Research into the role of organisations in workplace harassment

Researchers from the University of South Australia (UniSA) claim more research needs to be done into the role organisations play in workplace harassment.

Dr Michelle Tuckey and Annabelle Neall have just completed a large-scale review of current workplace harassment literature over the last three decades. Publishing their results in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, they say that while workplace harassment is a well-researched topic, this research tends to have methodological gaps.

“Our review of current studies done in the field found the overwhelming majority of harassment research has been conducted at the individual level, with 85% of studies only including information from one data source - most commonly the target or victim,” said Dr Tuckey.

“We know a lot about the negative effects of harassment but in order to design better prevention initiatives, we need to discover more about the processes involved in harassment situations, as they play out over time, so that the best intervention points can be identified.”

Workplace harassment has widespread social and economic impacts. Dr Tuckey explained, “For individuals, the adverse impacts include greater mental health problems, more physical health complaints, greater burnout and, in the worst-case scenario, suicide.

“Organisations also lose out - they face costly compensation costs, higher turnover, and lower job satisfaction and commitment to work.”

Given that up to 12% of employees may be exposed at any one time, the researchers are now calling for more research to be conducted to investigate the role of the organisation in enabling or preventing harassment within workplaces.

“Research shows workplace harassment is generally not an issue of personality conflicts but rather a reflection of the whole organisational system,” Dr Tuckey said.

“Research looking into workplace harassment from multiple perspectives, such as witnesses and supervisors, will provide a better understanding of what factors are associated with workplace harassment.

“This will enable us to reach more accurate conclusions about preventing harassment and devise more effective strategies for its removal from the workplace.”

Strategies suggested by Dr Tuckey included the presence of a bullying and harassment policy, clear channels for conflict resolution and a culture that reinforces respectful behaviour.

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