Workplace bullying,the development of job insecurity and the role of laissez-faire leadership: A two-wave moderated mediation study

Workplace bullying is increasingly recognised as a risk factor for job loss and exclusion from working life. Consequently, bullying may represent an antecedent of job insecurity, but this notion has not been sufficiently tested using prospective, representative data. In the present study, the association between workplace bullying and job insecurity was therefore investigated using a two-year time lag and a representative sample of Norwegian employees (N?=?1775). Employing regression analysis, support for a cross-lagged effect of bullying on stability adjusted job insecurity was found. With respect to explanatory mechanisms, a moderated mediation analysis also revealed that this relationship is mediated by continued exposure to bullying behaviours at T2, and, that the relationship between baseline bullying and continued victimisation at T2 is moderated by laissez-faire leadership (i.e. the enactment of passive-avoidant and non-responsive leadership behaviour). Thus, laissez-faire leadership appears to represent a condition under which the bullying process can endure and progress, and the bullying behaviours associated with such sustained and escalated scenarios seem to be particularly relevant antecedents of job insecurity. These results represent novel contributions to our understanding of workplace bullying and job insecurity, holding important implications for prevention of workplace bullying and alleviation of its negative consequences.     

The relationship between organisational change and being a perpetrator of workplace bullying: A three-wave longitudinal study

ABSTRACT

While research has unravelled the association between organisational change and being a target of workplace bullying, scholars have still to shed light on the perpetrator perspective of this association. In the current study, we further the literature by investigating the relationship between exposure to organisational change and being a perpetrator of workplace bullying. We introduced perceptions of psychological contract breach as a mechanism that accounts for the process in which exposure to organisational change leads employees to direct bullying behaviours to other members of the organisation. Using three-wave longitudinal data from 1994 employees we estimated a between-subjects mediation model controlling for autoregressive effects. Results confirmed our hypothesis that exposure to organisational change at Time 1 was positively related to being a perpetrator of workplace bullying at Time 3 through perceptions of psychological contract breach at Time 2. These findings suggest that organisations should invest in factors that lower employees’ likelihood to perceive psychological contract breach in the aftermath of organisational change because these perceptions may indeed result in the enactment of workplace bullying towards other members of the organisation.     

Job insecurity in temporary versus permanent workers: Associations with attitudes, well-being, and behaviour

Recent research suggests that the relationship between job insecurity and psychological outcomes is more negative among permanent compared with temporary workers. We investigate possible interaction effects between job insecurity and type of contract (temporary versus permanent) for various psychological outcomes (job satisfaction, organizational commitment, life satisfaction, and self-rated performance), some of which have received little attention. We aim to explain these interaction effects, while taking into account the heterogeneous nature of temporary workers in terms of tenure, employment prospects, and wish to do temporary employment. We argue that permanent workers expect higher levels of job security; job insecurity breaches permanent workers' but not temporary workers' expectations. This may relate to unfavourable outcomes. Similarly, the heterogeneous nature of temporary workers may relate to job security expectations and thus to reactions to job insecurity. This study was conducted on a sample of 477 temporary and permanent workers from various occupational sectors in Belgium. The results suggested that the interaction effect between job insecurity and contract type may be limited to job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Furthermore, permanent workers had higher expectations about job security. Breach of these expectations furthermore mediated the relationship between job insecurity and all outcomes, except for self-rated performance. However, the heterogeneity indicators were found to be unrelated to job security expectations.     

Job insecurity and trust: Uncovering a mechanism linking job insecurity to well-being

Job insecurity has well-documented negative effects for individuals as well as organisations. However, the mechanisms by which job insecurity relates to its outcomes have received less research attention. The purpose of this study is to investigate trust in the organisation as a potential mechanism that may explain why job insecurity relates to two well-documented outcomes: decreased job satisfaction and lowered mental health. These hypotheses were tested in a Swedish longitudinal sample that consists of employees (longitudinal n?=?906) from three organisations, using structural equation modelling. Overall, the results showed support for our hypotheses. Our findings reveal an indirect effect of trust on job satisfaction, regardless of whether the previous levels of job satisfaction were controlled for. With regard to mental health, the indirect effect was only evident when previous levels of mental health were not controlled for. The results of this study contribute to our understanding about the intervening factors in the relationship between job insecurity and outcomes. Moreover, the results might be important for human resources departments and managers when there are indications that employees are worrying about the future of their jobs.     

