The Top 10 Organizational Factors That Encourage Mobbing

Originally Submitted on 10/25/2002.

According to authors Davenport, Schwartz and Elliott, mobbing is "a malicious attempt to force a person out of the workplace through unjustified accusations, humiliation, general harassments, emotional abuse, and/or terror." Organizations that encourage mobbing have these characteristics:

1. Bad management

Practices such as using harassment to disipline, closed-door policies, no or ineffective diversity education, no team work. [See topten AE472]

2. High-stress environments

Mobbing can occur in all directions - mobbing by colleagues on people who 'hold them back,' mobbing by supervisors on employees who can't keep up, mobbing on supervisors who demand too much, mobbing by bosses on managers who aren't producing. Trickle-down, trickle-up, trickle-out.

3. Boredom

Places where the work is repetitious and also offices where people don't have enough to do.

4. Denial or Disbelief by Managers

They haven't heard of it, so can't relate to it, or don't recognize it completely for what it is.

5. Considered un"manageable"

In some cases, this sort of behavior is considered something to be expected, something that can't be corrected ("it's human nature") and it is intentionally ignored.

6. Unethical Activities

The general atmosphere of deceit undermines the organization culture. Potential "whistle blowers" may be mobbed in order to be silenced.

7. Downsizing, Restructuring, Mergers

Mobbing can occur in an effort to eliminate others before you're eliminated, or as generalized and misdirected stress-relief. Restructuring can place employees in situations where they're a threat to their supervisor.

8. Culture of scapegoating and harassment

Just like some dysfunctional families, some offices have to have a scapegoat. I've seen one victim be driven off, only to be replaced by another one.

9. Pride in scapegoating and harassment

Some "tough" departments consider it a trial-by-fire and a test of one's ability to, for instance, sell.

10. Emotionally unintelligent leaders and workplaces

Policies manuals may say what not to do, but if they don't say what to do, and if this preferred behavior is not actively modeled by leaders, and emotional intelligence not practiced and valued, the opposite will occur.

---

About the Submitter

This content may be forwarded in full, with copyright, contact, and creation information intact, without specific permission, when used only in a not-for-profit context. For other uses, permission in writing from CoachVille is required. Questions: email topten@coachville.com

Please use your browser controls to close this page & return to the selection page, or click to return to Top 10 home page.