Abstract
ABSTRACTWork is undoubtedly fundamental to human life, social development and the economic development of individuals, organizations and nations. However, the experience of working is not always pleasant as there are many instances where relationships between workers could deteriorate, leading to practices and behaviours that could be characterized as workplace bullying and/or mobbing. The current study is an exploratory study which used autoethnography to investigate experiences of academic bullying and mobbing, and relates the practices to power structures in academic institutions. Specifically, the author shares personal experiences and explores the physical and emotional pain of being bullied and mobbed. The author also outlines how both autoethnography and meaning in life strategies were used to cope with the physical and emotional distresses associated with the negative experiences. By outlining the success of the meaning in life strategies, the author hopes to inspire other “victims” to move from victims to being survivors of bullying and mobbing.
Highlights
Work is fundamental to the human condition . . . It allows us to engage with other people and it helps us to define our sense of identity
Many scholars concur that organizational life, jobs and work are fundamental to the human condition, to human beings’ sense of identity (Abbot 2006; Du Gay, 1996), and are central to establishing personally meaningful self-definitions (Super, 1951; Meaning of Work [MOW], 1987)
This paper focuses on workplace bullying and mobbing, which have been identified as a dysfunctional organizational behaviour
Summary
Work is fundamental to the human condition . . . It allows us to engage with other people and it helps us to define our sense of identity. Many scholars concur that organizational life, jobs and work are fundamental to the human condition, to human beings’ sense of identity (Abbot 2006; Du Gay, 1996), and are central to establishing personally meaningful self-definitions (Super, 1951; Meaning of Work [MOW], 1987). Even psychologists such as Freud (1930) identified work as a person’s strongest tie to reality. Psychologists agree that the choice of an occupation is a major developmental task of young adulthood that reverberates throughout our lives (Lemme, 2006) All these are true whether work is performed for intrinsic or instrumental reasons (Abbott, 2006). It is understandable how meaning of work research has long ranked work as relatively high in importance compared to other important life areas such as religion, leisure and the community (Harpaz, 1999; MOW, 1987)
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