Thread by @amyjccuddy

A thread: Bullying atrophies societies and thwarts progress.

The far-reaching costs and casualties of workplace/professional #bullying are substantial and well-documented, yet frustratingly absent from most public discussions about bullying.

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I don’t want to have to make the "business case" for why we should care about bullying. I really don’t. But if you haven’t been a target or cared deeply about someone who has, it might be hard to get your head and heart around the devastation of the experience.

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The naive optimist in me wants you to feel as motivated to protect people from bullying as you would be to protect them from a housefire or a tornado.

But as a social psychologist, I know it's not going to work that way.

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Organizations that cultivate or tolerate bullying significantly damage employees’, clients', & current & future stakeholders' outcomes, including emotional & physical health, quality of work, willingness to cooperate, & financial outcomes.

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1) Quality of work and fatal errors:

For example, healthcare workers (e.g., doctors, nurses) who witness bullying among colleagues make significantly more medical errors -- including errors that lead to patients’ deaths. These effects are substantial & measurable.

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2) Decreased sharing of information & willingness to ask for help:

People who witness workplace bullying are significantly less likely to share information with each other (even with teammates), to ask for help when they need it, and to admit to (often critical) mistakes.

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3) Reduced creativity:

In cultures where bullying is visible and tolerated, people are less creative at producing new ideas, knowledge, products, and solutions. Think of how this affects education, scientific progress, the arts...

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4) Bullying destroys potential & future contributions:

a) 75-90% of workplace bullying targets leave their jobs because: staying is unsurvivable, they are "constructively discharged" (bullies almost always win with HR), they develop stress-related health problems, etc.

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b) Other employees disengage: they miss more days of work, are less productive, less committed to the organization, its goals, and each other, lose their sense of purpose, and are more likely to quit.

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c) Loss of future employees/members of a profession & diversity.

People who witness or are aware of bullying in an organization or profession are less likely to enter the profession, apply for a job, etc., especially true for females & BIPOC. (Additional data needed.)

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d) This loss of people — and all of their potential future contributions, & the diversity of perspectives, knowledge, & experiences they contribute — also means that bullies & their supporters are OVERrepresented in organizations & professions where bullying is prevalent.

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…and that's not close to an exhaustive list of the societal costs & casualties of bullying.

So, when we talk about how bullying hurts people, let's start including these facts in those discussions.

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