EXPOSURE TO WORKPLACE BULLYING AND SUICIDAL IDEATION: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY

Ernesto Rosario- Hernández,Suilarim Cepeda Fax,Ivelize Sánchez Collazo,Lorraine Centeno Quintana,Orlando M Pagán Torres,Norma Sánchez Ortiz,Miguel A Toledo Medina,Liliana Díaz Pla,Raquel De Jesús Caraballo,Rosael Zeno- Santi,Jessica Navedo Santos,Mónica Cintrón Lugo,Lourdes Colón Burgos,James Morell Fausto,Lillian V Rovira Millán,Alondra S Flores Quirós,Bianca P Feliciano Toro,Stephanie Vega Vélez,Pamela Farinacci García

doi:10.47263/jasem.3(1)06

Abstract

There is evidence of the effects of exposure to workplace bullying on victims who may manifest symptoms of depression, anxiety, burnout, somatization, sleep difficulties, and posttraumatic stress; however, few studies have examined the impact of workplace bullying on suicidal ideation. The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between exposure to workplace bullying and suicidal ideation and how feelings of defeat and entrapment mediate this relationship. Also, it was intended to examine how rumination moderates this relationship. As a framework, it was used the Integrated Motivational-Volitional Model of Suicide Behavior (IMV) in which has been integrated several theoretical models of suicide. A total of 898 employed subjects participated in this cross-sectional design study. To examine the hypotheses, PLS-SEM model was used using the SMART-PLS program. Exposure to workplace bullying,defeat and entrapment were positively and significantly related to suicidal ideation. Meanwhile,feelings of defeat and entrapment mediated the relationship between exposure to workplace bullying and suicidal ideation and rumination moderated the relation between exposure to workplace bullying and feelings defeat. The results of the present study have both theoretical and practical implications, among which we can mention that results support and expand the IMV model of suicidal behavior. The exposure to workplace bullying brings a challenge for the psychologists in the occupational health context, and human resources practitioners in the management of this phenomenon in organizations to prevent it and in a worst case scenario, to respond in an effective manner due to its individual and organizational impact.

Highlights

Suicide is a serious health and behavioral problem in most countries in the world independently of industrialization or wealth (Otsuka, Nakata, Sakurai, & Kawahito, 2016)
Applying the Integrated Motivational-Volitional Model of Suicide Behavior (IMV) model to the current study, we propose that exposure to workplace bullying triggers feelings of defeat and entrapment that may be exacerbated by ruminative process, which is a threat to self-moderator
This study provides support for the IMV model of suicide behavior (O’Connor, 2011), which postulates that perceptions of defeat and entrapment are key psychological mechanisms promoting suicide ideation and suicidal behavior

Summary

Introduction

Suicide is a serious health and behavioral problem in most countries in the world independently of industrialization or wealth (Otsuka, Nakata, Sakurai, & Kawahito, 2016). Given the importance of suicidal ideation in the actual act of suicide, Nielsen, Einarsen, Notalaers, and Nielsen (2016) point out that identification of risk factors for suicidal ideation is important for the development of prevention strategies. There are studies suggesting that exposure to workplace bullying is a significant risk factor of suicidal ideation in both cross-sectional (e.g., Balducci, Alfano, & Fraccaroli, 2009; Soares, 2012) and longitudinal studies (e.g., Nielsen et al, 2016; Nielsen, Nielsen, Notalaers, & Einersen, 2015). We created a background questionnaire to gather information about the research participants In this background questionnaire we asked the participants to provide information about their gender, age, tenure, marital status, among others, to enable us to describe the subjects of the study.

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Conclusion