TEACHERS' PERCEPTIONS OF THE MANIFESTATION OF HORIZONTAL WORKPLACE BULLYING IN THE K-12 SETTINGShaw, Sarah (2017) TEACHERS' PERCEPTIONS OF THE MANIFESTATION OF HORIZONTAL WORKPLACE BULLYING IN THE K-12 SETTING. Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh. (Unpublished)
AbstractHorizontal workplace bullying is defined as hostile, aggressive, and harmful behavior between co-workers who are positioned on the same level of the organization’s hierarchical ladder (e.g., teacher-to-teacher) via attitudes, actions, words, and/or behaviors (Hutchinson, Vickers, Jackson, & Wilkes, 2006; Thobaben, 2007). The National Educational Association reported that 31.7% of school faculty and staff stated that they have been bullied by a colleague (Bradshaw & Figiel, 2012). This study examined teachers’ perceptions of the manifestation of horizontal workplace bullying in the K-12 setting through a constructivist framework. Study participants included six teachers who were currently teaching in the K-12 setting. Five of these teachers self-identified as victims of horizontal workplace bullying. One of the teachers self-identified as a witness of horizontal workplace bullying. The teachers completed a 30-45 minute, in-person interview. Interviews included 20 open-ended questions detailing the descriptions of perceptions, reactions, coping, and effects of horizontal workplace bullying in the K-12 setting. Line-by-line qualitative coding for known constructs in the workplace bullying literature (e.g., behavior, coping, reactions, effects) guided the analysis. A review of the findings uncovered common perceptions of the manifestation of horizontal workplace bullying, common behaviors, reactions, emotions, coping strategies, and effects of horizontal workplace bullying on teachers. The findings revealed that teacher victims perceive professional jealousy and voluntarily working beyond the contract as antecedents for becoming a target of horizontal workplace bullying. Other findings suggest that teachers cope with horizontal workplace bullying by relying on a support network and by increasing alcohol consumption. The effects of horizontal workplace bullying are psychological, physical, and social in nature, yet teachers often choose to do nothing to combat this heinous behavior. Although there is much literature about workplace bullying, research on horizontal workplace bullying in the K-12 setting is lacking. This study adds to the limited body of literature and includes implications and recommendations for practice and future research. School administrators must continue to research, develop policies, and define the technical problems and adaptive challenges that face teachers and administrators in order to successfully navigate this challenging and detrimental phenomenon (Heifetz & Laurie, 1997). Share
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