All vacancies promise a friendly work team, but is this true in practice? A team cannot exist without contradictions and conflicts, but this is useful provided that the conflicts are constructive. And if conflicts are a normal phenomenon, then mobbing (emotional abuse) always has a destructive impact on the individual, group and productivity.
What is mobbing
Mobbing is direct or indirect ill-treatment by employees of a team towards one of its members. The term comes from the English mob - crowd.
Psychologist and physician Hanz Leiman first began studying the phenomenon in question in the 1980s. The author defined mobbing as psychological terror and characterized it as follows: “A systematically repeated hostile and unethical attitude of one or more people directed against another person, mainly one.”
But even earlier, K. Lorenz considered the problem and introduced the term “mobbing” in 1958. The author used this concept to denote aggression among animals (one species against another). Later the term became widespread. The main difference between human mobbing and animals is that the former attack representatives of their own species, the latter attack other species, mainly for the purpose of protecting their representatives.
Mobbing, more often than other reasons, is the basis for voluntary dismissal. The bullying by the team will continue as long as management allows. If bullying in children is regulated not only by teachers, then violence in the work team can be prevented and eliminated by the manager.
Mobbing is systematic psychological bullying over a period of weeks, months or years that occurs between:
- team and employee;
- manager and employees;
- employees and manager.
The goal of mobbing is to force the victim to resign. Simply put, it is about the survival of a person from a place. To achieve the goal the following are used:
- rumors and gossip;
- insulation;
- ignore;
- intimidation;
- humiliation;
- slander;
- labeling;
- nagging;
- abuse of power;
- constant criticism and demandingness;
- withholding information;
- ridicule;
- unjustified accusations;
- deprivation of bonuses, non-payment of wages;
- any persecution and attacks that infringe upon an individual’s self-esteem;
- actions that undermine the reputation and professional competence of the victim of mobbing.
Bullying: one on one
When the boss of Maya, who worked as an assistant judge, was hospitalized for a whole year due to a serious illness, his employees were temporarily transferred to another site. There the woman had to deal with the inappropriate behavior of one of her colleagues. “She worked as an assistant to my new manager and for some reason immediately took a dislike to me and played dirty tricks with terrible force. Then rumors will spread behind my back that I allegedly got the job through bed. She kept silent about the boss’s important request, but she herself blatantly lied to him that she told me everything,” Maya shares.
This is another version of psychological terror - bullying (bully), or the persecution by one person of another, usually of equal status. It is believed that a feature of bullers is a constant thirst for “fresh blood”. Often after the victim, unable to withstand the bullying, quits, the attacker takes over for the next “lamb.”
Stages of mobbing development
If children's bullying does not particularly need a reason, then mobbing does not arise spontaneously. Its formation and development goes through 5 stages:
- Prerequisites. As a rule, this is some kind of unresolved and protracted conflict, contradiction, emotional tension due to an unfavorable psychological climate in the team.
- Initial phase. Search for a “scapegoat”, the culprit of troubles. After finding the culprit, aggressive attacks and ridicule in his direction follow. The victim herself experiences her first emotional breakdowns, which only fuels psychological violence.
- Active phase. Bullying, reproaches, ridicule become systematic, do not depend on the actions of the victim, and are tied to the object itself, and not to situations. The victim's chronic diseases worsen, the first signs of serious mental disorders appear, and a feeling of being hunted down.
- Social isolation. The employee is deprived of the opportunity to participate in the official and unofficial life of the team.
- Dismissal. The victim of mobbing is either asked to leave the workplace, or the person himself decides to quit in order to preserve his physical and psychological health.
Reasons for mobbing
Mobbing always begins with some kind of conflict, most often caused by change, for example, someone's promotion. The conflict becomes unmanageable and unresolvable. Accordingly, timely and competent conflict resolution reduces the likelihood of mobbing.
In addition to the psychological climate of the team, the reasons for mobbing are personal problems of employees, for example, anger, fears and envy, hatred of work. That is, we are talking about the psychology of the group and the psychology of management, likes and dislikes, and the characteristics of relationships in the team.
