Psychologists explained the reasons for harassment of responsible employees

In offices, mobbing is most often aimed at the most productive employees: colleagues try to devalue their success in order to maintain the usual hierarchy. All the details are in the Izvestia article.

Mechanisms of office bullying

Psychologist, psychotherapist, crisis psychologist Vladmira Simuran notes that mobbing is often targeted not by quitters, but by the most effective employees. A productive employee destroys the usual hierarchy and forces colleagues to reconsider their own importance. In order not to change themselves, the group tries to devalue the "upstart" by restoring subjective balance.

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Responsible people are chosen for harassment because they are willing to endure pressure for a long time due to a developed sense of duty. Firing such a specialist brings relief to the group, as the annoying productivity benchmark disappears. At the same time, idlers are usually not touched, as they are understandable to the team and confirm the existing norm.

The roots of insecurity

Marina Shcheglova, a clinical and family psychologist working in cognitive-behavioral and personality-oriented approaches, explains that a predisposition to bullying is often formed in childhood. If destructive relationships prevailed in the family or the demands of the parents were inconsistent, the child learns to live in an environment of humiliation and subordination. This leads to a blurring of personal boundaries and a fear of expressing one's opinion in adulthood.

People with borderline or neurotic personality structure are unconsciously attracted to aggression. The former often behave like "poor and unhappy", initially expecting an attack, which causes hostility among others. The latter strive to please everyone and do not know how to refuse, which is why they are overloaded with tasks and put under pressure.

Signs of leadership pressure

You can recognize bullying by changing the feedback format. If mistakes start to be discussed publicly, and the criteria for success are constantly changing after the fact, this indicates targeted pressure. Another sign is the delegation of an employee's authority to his understudies without prior notice.

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Consequences for the team

Prolonged exposure to a toxic environment leads to the effect of learned helplessness. A person begins to believe that he is not worthy of a better place, and his brain turns on primitive defense mechanisms, such as derealization. In moments of public humiliation, the psyche regresses into a childish state in order to maintain self-esteem.

Bullying negatively affects even those who are just watching it from the sidelines. Shcheglova warns that witnesses of aggression develop chronic anxiety and guilt over time.