The relationship between perceived employability and subsequent health

Abstract

Being capable of getting new employment may enable an employee to cope with turbulent situations or deteriorating job conditions. Individuals who have higher perceived employability are likely to appraise a situation at work more favourably, and consequently experience better health and well-being. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between perceived employability and subsequent health, while controlling for baseline health, background factors, and work environment exposures. The study is based on 53 items in the National Working Life Cohort in Sweden from two data collections (2004 and 2005), comprising 1918 individuals. Forced entry hierarchical regression analysis showed that, after controlling for demographics, psychological demands, control, and ergonomic exposures, perceived employability was positively associated with global health and mental well-being, but unrelated to physical complaints. When baseline health status was added, perceived employability was still a significant predictor of two out of three outcome variables. Individuals with higher perceived employability had a tendency to report better health and well-being a year later. It is concluded that how an employee perceives his or her possibilities in regard to acquiring new employment is relevant for well-being at a later stage. Perceived employability, which has been little studied before, is therefore a useful concept in health promotion, both at the individual and at the organizational level.     

The relationship between perceived employability and subsequent health

Being capable of getting new employment may enable an employee to cope with turbulent situations or deteriorating job conditions. Individuals who have higher perceived employability are likely to appraise a situation at work more favourably, and consequently experience better health and well-being. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between perceived employability and subsequent health, while controlling for baseline health, background factors, and work environment exposures. The study is based on 53 items in the National Working Life Cohort in Sweden from two data collections (2004 and 2005), comprising 1918 individuals. Forced entry hierarchical regression analysis showed that, after controlling for demographics, psychological demands, control, and ergonomic exposures, perceived employability was positively associated with global health and mental well-being, but unrelated to physical complaints. When baseline health status was added, perceived employability was still a significant predictor of two out of three outcome variables. Individuals with higher perceived employability had a tendency to report better health and well-being a year later. It is concluded that how an employee perceives his or her possibilities in regard to acquiring new employment is relevant for well-being at a later stage. Perceived employability, which has been little studied before, is therefore a useful concept in health promotion, both at the individual and at the organizational level.     

Cross-lagged relationships between workplace bullying,job satisfaction and engagement: Two longitudinal studies

Abstract

Workplace bullying has been defined as a stressor that has negative consequences. However, the direction of the bullying–well-being relationship has been largely based on cross-sectional findings, which does not permit conclusions in terms of causality. The purpose of this research was to investigate the cross-lagged relationships between bullying and job-related well-being. We hypothesized that Time 1 bullying predicted Time 2 job-related well-being over time (normal causation model). In addition, we compared alternative models (baseline or stability, reversed, and reciprocal models). Our hypothesis was examined in two longitudinal studies with full two-wave panel designs in Belgian employees. In Study 1 (N=312), the time lag was six months, and in Study 2 (N=369), the time lag was two years. Results of structural equation modelling (SEM) analyses partially supported our hypothesis. Specifically, it was found that Time 1 bullying predicted Time 2 dedication in Study 1, and Time 2 job satisfaction in Study 2. There was no significant cross-lagged effect of job-related well-being on bullying at work. Overall, these findings suggest that bullying can be considered as a cause, rather than aconsequence of job-related well-being.     

