Abstract
The present study examines employees’ prior victimization from bullying in school or at work as a predictor of 1) their current exposure to negative social acts at work and 2) the likelihood of labelling as a victim of workplace bullying, and 3) whether the link between exposure to negative acts at work and the perception of being bullied is stronger among those who have been bullied in the past. We tested our hypotheses using a probability sample of the Norwegian working population in a prospective design with a 5-year time lag (N = 1228). As hypothesized, prior victimization positively predicted subsequent exposure to negative acts, which in turn was related to a higher likelihood of developing a perception of being a victim of workplace bullying. However, contrary to our expectations, prior victimization from bullying did not affect the relationship between current exposure to negative acts at work and the likelihood of self-labelling as a victim. Taken together, the results suggest that employees’ prior victimization is a risk factor for future victimization, yet overall plays a rather modest role in understanding current exposure to negative acts and self-labelled victimization from bullying at work.
Highlights
Workplace bullying is a prevalent problem (León-Pérez et al, 2021; Nielsen et al, 2010) with severe negative effects on the health, well-being and productivity of targeted workers (e.g., Boudrias et al, 2021; Verkuil et al, 2015)
Using a two-wave design with a 5-year time lag with data from a probability sample drawn from the Norwegian workforce, we examine whether employees with a history of victimization from bullying are at greater risk of subsequently becoming victims of bullying at follow-up
The evidence was inconclusive regarding the impact of gender (BF01 = 1.4) and baseline exposure to negative acts (BF01 = 2.4) on dropout, the evidence favoured the null hypothesis of no relationship
Summary
Workplace bullying is a prevalent problem (León-Pérez et al, 2021; Nielsen et al, 2010) with severe negative effects on the health, well-being and productivity of targeted workers (e.g., Boudrias et al, 2021; Verkuil et al, 2015). In contrast to existing studies on the topic, our design enables us to rigorously examine whether the likelihood of changing victimization status at work during a 5-year period varies as a function of prior victimization experiences. This is one of few studies employing a large and representative sample when testing this revictimization prediction in a workplace. As the first study to date, we test employees’ prior victimization as a moderator that may strengthen the relationship between exposure to negative acts at work and selflabelled current victimization. We respond to a call to acknowledge the importance of applying a temporal lens when studying interpersonal mistreatment at work (Cole et al, 2016), in our case by employing a prospective design to examine whether bullying experienced in the past influences the perception of current negative social acts encountered at work
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