Analyzing the Strategies of Coping with Bullying in Government Organizations

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Public Administration, Faculty of Management, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

2 Ph.D in Department of Public Administration, Faculty of Management and Economics, Tarbiat Modarres University, Tehran, Iran.

3 Master of Accounting, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

Abstract
Organizational bullying is one of the usually hidden phenomena in organizations, which manifests itself with behaviors such as insults, humiliation, offenses, threats, and other negative behaviors, and causes the victims to feel disgusted, and as a result, reduces the organizational performance and individual productivity of employees. Organizational bullying is usually done by managers or employees, and dealing with this phenomenon can help the productivity and mental health of employees, finding solutions to deal with it is essential in organizations. Based on this, the current research has been formed with a mixed color to analyze the solutions to deal with organizational bullying. In this research, first, using the qualitative method and thematic analysis approach, primary codes were identified and then the themes of the research concept were categorized. In this section, the results were obtained from semi-structured interviews with 20 employees of the Ministry of Industry, Mining and Trade, the Ministry of Petroleum, the National Tax Administration, and the Central Bank. In the quantitative phase of the research, the identified solutions for better evaluation were distributed electronically using a questionnaire among the employees and managers of the mentioned organizations, and the results were evaluated using the exploratory factor analysis method through SPSS software, finally, the solutions were divided into 6 categories. They were categorized as managerial, specialized, confrontational, individual, organizational, and legal.
Introduction
One of the most important and common phenomena that are sometimes hidden from others in government organizations is organizational bullying. This phenomenon has been the subject of international studies for several decades due to its widespread and harmful nature at all levels of the organization. Human resources play a decisive role in the success or failure of the organization. Therefore, examining variables affecting human resources can be useful for government organizations in the long run. Organizational bullying is related to situations where the target of bullying is subjected to harassment, insult, and social isolation. Victims have a low level of job satisfaction and finally, as a last resort to cope with bullying, they intend to leave their jobs. Also, bullying behaviors in some victims lead to a decrease in their motivation and creativity and also people in this situation have a natural tendency to find ways to cope with bullying. According to the stated content, it can be concluded that bullying is a widespread organizational problem with destructive effects at the individual and organizational levels. Therefore, finding logical and stress-free strategies to cope with bullying in organizations can, in addition to helping the physical and mental health of employees, help the organization achieves its desired goals.
Case Study
The statistical population of the qualitative part of the research was determined by the managers and employees of government organizations, including the employees of the Ministry of Industry, Mining and Trade, the Ministry of Petroleum, the National Tax Administration, and the Central Bank. The statistical population of the quantitative part of the research was also formed by the employees of government organizations of Tehran province.
Materials and Methods
In terms of research orientation, this research is fundamental-applied, in terms of research approach, it is hybrid, and in terms of research strategies, thematic analysis (qualitative)-correlation (quantitative). In the first stage of the research, to fill the void of previous research, by using the qualitative approach of theme analysis (theme network method), the strategies to cope with organizational bullying in Iran's government organizations were identified, as a result of interviews with 20 of managers and employees in different organizations and referring to The theoretical foundations in this field have been obtained. Based on this, the interviews were implemented, and then the initial coding was done. The sampling method in the qualitative part was a combination of targeted judgment methods and snowball method (non-probability methods). In the quantitative part, the research tool was a five-point Likert scale questionnaire. The number of sample people was determined based on the random sampling method, and the questionnaire was distributed electronically among the 157 employees of various government organizations. To analyze the findings, exploratory factor analysis was used to cluster strategies. The software used in this research was SPSS.
Discussion and Results
After studying the research literature, in the qualitative part, semi-structured interviews were conducted with some employees in the organizations mentioned in the previous section. From the 11th interview onwards, no new content was added, but despite this, the interviews continued until the 20th interview, when theoretical saturation was achieved in the 20th interview, and finally 21 indicators were extracted from the texts of the interviews, and these indicators were divided into 2 categories. Also In the quantitative section, after statistical analysis, the indicators were categorized into 6 clusters.
Conclusion
In the qualitative part, the indicators were classified into two categories, individual strategies and organizational strategies based on their nature. In the quantitative part, after performing the statistical analysis process, the indicators were categorized based on 6 components, which are: managerial, specialized, confrontational, individual, organizational, and legal strategies. Management strategies are strategies that people in a management position can use as a tool to cope with the phenomenon of organizational bullying and control the conditions in the organization. Specialized strategies are strategies that are related to the scientific and communication field, and the victim uses his scientific and communication expertise to cope with it. confrontational strategies are strategies that, if used, can bring unpleasant consequences for the victim and somehow force him to bear irreparable costs. Individual strategies are strategies based on the victim and only involve him. Organizational strategies are strategies that are used at the level of the organization and have a collective nature and, of course, in individual cases, and finally, legal strategies are strategies that are related to the laws and legal foundations of organizational and professional behavior, and the victim is Being aware of them can help to cope with bullying.

Keywords

References

منابع فارسی
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