Rethinking Workplace Bullying

Go to a dinner-party, drink a cup of coffee with your neighbor, go to a meeting with your colleagues, talk to your family – wherever you go, people spend time talking or gossiping about workplace bullying. Thus, we all know that workplace bullying exist. We know what it looks like and we know it is harmful. But what do we do about it? Very little - or nothing. From the point of view of what we could call: Popular wisdom or “common knowledge”, workplace bullying is seen as an individual problem. In order to protect yourself you need to find another job. You do not need to confront the people who harm you or try to make your boss interfere. Because it is individual and individual problems should not change into a public conflict. This is what your family and friends will tell you. . On the other hand: If you choose the “conflict” strategy which is in fact not a conflict – just a way of trying to put things right – those same family members and friends will tell you that it is your own fault if you get hurt.