The individual effects of workplace bullying: experiences from Namibia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54421/njrst.v5i2.114Keywords:
Psychosomatic symptoms, Absenteeism, Psychological effect, Workplace bullyingAbstract
Workplace bullying has also been documented as having detrimental implications for employees, ranging from psychological to physical harm. Bullying in the workplace negatively influences organisational and individual performance, which has a knock-on effect on the workplace environment. Using a qualitative approach, twelve self-reported targets were interviewed in depth, and the data were analysed using content analysis. The themes that emerged regarding coping with workplace bullying were psychological effects, social effects, physical and mental fatigue, and work performance. The individual effects of workplace bullying included anxiety, feeling edgy, frustration, weight loss, fatigue, irritability, stress, sleep disturbances, fear, headaches, inability to concentrate, unhappiness, and loss of self-confidence. The present study contributes to workplace bullying research by describing workplace bullying as a process in which targets experience bullying. The data also provide insight into a new national context, namely Namibia. The researchers recommend in-house mental well-being checks, work-life balance mechanisms for human resources, and costing employee absence and reduced productivity.
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