"Evil is not something superhuman, it is something less than human." Christie Agatha
Although as human beings within our capacities we can achieve wonderful things, we also have the capacity to do things that nobody in good judgment could be proud of, a little about this is what we will talk about in these lines dedicated to workplace harassment- mobbing
The term mobbing (from the English verb to mob, with the aforementioned meaning) comes from ethology, a science that studies the behavior of animals, especially from the field of ornithology, where the defensive behavior of a group of small birds consists of continued harassment of a larger enemy, often a bird of prey. These behaviors in the wild frequently end, either with the flight, or with the death of the animal harassed by several others.
The concept of group harassment or Mobbing was introduced in the social sciences by the ethologist Konrad Lorenz, as an extrapolation of his observations in various species of animals in the wild
Psychological harassment in the workplace or mobbing results in abusive behavior on the part of one or several co-workers towards another (from boss to subordinate, from subordinate to bosses and among colleagues at the same organizational level), as a strategy to affect it and provoke his resignation or also as in the case of maternal mobbing an exemplary punishment or to demonstrate power, it is very unfortunate that there are people who due to annoyance, interest, fear, threat or other aspects have to resort to this, such practices as:
- Yelling, insulting, assigning goals to you with unrealistic deadlines, overworking, threats, taking away key responsibilities, discriminatory and unfair treatment, not taking it into account, making mistakes in your work, blocking development or professional career, and attacking your ergonomics.
Among other actions, which are a reflection of malicious intentions towards the other, the harassment towards pregnant women (maternal mobbing), I find apart from repugnant a sample of the decline of human being that executes it, unfortunately I know that it exists and is occurs more frequently than most people think, we must reflect on the negative impact that these actions generate in the organizational and social sphere.
There are two parts to workplace bullying:
- THE HARASSER: with hostile, dominant or humiliating behaviors and attitudes. THE VICTIM: at a disadvantage
Some of the consequences for the victim are as follows:
- Generalization of Anxiety: Feelings of: Failure, Impotence, Frustration, Apathy, Emotional Disorders, Cognitive Distortions. Concentration, Attention, Memory ü Psychosomatic Disorders: Eating, sleep Disorders of conduct: Susceptibility, Hypersensitivity,
Isolation, Irritability, Aggression, Inappropriateness
And some of the important consequences that are generated in organizations due to these practices are:
- Poor climate and work environment Impact on the quality and quantity of work Interferences in the information and communication circuits Decrease in creativity, innovation and motivation Greater absenteeism and sick leave Increase in the number of visits to the medical service Increase in the probability of accidents
It is necessary to eradicate these behaviors from the culture that nothing good brings for the evolution of the organizations, it is not something simple but we must strive even more than normal, here the role of the department of human talent and organizational psychologists is of high importance, for This is essential to take action to strengthen the organizational culture in this regard and create effective initiatives to detect and act on time in the event of its appearance, thus establishing and objectifying the real and reliable character of a series of behaviors that, Although they are routinely denied by those who practice them, they can be established or accredited externally by witnesses, records, recordings, or documents.
Beyond being an illegal act, it is an unethical act, which destroys many things in its path, if we are managers or leaders in organizations, we promote ethical management, we seek ways to avoid violating the dignity or biopsychosocial integrity of the others and I say manager or leaders for the possibilities they may have to attack this scourge.
BEFORE MOBBING ACT!
I want to invite you to read my book on organizational management, entitled: ELASTIC MANAGEMENT there you will find many important aspects for management today.
