Apospori

Athens University of Economics and Business Eleni Apospori

Triangulating Work-place bullying: The individual,

supervisor and organizational culture

5rd INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCEHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN EUROPE:

TRENDS AND CHALLENGESThursday, May 27, 2010


To examine the role of ORGANIZATIONAL FACTORS on Workplace Bullying (WPB)

Our Goal

•Need for inclusion of organizational predictors in an explanatory model of WPB

•Despite the abundance of literature on the association of leadership and employees’ behavior, the connection between leadership or management style and workplace bullying has received little attention.

•Also, organizational culture is an important potential facilitator or impediment of WPB. However, few studies have included organizational culture in their explanatory models

•Need for inclusion of organizational predictors in an explanatory model of WPB

•Despite the abundance of literature on the association of leadership and employees’ behavior, the connection between leadership or management style and workplace bullying has received little attention.

•Also, organizational culture is an important potential facilitator or impediment of WPB. However, few studies have included organizational culture in their explanatory models

The relevant literature


To examine the role of ORGANIZATIONAL FACTORS on Workplace Bullying (WPB)

Our Goal

•Furthermore, the methods of analysis used so far have treated individual and organizational predictors at the same level, assuming that individual predictors do not vary across various leaders/managers and organizations

•Research in other fields – i.e. education - has shown that students’ individual characteristics vary over schools as a function of school characteristics

•Furthermore, the methods of analysis used so far have treated individual and organizational predictors at the same level, assuming that individual predictors do not vary across various leaders/managers and organizations

•Research in other fields – i.e. education - has shown that students’ individual characteristics vary over schools as a function of school characteristics

The relevant literature


Triangulating Work-place bullying: The individual, supervisor and organizational culture

•Expands on the existing literature by adopting a multi-level approach where three levels of data are used, individual, managerial and company level

•For this purpose, HLM has been employed for the analysis of themulti-level data

• The general idea behind this method

Individuals under the same manager and in the same organization are more similar than individuals under other managers and from different organizations

Thus, individuals are nested in groups, in terms of management style and organizational culture

•Expands on the existing literature by adopting a multi-level approach where three levels of data are used, individual, managerial and company level

•For this purpose, HLM has been employed for the analysis of themulti-level data

• The general idea behind this method

Individuals under the same manager and in the same organization are more similar than individuals under other managers and from different organizations

Thus, individuals are nested in groups, in terms of management style and organizational culture

The present study


Methodology Our sample

• convenient sampling

• 303 employees

• from 32 organizations and under 89 managers

• in the Greater Athens Area, Greece

Our sample

• convenient sampling

• 303 employees

• from 32 organizations and under 89 managers

• in the Greater Athens Area, Greece



Methodology The questionnaire:

1. Work-Place Bullying Respondents were asked toindicate how often they had experienced 32 negative and

potentially harassing acts within the past 12 months

•Factor and reliability analysis of the 32 Negative Acts Questionnaire (NAQ) indicators yielded five different factors

The questionnaire:

1. Work-Place Bullying Respondents were asked toindicate how often they had experienced 32 negative and potentially harassing acts within the past 12 months

•Factor and reliability analysis of the 32 Negative Acts Questionnaire (NAQ) indicators yielded five different factors

1. EXCLUSION

(5 indicators, alpha=.801)

2. WORKRELATED BULLYING

Over-check

/Over0load

(7 indicators, alpha=.779 )

3. VERBAL BULLYING (6 indicators, alpha=.803 )

4. VIOLENT/RACIAL BULLYING (3 indicators, alpha=.778 )

5. COMMUNICATION BULLYING (2 indicators, alpha=.647)

1. EXCLUSION


2. WORKRELATED BULLYING

Over-check

/Over0load


3. VERBAL BULLYING (6 indicators, alpha=.803 )

4. VIOLENT/RACIAL BULLYING (3 indicators, alpha=.778 )

5. COMMUNICATION BULLYING (2 indicators, alpha=.647)



Methodology III

The questionnaire:

2. Individual’s psychological characteristics

• External locus of control

I am very sensitive of what people think of me

My actions are governed by the way people expect me to behave….

The questionnaire:

2. Individual’s psychological characteristics

• External locus of control

I am very sensitive of what people think of me

My actions are governed by the way people expect me to behave….