Cross-domain consequences of workplace bullying: A multi-source daily diary study

In this multi-source daily diary study, we examine the effect of exposure to workplace bullying behaviours on family domain outcomes (conflicts at home, relationship satisfaction), and the mediating role that psychological detachment and affective distress play in this relationship. A sample of 68 employees and their spouses filled in a quantitative diary for five consecutive working days twice a day (number of occasions?=?680). Multilevel analyses showed that daily workplace bullying positively predicted both self-report and spouse-report conflicts at home, and daily psychological detachment mediated this relationship. In addition, daily affective distress was the mediator only for self-report conflicts at home. Further, an indirect effect of both affective distress and detachment on the relationship between bullying and self-reported relationship satisfaction was found. Detachment also showed an indirect role in the association between bullying and spouse-reported relationship satisfaction. This is one of the first studies in showing that negative effects of workplace bullying go beyond the work setting and beyond the employee. Moreover, this study adds to an emerging line of research exploring how daily negative work experiences are transferred to and interferes with the non-work domain. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

The relationship between job insecurity and accident under-reporting: A test in two countries

Although the problem of accident under-reporting is increasingly recognized in the literature, less is known regarding work environment variables that predict the severity of such under-reporting. Data on perceived job insecurity and on the numbers of both accidents that were experienced and accidents that were actually reported over a period of one year were obtained from 786 employees in 24 US organizations and 563 employees in 20 Italian organizations in sectors where safety is highly relevant. Analysis of these data suggested that not only is job insecurity related to the likelihood of experiencing an accident, but also perceptions of job insecurity may serve to inhibit the reporting of accidents to appropriate company officials. Overall, the rate of accidents was lower in Italy than the United States. Moreover, in both countries, when job insecurity was low, there was little difference between the total number of experienced accidents and the number that employees reported. However, as job insecurity increased, the under-reporting of accidents increased. The implications of these results are discussed in light of the globally increasing prevalence of job insecurity in today's workplace.     

An empirical study on the relationship between perceived employability and employee performance

Despite the growing attention to employability in the era of job insecurity, there have been a limited number of empirical studies regarding the positive effect of employees’ perceived employability (PE) on performance. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between PE and three domains of employee performance: in-role, adaptive, and extra-role. This study also tests the moderating effect of the perceived quality of employment on these relationships. To test our hypotheses, we surveyed 334 employees and their 37 immediate supervisors working for an organization in South Korea. We utilized official performance ratings and supervisors’ ratings to measure the three domains of performance. The results show that PE is positively related to in-role, adaptive, and extra-role performance. An interaction between PE and the perceived quality of employment on extra-role performance is also evident. Implications for research and human resource development practices will be provided.     

Job insecurity and work outcomes: The role of psychological contract breach and positive psychological capital

Job insecurity has received growing attention from researchers because it poses serious challenges for organisations and for society as a whole. However, there are insufficient studies about the processes through which job insecurity affects outcomes as well as potential ways to reduce its negative impact. This study focuses on the relationship between job insecurity and individual-level outcomes (in-role performance and organisational deviance) and examines if (a) job insecurity is positively and/or negatively related to work outcomes, (b) psychological contract breach acts as a mediator of the relationship between job insecurity and work outcomes, and (c) positive psychological capital (PsyCap) buffers the job insecurity–work outcomes relationship via psychological contract breach. With a sample of 362 employee–supervisor dyads, in which the outcome measures were collected from the supervisors, we found support for our hypotheses. Specifically, we found a moderated mediation effect, whereby PsyCap moderates the negative indirect relationship of job insecurity on outcomes through psychological contract breach.     

Comparisons of Performance and Job Insecurity in Union and Nonunion Sites of a Manufacturing Company

Layoffs and employment changes caused by current economic conditions have significant effects on employee work behavior and emotions as well as organizational outcomes. We examined the relationships between measures of job insecurity, organizational commitment, turnover, absenteeism, and worker performance within a manufacturer in Chapter 11 bankruptcy. A positive relationship was found between job insecurity and intentions to turnover, and a small negative correlation was found between measures of job insecurity and organizational commitment. Unobtrusive observations of union and nonunion performance over 4 months showed that nonunion production workers were on-task more frequently, although on-task behavior was high for both. Productivity and quality measures of different factories favored nonunion locations. Although comparisons between sites were constrained by a quasi-experimental design, repeated behavioral and outcome measures within sites showed differential effects when the company announced a plant closing in another state. Job insecurity appeared to be an establishing operation that produced differential effects between union and nonunion sites as well as among individual employees within sites.     

