Rudeness and incivility are the ‘new bullying’, say workplace behaviour researchers

ANTI-bullying rules are making workplace rudeness subtler than ever before. Is your office turning into an passive-aggressive battleground?

A NARK. A niggle. Just some plain nastiness. Rude behaviour bypasses formal anti-bullying rules and has become a new contagion quickly turning offices into battle grounds.

A group of psychologists at Sweden’s Lund University say their research proves incivility should be confronted head-on.

The three researchers have completed a survey of 6000 people and their workplace social interactions.

Workplace bullying, they found, is being widely addressed.

But office tensions are shifting.

A new battleground is forming ‘beneath the radar’.

It’s a series of behaviours that are not prohibited, but they do not conform to ideals of mutual respect.

Incivility has become the root of significant workplace discontent, the psychologists say.

And, if nothing is done about it, it spreads.

So how can you recognise this new game of one-upmanship and ego-preening?

“It’s really about behaviour that is not covered by legislation, but which can have considerable consequences and develop into outright bullying if it is allowed to continue”, says project leader Eva Torkelson.

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The academics identified these key examples:

— Deliberately withholding vital information

— ‘Forgetting’ to invite a colleague to a group event

— Taking credit for the work of others

— Withholding praise

— Spreading rumours

But the most common offensive act is mimicking the behaviour of one’s colleagues.

All behaviours can quickly degenerate into a vicious cycle of nastiness, leading to reduced job satisfaction, less efficiency, higher staff turnover and increased conflict.

So who are the key offenders?

“Those who behave rudely in the workplace experience stronger social support, which probably makes them less afraid of negative reactions to their behaviour from managers and colleagues”, says Martin Bäckström, Professor of Psychology.

But there is hope.

“When people become aware of the actual consequences of their rudeness, it is often an eye-opener”, Ms Torkelson says.

“And, of course, most people do not want to be involved in making their workplace worse.”