Sometimes mobbing is a defensive reaction. For example, this type is common in the animal world. To warn the enemy and drive him away, animals attack themselves. Thus, mobbing does not necessarily involve an attack by the strong on the weak; it happens the other way around (a group of morally weak people survives a strong individual, an independent unit).
Other reasons for mobbing by colleagues include:
- “baptism of fire” for a newcomer to the team;
- fear of competition;
- creative abilities and originality of the employee (victim), success.
Managers are less likely to engage in mobbing, but this also occurs when the director is incompetent, has an inferiority complex, or strives to earn authority. The second reason for mobbing by management is to make room for “their” people, personal hostility towards the employee. In some places, mobbing is an integral feature of the leadership style, ensuring compliance with discipline (“fear means respect”).
Adviсe
- Realize that bullying is rarely directed at charming people, so try to be friendly to everyone, but don't grovel or be a hypocrite.
- Once you find yourself in a new team, try to communicate with everyone on the same level, be polite, do not get involved in internal squabbles, and do not draw attention to yourself with unusual behavior.
- Find a place for yourself that allows you to maintain your individuality and at the same time not stand out from the general team.
- Do not humiliate your colleagues, praise them, but do not overdo it, so that it does not smack of hypocrisy.
- Do not gossip or spread information you hear in a group.
- If someone provokes you into aggression, talk to him, find out what he wants to achieve by this. Learn not to react to offensive words.
- Adhere to the traditions accepted in the company, do not refuse to attend corporate events.
- Treat your boss with respect. Always perform your job duties conscientiously.
- If objective shortcomings in your person are to blame, try to change for the better.
- To be on the safe side, get a voice recorder or video camera so that all insults, illegal actions and threats from your colleagues are captured.
- Remember that you are a living person, and no one has the right to oppress you.
- Always resist, do not bow to the aggressor, you deserve respect.
- If any kind of damage is caused to you, there is no need to be timid, go straight to the police.
Consequences of mobbing
As a result of bullying, a person’s mental and physical condition gradually deteriorates. Mobbing can force a person to leave even a favorite job. Dismissal and psychological trauma are the consequences of mobbing. In addition, an inferiority complex is formed, self-esteem suffers, psychosomatic diseases develop, unmotivated aggression, nervous breakdowns, and suicidal tendencies occur.
In addition, there are:
- sleep problems;
- irritability;
- depression;
- panic attacks;
- heart attack;
- cognitive impairment, such as decreased concentration.
The consequences depend on the duration, strength of mobbing and the psychological stability (stress tolerance) of the victim. If a person tries to endure violence, then after some time the body itself finds a way out - long sick leave.
Over time, a person either quits himself or is fired, as productivity and professionalism noticeably drop. Sometimes a person is no longer able to continue working in his specialty, even in a new place. Moreover, most often the victim himself is blamed for all troubles. Illnesses after dismissal tend to worsen, even progressing to post-traumatic stress syndrome.
Naturally, family relationships also suffer. The victim has no time and energy left for anything other than resisting the mobbing and experiencing it.
How to resist
You cannot cope with mobbing on your own without physical and psychological support. Mental support means:
- emotional attention;
- understanding;
- empathy;
- hearing;
- satisfaction of interests, search for hobbies.
In addition, instrumental support is important: information, social assistance, practical advice and recommendations.
It is worth noting that emotional abuse often turns physical. With this type of mobbing, it is imperative to contact the appropriate authorities.
The mediation system has proven itself positive in solving the problem of mobbing. A neutral person, a mediator interested in solving the problem, provides significant social support. During the conversation, competent negotiations, constructive interpretation of the position of each party, the mobbing participants come to mutual understanding. An objective discussion and definition of the problem is necessary to resolve it. This is only possible through an intermediary. If the manager is not involved in mobbing, then it is better for him to act as a mediator in resolving the conflict. Or be present while the mediator (psychologist) is working.