Relationships between stressful work environments and bullying: Results of a large representative study

Abstract

This paper contributes to the relatively sparse knowledge about relationships between stressful work environments and bullying. Relationships between job stressors and leadership behaviour were analysed as possible predictors of bullying at work on the basis of the work environment hypothesis, which states that stressful and poorly organized work environments may give rise to conditions resulting in bullying. Analyses of a representative sample (n=2539) of the Norwegian workforce showed role conflict, interpersonal conflicts, and tyrannical and laissez-faire leadership behaviour to be strongly related to bullying, and that the strength of associations to a high degree differed for various measures of bullying. Support was found for an interactive relationship between decision authority and role conflict at different levels of laissez-faire leadership. Not only targets and bully/targets but also bystanders assessed their work environment more negatively than did non-involved employees, while perpetrators of bullying did not differ significantly from non-involved employees as regards their perception of the work environment. Hence, bullying is likely to prevail in stressful working environments characterized by high levels of interpersonal friction and destructive leadership styles. In addition, bullying is particularly prevalent in situations where the immediate supervisor avoids intervening in and managing such stressful situations.     

The moderating role of personality characteristics on the relationship between job insecurity and strain

The experience of job insecurity has been linked to several different outcomes, such as negative attitudes towards work and the organization, turnover intention, as well as health complaints. However, since the strength of these effects have been found to vary across studies, it is vital to identify factors that could influence the relationships. The present study examines the moderating role of three personality characteristics (negative affectivity, positive affectivity, and external locus of control) on the relation between job insecurity and outcomes (mental health complaints, job dissatisfaction, and job-induced tension). Data from 400 nurses at a Swedish acute care hospital (response rate 71%; 91% women, aged 20-68 years) showed that both job insecurity and personality were related to strain. Also, the data indicated some buffering effect of personality. Despite the gender bias of the sample, the study provides additional support for the notion that job insecurity affects strain even after controlling for individual characteristics. The study also expands the literature on job insecurity by pointing out the influence of personality characteristics on the relationship between stressors and strain.     

Relationships between stressful work environments and bullying: Results of a large representative study

This paper contributes to the relatively sparse knowledge about relationships between stressful work environments and bullying. Relationships between job stressors and leadership behaviour were analysed as possible predictors of bullying at work on the basis of the work environment hypothesis, which states that stressful and poorly organized work environments may give rise to conditions resulting in bullying. Analyses of a representative sample (n=2539) of the Norwegian workforce showed role conflict, interpersonal conflicts, and tyrannical and laissez-faire leadership behaviour to be strongly related to bullying, and that the strength of associations to a high degree differed for various measures of bullying. Support was found for an interactive relationship between decision authority and role conflict at different levels of laissez-faire leadership. Not only targets and bully/targets but also bystanders assessed their work environment more negatively than did non-involved employees, while perpetrators of bullying did not differ significantly from non-involved employees as regards their perception of the work environment. Hence, bullying is likely to prevail in stressful working environments characterized by high levels of interpersonal friction and destructive leadership styles. In addition, bullying is particularly prevalent in situations where the immediate supervisor avoids intervening in and managing such stressful situations.     

工作不安全感与情绪耗竭:情绪劳动的中介作用

工作不安全感作为组织变革过程中产生的重要压力源,不仅引发员工对工作持续性和稳定性的担忧,同时导致员工诸多心理健康问题.研究工作不安全感对员工工作态度和行为的作用机制,基于资源保存理论和压力源-压力框架,构建情绪劳动为中介的工作不安全感对情绪耗竭影响和作用机制模型,从资源角度阐述认知性工作不安全感和情感性工作不安全感如何通过情绪劳动引发情绪耗竭,运用层次回归分析、相关分析等统计方法对10家企业的197份样本数据进行模型检验.研究结果表明,认知性工作不安全感和情感性工作不安全感对情绪耗竭均有正向影响,工作不安全感通过表层扮演和深层扮演两种情绪劳动的方式消耗心理努力以导致情绪耗竭.因此,组织不仅可以通过调岗等人事管理方法增加个人组织匹配,还可以通过心理辅导等培训活动改变员工的工作态度,采取积极的方式缓解工作不安全感对情绪耗竭的负面影响.     

