Most Workplace Bullying is Worker to Worker, Early Findings From NIOSH Study Suggest

Contact: Fred Blosser (202) 401-3749

Most incidents of bullying in the workplace appear to be perpetuated by employees against one another, early findings from a study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) suggest.

The findings suggest that efforts to make changes at the organizational level to prevent bullying in the workplace should include steps to improve relationships among co-workers, and should not strictly focus on improving supervisor-employee and customer-employee relationships, the researchers said in reporting the preliminary results.

The study points to further research that would be needed before researchers could offer definitive recommendations for preventing bullying as a potential factor for work-related stress. The findings were reported at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, held July 28-Aug. 1, as a progress report on the study.

Since the results are based on a survey of a representative but small sample of respondents, other studies involving larger numbers of respondents would be needed to confirm the findings. In addition, other research would be needed in greater depth to identify the reasons for acts of bullying in the workplace, the circumstances in which bullying is most likely to occur, and specific measures for improving interpersonal relationships in the workplace.

Data reported from the survey indicate the following:

• 24.5 percent of the companies surveyed reported that some degree of bullying had occurred there during the preceding year.
  
  
• In the most recent incident that had occurred, 39.2 percent involved an employee as the aggressor, 24.5 percent involved a customer, and 14.7 percent involved a supervisor.
  
  
• In the most recent incident, 55.2 percent involved the employee as the “victim,” 10.5 percent the customer, and 7.7 percent the supervisor.

Information was collected from key respondents at 516 private and public organizations; the respondents were human resources professionals or other individuals who were knowledgeable about their organization. The organizations ranged in size from five employees to 20,000 employees each. Bullying was defined as repeated intimidation, slandering, social isolation, or humiliation by one or more persons against another.

The study is part of NIOSH’s research to identify factors associated with work-related stress and to recommend practical interventions. For further information about NIOSH’s research and recommendations for reducing work-related stress, visit the NIOSH web page on work stress at www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/stress/.