Commentary] Toxic Leadership and Vicarious Bullying

Abstract

In this paper I argue that the workplace culture cemented in place by the presence of a leader espousing neoliberal leadership beliefs creates a space where subordinates receive free reign to also bully: called vicarious bullying. We see “unethical, opportunistic, or colluding subordinates” behaving in ways that “maintain the pernicious center of power” (Hollis, 2019, p. 2). In order to do so I will identify the elements of a toxic, bullying managerial style and demonstrate how these characteristics link to vicarious bullying. The aim is to examine the relationships between toxic leadership and vicarious bullying.