A Bully is Bad for Business

The code of the snitch is as strong with adults as with kids: Who wants to admit to being bullied by a coworker or a supervisor, especially when it could lead to embarrassment or being let go? But a 2012 study on bullying at work, which includes the research of a University of NH professor, finds that abusive management affects not only those being bullied, but also colleagues who see or hear about the abuse, making it bad for business.

The study, published in The Journal of Social Psychology, was the first to show that individual cases of supervisory abuse can have company-wide ramifications. Paul Harvey, associate professor of management at UNH and one of four authors of the study, says he hopes it will “make organizational leadership realize they have some skin in the game.” He says the results indicate it is in the self-interest of management to end even minor cases of abuse.

The study looked at two kinds of abuse—direct supervisory abuse and “vicarious” supervisory abuse, meaning the negative consequences suffered by people who witness or hear about direct abuse. Abuse in this study refers to sustained displays of hostile, nonviolent behavior. The study surveyed 233 workers in different industries.

The study finds that with direct abuse comes increased job frustration and a corresponding drop in how supported employees felt by their company. But the findings that really surprised Harvey and the others was how much each of these trends also holds true for witnesses of abuse. Employees who hear about abuse, just like those who are bullied, are more likely to mistreat other coworkers. This means that supervisory abuse can affect people companywide.

The study also found that while the victim of direct abuse may believe it is an isolated incident, an employee who hears of the abuse secondhand may be more inclined to blame the organization as a whole for allowing it to take place.

Harvey suggests that future research should determine the tangible dollar costs of abusive supervision and whether it can be directly linked to employees seeking new jobs.