel, & Vartia, 2003), the organizational and social factors that permit or encourage bullying (Andersson & Pearson, 1999; Fox & Stallworth, 2004; Vartia, 1996; Zapf, 1999), bullying’s adverse effects on the victims (Zapf, Knorz, & Kulla, 1996), ways to counter bullying (Richards & Daley, 2003), and the attributes of bullies and their victims (Zapf). However, a review of the literature did not uncover studies focusing on the attributes of workplace bullies in particular. The proposed study will help fill this gap in the literature by constructing a psychological profile of workplace bullies. This profile will help organizations recognize bullies, mitigate their effects, and prevent bullying.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Statement of the Problem
1.2 Purpose of the Study
1.3 Research Questions
2. Brief Review of the Literature
2.1 Definitions of Bullying
2.2 Workplace Bullying
3. Research Method
3.1 Informed Consent
3.2 Confidentiality
3.3 Geographic Location
3.4 Data Collection Procedures
3.5 Instrumentation
3.6 Validity and Reliabilty
3.7 Data Analysis Procedures
3.8 Summary
Objectives and Topics of the Dissertation
The primary objective of this research is to analyze the characteristics of workplace bullying, focusing on both perpetrators and victims. By utilizing a mixed methods approach, the study seeks to bridge the gap in existing literature regarding personality traits, dysfunctional upbringing, and organizational factors that contribute to aggressive workplace behavior in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida area.
- Prevalence of workplace bullying across different professional settings.
- Psychological and behavioral profiling of bullying perpetrators and victims.
- Influence of upbringing and family-life antecedents on aggressive workplace conduct.
- Development of insights into covert versus overt workplace aggression.
- Operationalization of bullying through subjective perceptions and frequency-based metrics.
Excerpt from the Book
Workplace Bullying
Workplace bullying may include both direct and indirect actions, ranging from verbal abuse to gossip. Bullying can also take the form of personal-related abuse such as questioning a person’s mental fitness, to work-related abuse including giving a person too few, too simple, or too many and too difficult tasks to do. Bullying is only believed to happen if an imbalance of power between the persons involved exists, and if it tends “to drain the coping resources of the target, thus in itself emphasizing the increasing powerlessness of targets” (Einarsen et al.,2009, p. 26).
The Einarsen’s Negative Acts Questionnaire is an accurate tool in measuring the incidence of workplace bullying, particularly in assessing the degree to which individuals at work are exposed to personal, work-related, and physically intimidating forms of bullying (Einarsen, Hoel & Notelaers, 2009). The scale is built on the theoretical notion that bullying goes beyond discrete events of unpleasantness and entails an often evolving and escalating hostile workplace. This questionnaire also involves both objective measures of bullying and subjective responses by the victims.
Zapf and Einarsen (2003) point to a third set of factors they refer to as “micro political behavior” (p. 10). However, this seems more like an exogenous stimulus in a stressful work environment and therefore opens another direction for inquiry into the effect of leadership styles, particularly as this neglect the need for team structure and well-defined responsibilities (Zapf & Einarsen, 2003).
Emotional abuse, arising from low frustration threshold and a propensity for lashing out, is a frequent manifestation of workplace bullying (Geffner, Braverman, Galasso, & Marsh, 2005). A 1994 survey by the Staffordshire University Business School estimated that no less than half of UK employees were victimized at least once throughout their working life (as cited in Ellis, n.d.). More recent work in the field suggests that bullying may affect as much as 75% of American workers, either as targets or witnesses (Fisher-Blando, 2008).
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: Provides a foundation by discussing the rampant nature of workplace bullying and the insufficiency of current regulations and research to mitigate the problem.
Brief Review of the Literature: Examines existing definitions of bullying, distinguishes between schoolyard and workplace contexts, and reviews studies on individual dynamics and negative social acts in the workplace.
Research Method: Details the mixed methods research design, including data collection via the Workplace Aggression Research Questionnaire (WARQ), sampling procedures, ethical considerations like informed consent, and analysis techniques using NVivo and statistical cross-tabulation.
Keywords
Workplace Bullying, Aggression, Perpetrator, Victim, Social Constructivism, Mixed Methods, Negative Acts Questionnaire, Psychological Abuse, Workplace Environment, Personality Traits, Dysfunctional Upbringing, Organizational Behavior, Harassment, Mental Fitness, Coping Resources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper examines the phenomenon of aggression and bullying in the workplace, specifically aiming to profile the characteristics of those involved and the antecedents that lead to such behavior.
What are the primary themes discussed in the work?
Key themes include the impact of bullying on organizational productivity, the prevalence of hidden bullying, the role of dysfunctional upbringing in perpetrator behavior, and the necessity of improved organizational responses.
What is the primary research goal?
The primary goal is to provide diagnostic insights into the personality traits, socio-demographic profiles, and organizational statuses of both bullies and their victims to better understand and eventually mitigate workplace aggression.
Which scientific methodology is employed?
The study utilizes a mixed methods research design, combining quantitative data from the Workplace Aggression Research Questionnaire (WARQ) with qualitative insights gained from in-depth, face-to-face interviews.
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main body reviews existing literature on bullying definitions, describes the research framework and data collection methods, and outlines the procedures for analyzing psychological and organizational factors.
Which keywords characterize this research?
The study is characterized by terms such as workplace bullying, aggression, perpetrator, victim, social constructivism, and mixed methods research design.
Why is "social constructivism" used as a theoretical framework?
It is used to allow for a degree of objectivity in interpreting the subjective experiences of participants regarding the causes and patterns of bullying behaviors in their work lives.
How does the researcher address the difficulty of anonymity in this study?
To protect identities, the researcher utilizes dual-judge manual coding for interviews and avoids video recording, ensuring all data is stored securely and reported only in the aggregate.
- Quote paper
- Erica Thompson (Author), 2011, An Investigation of Aggression and Bullying in the Workplace, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/199344
