Theses and Dissertations
Date of Award
2018
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (EdD)
Department
Abraham S. Fischler College of Education
Advisor
David Weintraub
Committee Member
William Edmonds
Keywords
business education, harassment, hostile work environment, incivility, intimidation, organizational behavior, organization theory, workplace bullying, workplace violence
Abstract
The problem that was explored in this qualitative narrative study is the prevalence of bullying in federal government offices. Bullying in the workplace has been on the rise for many years in the U.S. and globally, but research has been limited and under-researched. Workplace Bullying Institute (WBI) released survey results from 2007, 2010, 2014, and 2017 confirming the existence of bullying in the workplace. Research on this phenomenon was conducted in the fields of medicine and education, but not in business. Laws and legislation have been neither developed nor enacted to address this phenomenon. Technology in the 21st century introduces another type of bullying with the use of electronic devices. Bullying in the workplace negatively affects employers, employees, and witnesses, either directly or indirectly. Bullying is the misuse of power over others, irrespective of gender or race.
The empowerment theory and catastrophe theory were applied supporting the argument that anyone can be a bully, or the victim of bullying based on the misuse of power and type(s) of personality or personalities involved, and consequences of workplace bullying affect victims, witnesses, and organizations. For this qualitative study, a questionnaire was used on a voluntary and anonymous basis within a diverse workforce of a federal agency. The anonymous survey was sent to 121 federal employees in the western United States. The results were analyzed and concluded that ways of reducing incidences of the phenomenon would be by educating employers and employees on the negative effects on individuals and organizations.
NSUWorks Citation
Cynthia Mary Reese. 2018. A Qualitative Study of Federal Policies on Workplace Bullying. Doctoral dissertation. Nova Southeastern University. Retrieved from NSUWorks, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education. (165)
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/fse_etd/165.