Workplace Incivility

1
Workplace Incivility

• Research by Pearson and Porath, 2005

Source Pearson, C.M., Porath, C.L. 2005. On
the nature, consequences, and remedies Of
workplace incivility No time for nice? Think
again. Academy of Management Executive, 19, 7-18.
2
Prevalence

• 80 of 2000 respondents believe lack of courtesy
  and respect is a serious workplace problem
• 3 out of 5 believe it is getting worse
• Of 800 US employees polled, 10 reported
  witnessing incivility daily
• Of these 800, 20 said they were targets at least
  once a week

3
Definition

• Low intensity deviant behavior that violates
  workplace norms for mutual respect
• May or may not be intended to harm the target
• Examples?

4
Sources

• People dont feel like they have time to be
  nice
• Belief that impersonal modes of contact (email,
  conference calling, etc.) do not require
  courtesies of interaction
• Belief that differences in cultural norms foster
  miscommunication that imply rudeness
• Few cues for appropriate interpersonal behavior
  in increasingly casual workplaces
• Me first and entitlement attitudes eroding
  mutual commitments and community standards

5
Consequences

• Time spent dealing with the fallout of
  incivility 13 of executive time or about 7
  weeks of the year (mediation, discussions, etc.)
• Corrosion of organizational culture and trust
• Diminishment of productivity, performance,
  motivation, creativity, helping behaviors among
  targets and those who witness incivility
• Spirals and cascades of incivility episodes

6
Cost Consequences

• Estimated costs due to lack of recognition and
  research on this problem
• Absenteeism, non-productive time at work,
  turnover, and potential lawsuits
• Time spent getting even covert strategies
  (cut back effort, steal from the organization,
  passive-aggressive behavior, ignore requests,
  fail to meet deadlines, withhold information,
  spread rumors, sabotage work or equipment)

7
Instigators

• Usually people in powerful positions
• People with special talents or competencies that
  make them believe they can behave disrespectfully
  and get away with it
• Men are more often instigators than women

8
Targets

• Lower status employees than the instigator
• Men and women are equally likely to be targets
• Men and women targets respond to incivility
  differently
• Men are more aggressive in their responses and
  will try to get even
• Women try to cope by garnering social support and
  turning to social networks (avoid or maintain
  distance from the instigator and dealing with the
  issue at a good opportunity point)

9
How can leaders deal with incivility?

• Must become aware of such behaviors and not
  ignore them
• Set zero tolerance expectations through word
  (corporate value statements) and deed (role model
  appropriate behavior and swiftly stop when made
  aware of it)
• Self-examination of behavior mirror test
• Weed out such trouble before it enters the
  organization

10
How can leaders deal with incivility?

• Teach civility conflict resolution training,
  negotiation, dealing with difficult people,
  working in teams, stress management, listening,
  coaching
• Put your ear to the ground and listen carefully
  seek feedback often and from many people
• When incivility occurs, hammer it

11
How can leaders deal with incivility?

• Heed warning signals as many people will not
  directly report it
• Dont make excuses for powerful instigators
  cannot look the other way or say thats just how
  Joe is or transfer to another unit
• Invest in post-departure or exit interviews

12
Conflict Processes

• Process in which one party perceives that another
  party has taken or will take actions that are
  incompatible with ones interests
• Causes
• Intentional harm vs. unintentional harm
• Distrust
• Competition over scarce resources
• Goal differences
• Power differences
• Interdependence

13
Conflict Management Styles
Assertive
Competitive (Domination)
Collaborative (Integration)
Compromise (Sharing)
Desire to satisfy ones own concerns
Accommodation (Appeasement)
Avoidance (Neglect)
Unassertive
Uncooperative
Cooperative
Desire to satisfy others concerns
14
Conflict Management Styles

• The competitive style is a desire to win ones
  own concerns at the expense of the other party,
  or to dominate
• The accommodative style favors appeasement, or
  satisfying the others concerns without taking
  care of ones own
• The sharing style is halfway between domination
  and appeasement

15
Conflict Management Styles

• The collaborative style reflects a desire to
  fully satisfy the desires of both parties
• The avoidant style combines unassertiveness and a
  lack of cooperation

16
Negotiating and Bargaining

• Conflicts can be considered situations calling
  for negotiating and bargaining, or conferring
  with another person in order to resolve a problem
• Parties have both common and conflicting
  interests
• Two approaches to negotiation
• Distributive (positional) bargaining
• Integrative (principled) bargaining

17
Getting to Yes or Principled Negotiation

• Goal Producing a wise agreement if possible
• Meets legitimate interests of both parties
• Resolves conflicting interests fairly
• Is durable over time
• Takes community interests into account
• Separate the people from the problem
• Focus on interests, not positions
• Invent multiple options for mutual gain
• Insist on using objective criteria

Always know your BATNA