Effect of Perceived Politics and Perceived Support on Bullying and Emotional Exhaustion: The Moderating Role of Type A Personality

Recognizing that bullying can occur in varying degrees of severity, the current study suggest the importance of individual traits in individual perceptions of being targets of bullying and ensuing emotional exhaustion. The present study extends the work environment hypothesis and trait activation theory by a joint investigation of the mediating role of (a) workplace bullying in linking perceived organization politics and perceived organization support with emotional exhaustion and (b) the moderating role of Type A behavioral pattern in influencing the mediation. Using a field sample of 262 employees working in different organizations of Pakistan, this study tested a moderated mediation model. Results were consistent with the hypothesized model, in that workplace bullying mediated the relationship of perceived organization politics and perceived organization support with emotional exhaustion. Type A behavior moderated the perceived politics—bullying, perceived support–bullying, and bullying—emotional exhaustion relationships. The mediation of bullying varied with levels of Type A behavior in these relationships.     

Concept Creep: Psychology's Expanding Concepts of Harm and Pathology

Many of psychology's concepts have undergone semantic shifts in recent years. These conceptual changes follow a consistent trend. Concepts that refer to the negative aspects of human experience and behavior have expanded their meanings so that they now encompass a much broader range of phenomena than before. This expansion takes “horizontal” and “vertical” forms: concepts extend outward to capture qualitatively new phenomena and downward to capture quantitatively less extreme phenomena. The concepts of abuse, bullying, trauma, mental disorder, addiction, and prejudice are examined to illustrate these historical changes. In each case, the concept's boundary has stretched and its meaning has dilated. A variety of explanations for this pattern of “concept creep” are considered and its implications are explored. I contend that the expansion primarily reflects an ever-increasing sensitivity to harm, reflecting a liberal moral agenda. Its implications are ambivalent, however. Although conceptual change is inevitable and often well motivated, concept creep runs the risk of pathologizing everyday experience and encouraging a sense of virtuous but impotent victimhood.     

Should I invite them? Bystanders' inclusivity judgements towards outgroup victims and ingroup bullies in intergroup bullying

This study examined bystanders' judgements of bullying and their inclusivity towards refugee victims and ingroup bully peers. Participants included 587 Turkish adolescents (M_age = 13.14, SD = 1.60) who were presented with two stories: intergroup (Syrian refugee victim) and intragroup (Turkish victim) bullying. They indicated acceptability of bullying, retaliation, and how likely they would be to include victims and bullies in different social contexts. Empathy, prejudice, desired social distance, and peer norms towards Syrian refugees were examined as predictors. Adolescents in schools with a higher number of Syrian peers were more likely to expect they would include the Syrian victim than adolescents in schools with a lower number of Syrian peers. Further, adolescents with higher empathy were more likely to include the Syrian victim while adolescents with higher prejudice and desired social distance were less likely to include the Syrian victim. The results highlight the importance of attending to bystanders' future interactions with victims and bullies, as bystanders have the opportunity to challenge injustice by promoting inclusive school climates in diverse societies. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement .     

“That is just your stuff”: The potential use and abuse of congruence in counselling and psychotherapy practice and training

This piece discusses the potential use and misuse of congruence within counselling training and practice. A definition of congruence is provided, and how deliberate misuse of congruence could result from two separate emotional communications (bullying and gaslighting) is discussed. Current representations and misrepresentations of congruence in counselling and psychotherapy have been highlighted. A new term of “Intentional Congruence Misuse” was coined to explain this position (not to be confused with incongruence). “Intentional Congruence Misuse” is the deliberate bullying of another individual using terms related to congruence. A discussion has been provided to emphasise the evident implications for counselling, psychotherapy practice and training. The author acknowledges that this opinion piece will be from a biased perspective. Still, it does not aim to detract from others who have found their therapy and counselling training beneficial.     

Trainer–Trainee Bullying

This paper considers the abuse of the trainer–trainee relationship by the trainer. Such abuse occurs in the context of power and gender imbalances and is afforded little attention by professional organizations. A specific example of inappropriate behaviour between trainers and trainees, that of sexual contact, is discussed in detail. Research on positive and negative supervision is considered in terms of a model of objectionable supervisory styles, and it is suggested that trainer–trainee bullying is an area which requires further research attention. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Freedom deprivation in prisons of Serbia

The subject of this research is the deprivation of freedom at two time points. A total of 490 convicts from open, semi‐open, and closed prisons participated in the research. Freedom deprivation intensity was determined by using the freedom deprivation scale (α = .93). The results of the research indicate that almost all the participants reported freedom deprivation. The prison type had an impact on freedom deprivation intensity, whereas an influence of the ward type on deprivation was not demonstrated. Freedom deprivation intensity was consistent from the turn of the century to the present day.     

Victimization in South Korean children's peer groups

This study reports a cross-sectional investigation of the behavioral, academic, and psychosocial correlates of victimization in South Korean children's peer groups. The participants were 122 children (66 boys, 56 girls; from 10–12-years-old) recruited from a primary school in Seoul, South Korea. Multi-informant assessments (peer nominations, teacher ratings, and self-reports) of peer victimization, social behavior, loneliness/social dissatisfaction, and academic functioning were obtained. Multivariate analyses indicated that peer victimization was associated with poor academic adjustment, loneliness, submissive–withdrawn behavior, aggression, and low levels of assertive–prosocial behavior. These findings suggest that there is considerable similarity in the social processes underlying peer group victimization across South Korean and Western cultural settings.     

The relationship between social problem‐solving and bullying behaviour among male and female adult prisoners

The association between social problem solving and bullying behaviour among adult male and female prisoners is presented. A total of 210 male and 196 female prisoners were categorised into four groups: pure bullies, pure victims, bully/victims, and those not involved in bullying or victimisation. Prisoners completed a questionnaire that presented them with different bullying scenarios and were asked to suggest ways of dealing with each. Female bully/victims produced significantly more solutions in response to theft‐related bullying than male bully/victims. There were no further significant group or gender differences in the number of solutions generated. The bully group favoured aggressive responses for all scenarios. Males reported more aggressive responses than females. The results are discussed with reference to the environment in which the social problem solving is taking place and highlights the importance of distinguishing between the different groups involved in bullying. Aggr. Behav. 27:297–312, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Bullies and victims in rural African American youth: behavioral characteristics and social network placement

Bullying and victimization are serious problems for youth of many ages and from a variety of backgrounds. These behaviors have not, however, been widely studied in rural minorities. The current work examined behavioral and social correlates of bullying and victimization in a sample of rural African American youth. Incidence rates of bullying, victimization, and aggressive victimization parallel those in other populations. Bullies were rated as aggressive, hyperactive, and manipulative. Bullies and victims were both sociometrically rejected, but while victims were on the margin of the social network, bullies were integrated in their groups. Bullies' associations were heterogeneous: they belonged to both aggressive and non-aggressive and popular and unpopular groups. They also were highly likely to be leaders of their groups.