1. External Locus of control(4 indicators, alpha=.701)

1. External Locus of control(4 indicators, alpha=.701)



Methodology IIIThe questionnaire:

3. Leadership/management style

•Co-ordinator, organizer, administrator

•Entrepreneur, innovator, risk taker

• Mentor, sage, father/mother figure

•Producer, technician, hard-driver

The questionnaire:

3. Leadership/management style

•Co-ordinator, organizer, administrator

•Entrepreneur, innovator, risk taker

• Mentor, sage, father/mother figure

•Producer, technician, hard-driver

1. Good leadership


1. Good leadership




Methodology III

The questionnaire:

4. Dimensions of organizational culture

• assertiveness

• gendered/male culture

• humane orientation

• communication

The questionnaire:

4. Dimensions of organizational culture

• assertiveness

• gendered/male culture

• humane orientation

• communication

1. Assertiveness (4 indicators, alpha=.787)

2. Gendered/male culture


3. Humane orientation (4 indicators, alpha=.810 )

4. Communication (4 indicators, alpha=.728 )

1. Assertiveness (4 indicators, alpha=.787)

2. Gendered/male culture


3. Humane orientation (4 indicators, alpha=.810 )

4. Communication (4 indicators, alpha=.728 )



Descriptive statistics

The respondents reported

• 34% EXCLUSION

• 40% WORK RELATED BULLYING, over check/over load

• 7% verbal bullying

• 1% abusive calls or emails

• 1% violent/racial bullying

at least once a month in the past 12 months

The respondents reported

• 34% EXCLUSION

• 40% WORK RELATED BULLYING, over check/over load

• 7% verbal bullying

• 1% abusive calls or emails

• 1% violent/racial bullying

at least once a month in the past 12 months



ResultsEXCLUSION

• INDIVIDUAL LEVEL (1)• External locus of control

Employees with high external locus of control are more likely to be excluded

2. MANAGEMENT LEVEL (2) • Leadership is not a predictor of exclusion

3. COMPANY LEVEL (3)• Communication

Employees in companies with worse communication are more likely to be excluded

• Humane orientation

Employees in companies with more humane orientation are less likely to be excluded

4. INTERACTION between external locus and communication Employees with higher external locus of control in companies

with worse communication are more likely to be excluded

EXCLUSION


Employees with high external locus of control are more likely to be excluded

2. MANAGEMENT LEVEL (2) • Leadership is not a predictor of exclusion

3. COMPANY LEVEL (3)• Communication

Employees in companies with worse communication are more likely to be excluded

• Humane orientation

Employees in companies with more humane orientation are less likely to be excluded

4. INTERACTION between external locus and communication Employees with higher external locus of control in companies

with worse communication are more likely to be excluded



ResultsWORK RELATED BULLYING/over-check over-load


Individuals with more external locus of control are more likely to be over-checked/overloaded

2. MANAGEMENT LEVEL (2)• Good leadership

Employees under better leadership are less likely to be over-checked/overloaded

3. COMPANY LEVEL (3)• Gendered culture

Employees in companies with more male-gendered culture are more likely to be over-checked/overloaded

4. INTERACTION between external locus and gendered culture Employees with higher external locus of control in companies

with more gendered culture are more likely to be excluded

WORK RELATED BULLYING/over-check over-load


Individuals with more external locus of control are more likely to be over-checked/overloaded

2. MANAGEMENT LEVEL (2)• Good leadership

Employees under better leadership are less likely to be over-checked/overloaded

3. COMPANY LEVEL (3)• Gendered culture

Employees in companies with more male-gendered culture are more likely to be over-checked/overloaded

4. INTERACTION between external locus and gendered culture Employees with higher external locus of control in companies

with more gendered culture are more likely to be excluded



At the policy levelThe findings suggest that

if organizations want to confront WPB, they will be more successful

if they 1. Develop good leaders/managers

• coordinators• mentors • Organizers• innovators and

2. Change their organizational cultures to

• More communicative • Less gendered

The findings suggest that if organizations want to confront WPB, they will be more

successful

if they 1. Develop good leaders/managers

• coordinators• mentors • Organizers• innovators and

2. Change their organizational cultures to

• More communicative • Less gendered



Thank you

&

Have a Relaxing SummerEleni Apospori, Assistant Professor

Athens University of Economics and BusinessDepartment of Marketing and Communication

76 Patission St., 104 34 Athens, GreeceTel. +30-2108203445

Email: [email protected]

Career

Apospori