It turns out that victims of workplace bullying aren’t the only people who are negatively effected by it.
According a recent study by the University of New Hampshire (http://www.labmanager.com/?articles.view/articleNo/34320/title/Targets-of-Bully-Bosses-Aren-t-the-Only-Victims–New-Research-Shows/), bosses who bully don’t just negatively impact their targeted victims. The also negatively impact the victim’s co-workers who suffer from second hand bullying.
In a nutshell, this means that abusive bosses cause stress, poor job performance, dissatisfaction with the job, and an increased likelihood that co-workers will be abusive (modelling what the boss is doing). Abuse begets abuse.
While such abuse may not be physical, because of the long term nature of the abuse, it can cause long term health affects related to increase stress and even PTSD.
It is essential that companies make an committed effort to eliminate bullying at all levels of the organization. If you are interested in learning more or are an HR professional – check out my course – Workplace Bullying for HR Professionals. This program has been approved for 6 ce hours through the HRCI for continuing education units.
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