Workplace bullying and its relation with work characteristics,personality, and post-traumatic stress symptoms: an integrated model |
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| Authors: | Cristian Balducci Franco Fraccaroli Wilmar B. Schaufeli |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Political Science, Alma Mater Studiorum , University of Bologna , Via dei Bersaglieri, 6/c, Bologna, 40125, Italy cristian.balducci3@unibo.it;3. Department of Cognitive and Education Sciences , University of Trento, Palazzo Fedrigotti , Corso Bettini 31, Rovereto, 38068, Italy;4. Department of Social and Organizational Psychology , University of Utrecht , P.O. Box 80.140, Utrecht, 3508 TC, Netherlands |
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| Abstract: | Workplace bullying refers to prolonged exposure to frequent hostile behaviors at work, which can lead to severe stress reactions. Research in this area has not revealed a clear picture on how bullying escalates in organizations. Drawing on recent developments in work stress theory, this study tested a comprehensive model of bullying in which work environmental and personality factors were hypothesized to act as antecedents of bullying and post-traumatic stress symptoms as an outcome. Structural equation modeling on data provided by 609 public sector employees in Italy showed that job demands (workload and role conflict) and job resources (decision authority, co-worker support and salary/promotion prospects) were related to bullying over and above neuroticism, and that bullying mediated the relationship between job demands and PTSD symptoms. Evidence also emerged for a buffering effect of job resources on the job demands–bullying relationship. Overall results are compatible with a view of bullying as a strain phenomenon, initiated by both work environmental and personality factors. |
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| Keywords: | workplace bullying victimization PTSD symptoms job demands-resources model bullying model neuroticism |
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