Workplace bullying is the degradation of a person’s character through gossip, manipulation, sabotage, gaslighting, exclusion, and ostracization with the goal of pushing the target out of the inner circle, hence revoking her belonging to her professional community, and, most tragically, at times herself. Workplace bullying is not a personality conflict, it is not teasing, it is not a natural part of a competitive work environment - workplace bullying is a career-altering, life-threatening, debilitating, assault on one’s humanity.
Making sense out of what initially appears nonsensical can feel hopeless and destabilizing. However, there is a remarkable level of sameness and predictability across workplace abuse cases. And that is a good thing, because that which can be identified can be prevented.
In order to better understand abuse on the job, it is helpful to view the phenomenon through the lenses of specific frameworks, pulled from diverse disciplines and developed by a variety of researchers. Below, I use the following five frameworks to briefly explore the unfolding and fallout of workplace bullying: Degradation Ceremony, Shattered Assumptions, Moral Injury, Ambiguous Loss, and Institutional Betrayal. Though none of these lenses were developed for the explicit purpose of understanding workplace abuse, as a researcher, I have found them particularly useful in sensemaking. To supplement each explanation, I have included links to articles I have written specifically on the topic and other additional resources.
# 1: Degradation Ceremony
The Degradation Ceremony, first described by sociologist and ethnomethodologist Harold Garfinkle in his 1956 article Conditions of a Successful Degradation Ceremony, is a cyclical process in which the denouncer (the bully) stigmatizes the target in an effort to bring her back into compliance with strict group norms. Targets are typically stigmatized for one or more of the following three reasons: They are creative and thus stand out, they are overly productive and hence shake the status quo, or they are highly ethical and feel compelled to call out bad behavior. Once stigmatized, the denouncer recruits colleagues to wield the weapons of gossip, sabotage, and exclusion. Throughout this process, the target’s character comes under attack, and she is labeled fraudulent and dishonorable, thus justifying the denouncer’s goal of pushing her out. Witnessing the abuse and thus fearing for their own jobs, colleagues, the target once considered confidants, tragically join against her in the bully’s war. This revocation of belonging both to her work community and, most devastatingly, herself, results in significant emotional and physical pain.
To read more:
#2: Shattered Assumptions
Psychologist, Ronnie Jannoff-Bulman, writes about how trauma shatters our basic assumptions about the world’s workings, including that the world is benevolent, that events are meaningful and predictable, and that we ourselves are worthy and valuable members of our community. In the face of workplace abuse, these belief structures are obliterated, leaving the target in a hole of topsy-turvy despair, hijacking her life’s narrative and dropping it into a setting that is both jarring and unrecognizable.
To read more:
The Best Book About Why Work Sometimes Sucks and What to Do About It
Shattered Assumptions: Toward a New Psychology of Trauma by Ronnie Janoff-Bulman
#3: Moral Injury
Moral Injury, according to psychiatrist Jonatha Shay’s groundbreaking work with veterans, occurs when there is a betrayal of what is right, by someone with legitimate authority, inside a high-stakes situation. For targets of workplace abuse, they are subjected to mean-spirited and unethical behavior, by someone who holds power (social or administrative), resulting in damage to their character and loss of professional opportunities. Such wounding sets off an existential crisis in which the target is charged to question the mission and ethicality of his organization.
To read more:
# 4: Ambiguous Loss
Pauline Boss defines ambiguous loss as a physical or metaphorical death “that remains unclear and without official verification or immediate resolution, which may never be achieved.” In workplace bullying, the abuse takes a morbid form, as colleagues the target called friends abandon her, projects that fueled her passions are taken away, and current and future job prospects disappear as possibilities. Because the bully often escapes culpability and the organization refuses to engage in transparent conversations surrounding the harm done, the pain remains an open door, forever lacking external resolution and internal closure.
To read more:
Ambiguous Loss: Learning to Live with Unresolved Grief by Pauline Boss
The Myth of Closure: Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change by Pauline Boss
#5: Institutional Betrayal
Trauma, whether it be the result of a natural disaster or emotional violence, shakes the victim's internal systems, hijacking her ability to process the world around her and feel safe in her immediate environment. The complexity of trauma, however, is magnified exponentially, when the perpetrator is someone the target trusts and depends on for safety and security. In workplace bullying, this betrayal is institutional, for the organization the target counted on for professional opportunities and financial security turns away, in an attempt to escape culpability, leaving the target to suffer in silence and without a safety net. Institutional betrayal, according to Freyd’s pioneering work, “refers to wrongdoings perpetrated by an institution upon individuals dependent on that institution, including failure to prevent or respond supportively to wrongdoings by individuals committed within the context of the institution.”
To read more:
Institutional Betrayal and Institutional Courage by Jennifer Freyd
Sometimes, when the world feels upside down and unpredictable, adopting specific frameworks for seeing and sense-making, helps us to order our thinking as we attempt to better comprehend our life’s narratives.
Two Read
This week I am reading:
The Whispers: A Novel by Ashley Audrain
Real Self-Care: A Transformative Program for Redefining Wellness (Crystals, Cleanses, and Bubble Baths Not Included) by Pooja Lakshmin, MD
Book Release
Workplace Bullying: Finding Your Way to Big Tent Belonging was released by Rowman and Littlefield. Find my new book anywhere books are sold (Rowman and Littlefield, Amazon, Barnes and Noble).
From the Publisher: Workplace Bullying: Finding Your Way to Big Tent Belonging is a lifeline for people who have been targets of workplace abuse and are desperately trying to make sense of the trauma. It is a resource for partners trying to help their loved ones heal. And, it is a toolkit for managers and industry leaders inspiring to create inclusive cultures by proactively addressing toxic behaviors that stagnate innovation, fracture work communities, and drive out top employees. To simplify a complex topic and make the book readable and engaging for a wide audience, the author uses the elements of story to tell the tale of workplace bullying, zooming in on the characters, settings, and plotlines of cultures that allow and/or encourage workplace abuse.
Participate in the Workplace Bullying Study
To deepen my understanding of the impact of workplace bullying on belonging, I have launched a new research study. If you would like to participate anonymously, please click this LINK. I have my university’s IRB approval to do this work.
Reach Out With Questions and Ideas
I love hearing from readers, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to say hello or suggest topics for me to write about next ~ dorothysuskind@gmail.com.
This was a fabulous walk through 5 dimensions of the workplace bullying experience. Thank you, Dorothy! When we can make order out of the chaos we've experienced/are experiencing, it decreases anxiety.