Overcoming, preventing or, conversely, developing mobbing largely depends on the position of the leader. There are 3 possible behavior strategies:
- Detachment. The manager lets everything take its course and believes that the employees will figure it out themselves. This approach does not benefit interpersonal relationships and productivity. The atmosphere is heating up, employees live in tension, waiting for the choice of a new victim. A high level of mistrust is formed, any joke is taken seriously and with hostility. Personnel turnover is increasing.
- Unspoken encouragement. The manager perceives mobbing as healthy competition and stimulation of the work process. Behind the scenes, the leader supports confrontation, competition, competition. Perceives mobbing as hardening. With this approach, the situation will sooner or later get out of control; the manager will no longer be able to be just an outside observer. The consequences will be the same as in the previous case, but on a larger scale.
- Intervention. The manager insists on observing the rules of good manners in the team and respectful attitude. He takes care of his employees and creates a favorable psychological climate. This is the position that most organizations adhere to.
The atmosphere in the women's team
Now let's move on to a more specific topic - relationships in the women's team. Above we have presented general rules intended for both women and men. But it is worth understanding that the female and male teams, as they say in Odessa, are “two big differences.”
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- It doesn't matter in what mood you crossed the threshold of the new office. Be kind, smile and show everyone your goodwill. Yes, perhaps the return move will be accompanied by the hissing of “snake” tongues, but do not be afraid. This always happens when new “blood” joins the team. Now your task is to ensure that the employees who want to tear you apart become your friends. In any case, it’s worth trying, and if it doesn’t work, take other measures.
- Remember the toast from the famous film comedy: “I fell to the bottom of the deepest gorge and broke because I became separated from the team.” Take an active part in the life of your company, attend parties, corporate events, buy a gift for an employee, boss, etc. Don't miss the moment to show off your culinary skills and treat your colleagues to some light baked goods.
- Don't even think about participating in gossip. Let's not rudely understand that you are not a fan of spreading rumors, but rather nicely and evasively avoid getting into trouble. If you do it abruptly, they will hold a grudge against you, and a slight dodging will not give cause for dissatisfaction. As they say, you need to be a diplomat.
- Before you joke or make jokes, think “three hundred” times about your words. Not a single unfortunate expression will pass by a woman's ear. Perhaps you had no intention of offending anyone, but it will be too late to make excuses. The resentment will lurk and wait for the moment to strike you, unsuspectingly, with a powerful blow.
- Have you found yourself in a lair where two “groups” are fighting? Make no mistake, it is unlikely that you will be able to stay on the sidelines of this confrontation. But don’t rush to conclusions, take a closer look, study the tactics of each of them and stand in the row where you find more in common with your interests, views, and ideas.
- Help, but in moderation. Show sympathy, care, do not refuse if you are asked for help, but do not let them cross the line of what is permitted. As a rule, newcomers are always forced to clean up other people's tails, run for coffee, bring sandwiches, etc. Don’t let them get on your back and show character, first refuse intelligently, but if the situation happens again, be more decisive in your intonation.
- Don't be arrogant and arrogant. It doesn’t matter what color your diploma is and constantly reminding your colleagues about it is not necessary. Believe me, theory is one thing, practice is another. Remember the proverb “easy to learn, hard to fight!” In reality, not everything is so simple and experienced employees, who do not have the opportunity to boast of a red crust, know much more than a beginner. Continue in your tone - expect intrigues, and not one, but several “colleagues” will start playing dirty tricks.
Of course, fighting bullying, bossing and other negative manifestations of abnormal relationships at work alone is difficult, if not impossible. Leaders, managers and other functional groups of companies need to think about the problem. After all, thanks to harmonious relationships, a company can achieve high results, while quarrels, conflicts and scandals clearly have a negative impact on income and reputation. So eliminating violence and humiliating treatment of employees is a key issue for business owners and management. Staff turnover will not lead to anything good and you need to fight for a professional, excellent employee. To reduce the risk of conflict situations, you should take care of your staff: give vacations on time, reward them, pay them what they deserve, and create recreation areas. Grateful employees will take on their work with even greater vigor and help the company achieve high results.