Can ethical leadership inhibit workplace bullying across East and West: Exploring cross-cultural interactional justice as a mediating mechanism

While workplace bullying is recognised as a serious issue for management concern around the world, the literature on approaches to prevent and manage it in international settings is sparse. This paper advances knowledge on managing workplace bullying by reporting an investigation of how and why ethical leadership may be an effective management style to address this issue across cultures. It draws on Social Learning and Social Exchange Theories to conceptualise interactional justice as a possible mediating mechanism by which workplace bullying can be reduced in the presence of ethical leadership.The researcher surveyed 636 employees working in an equivalent job context in Australia (N = 306) and Pakistan (N = 330) to determine the cross-cultural effectiveness of ethical leadership-based framing. Through the examination of direct and indirect effects (via interactional justice) of ethical leadership on workplace bullying, the findings indicated that employee exposure to such behaviour is significantly reduced because ethical leaders foster justice at work. This study has implications for improving international management practice in regard to workplace bullying.     

Job satisfaction and mental health of temporary agency workers in Europe: a systematic review and research agenda

ABSTRACT

The current systematic literature review aimed to analyse the associations between temporary agency work (TAW), job satisfaction, and mental health in Europe, as well as to outline a future research agenda. Twenty-eight scientific articles were identified by searching different data bases (i.e. PSYNDEX, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Web of Science) for the time span from January 2000 to December 2016. Our review reveals first that TAW is not consistently negatively related to job satisfaction. However, job insecurity and working conditions are important mediators in the relation of TAW and lowered job satisfaction. Second, TAW is not consistently related to all investigated types of mental health impairments. However, when focusing on specific outcomes and comparing temporary agency workers to permanent employees, we still find consistent evidence regarding higher levels of depression and fatigue among temporary agency workers. Inconsistent associations between TAW, job satisfaction and mental health can partly be attributed to unfavourable methodological aspects of the included primary studies. To address these aspects, future research should consider applying a standard measurement of TAW, including a minimum of meaningful confounding variables, improving the operationalisation of outcome variables and the study design.     

Comparing three alternative types of employment with permanent full-time work: How do employment contract and perceived job conditions relate to health complaints?

Previous research has found that alternative employment arrangements are associated with both impaired and improved well-being. Since such inconsistencies are likely to derive from the type of employment contract as well as the characteristics of the job, this paper compares permanent full-time work with forms of alternative employment (permanent part-time, fixed-term and on-call work) in order to investigate how different employment contracts and perceptions of job conditions relate to individual well-being. This study contributes to the literature by addressing several questions. Different forms of alternative employment are distinguished and individual background characteristics that might be intertwined with the employment contract are controlled for. Moreover, the scope of this study extends to the effects of perceived job conditions, and possible interactive effects with type of employment are tested. Analyses of questionnaire data from 954 Swedish healthcare workers show that perceptions of the job (job insecurity, job control and demands), but not the type of employment contract, predicted health complaints. However, type of employment interacted with perceptions of job insecurity, in that insecurity was associated with impaired well-being among permanent full-time workers, while no relationship was found for on-call or core part-time employees. Despite the absence of interactions between employment contract and job demands or job control, it can be concluded that knowledge about the relationship between alternative employment arrangements and the well-being of workers can be enhanced when the combined effects of employment contract and job conditions are studied.     

Job insecurity and emotional exhaustion: Testing psychological contract breach versus distributive injustice as indicators of lack of reciprocity

This study examines the processes underlying the association between job insecurity and emotional exhaustion, proposing that lack of reciprocity in the organizational exchange relationship is a main theoretical explanation for this association. Specifically, based on the social exchange perspective, we compared and tested two distinct mediating mechanisms: psychological contract breach and distributive injustice. These two indicators of lack of reciprocity constitute the explanatory process through which job insecurity relates to emotional exhaustion, the primary component of burnout. Data analyses from a sample of 322 blue-collar workers in Italy confirmed the mediational hypotheses. A contrast test revealed that distributive injustice was the indicator with more explanatory strength. The results contribute to research on the theoretical explanations of the adverse consequences of job insecurity, considering the nature and antecedents of psychological distress from an organizational exchange perspective.