Workplace revenge

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Workplace revenge, or workplace retaliation, refers to the general action of purposeful retaliation within the workplace. Retaliation often involves a power imbalance; the retaliator is usually someone with more power in the workplace than the victim, and retaliation may be done to silence the victim so the retaliator can avoid accountability for workplace bullying, workplace harassment, or other misbehaviors in the workplace. Retaliation, legally, refers to actions taken as punishment for legally permitted behaviors: disciplinary actions taken by employers in reaction to behaviors that are counter to applicable laws or to established institutional policies are permitted as part of the employer's ability to control the work environment. [1]

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Acts of retaliation within an organization can be categorized in two ways: work-related retaliation and social retaliation. "Work retaliation victimization involves adverse work-related actions that have the purpose or effect of negatively altering the target’s job and that are intended by the instigator or perceived by the target to be a reprisal for the target’s behavior." [2] This categorization of workplace revenge concerns work-related actions that are often tangible, formal, and documented in employment records. Examples include termination, demotion, poor performance appraisal, and cutting hours. [3]

On the other hand, "social retaliation victimization involves antisocial behaviors that have the purpose or effect of negatively altering the target’s interpersonal relations with other organizational members and that are intended by the instigator or perceived by the target to be a reprisal for the target’s behavior." [2] This type of retaliatory action refers to behaviors between members of an organization, both verbal and nonverbal, that often go undocumented. Examples of this type include harassment, insulting, blame, threats, or the "silent treatment." These acts of workplace revenge have the purpose of negatively altering the victim's interpersonal relations with other organizational members as well as potentially affecting work productivity.

Retaliation as a form of justice

An employee might seek justice in response to workplace revenge. The concept of organizational justice has been defined in three categories:

In order to receive justice, an employee may 'retaliate' against unfair treatment by an employer, either through legal means such as filing a lawsuit or engaging in whistle-blowing to publicize illegal or inappropriate conduct by the employer, or through illegal means.

Revenge as a coping strategy

The two common responses to one's unjust behavior are forgiveness and revenge. [6] When one perceives he has been the victim of unjust behavior, he will evaluate the situation and select the appropriate coping response for the negative experience. If the victim views the situation with anger and resentment, he chooses revenge as the next necessary step. On the opposite side, if the victim is able to let go of the negative emotions attached to the circumstances, he will choose forgiveness. Individuals are more likely to forgive a transgressor if they avoid holding the transgressor accountable for the offense and if the transgressor is apologetic. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revenge</span> Harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance

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Social undermining is the expression of negative emotions directed towards a particular person or negative evaluations of the person as a way to prevent the person from achieving their goals.

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Victim mentality is a psychological concept referring to a mindset in which a person, or group of people, tends to recognize or consider themselves a victim of the negative actions of others. In some cases, those with a victim mentality have in fact been the victim of wrongdoing by others or have otherwise suffered misfortune through no fault of their own. The term is also used in reference to the tendency for blaming one's misfortunes on somebody else's misdeeds, which is also referred to as victimism.

Organizational expedience is defined as workers’ behaviors that (1) are intended to fulfill organizationally prescribed or sanctioned objectives but that (2) knowingly involve breaking, bending, or stretching organizational rules, directives, or organizationally sanctioned norms.

Abusive supervision is most commonly studied in the context of the workplace, although it can arise in other areas such as in the household and at school. "Abusive supervision has been investigated as an antecedent to negative subordinate workplace outcome." "Workplace violence has combination of situational and personal factors". The study that was conducted looked at the link between abusive supervision and different workplace events.

Machiavellianism in the workplace is a concept studied by many organizational psychologists. Conceptualized originally by Richard Christie and Florence Geis, Machiavellianism refers to a psychological trait construct where individuals behave in a cold and duplicitous manner. It has been adapted and applied to the context of the workplace and organizations by psychology academics.

References

  1. ↑ "Facts About Retaliation". US EEOC. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  2. 1 2 Cortina, Lilia M.; Magley, Vicki J. (2003). "Raising voice, risking retaliation: Events following interpersonal mistreatment in the workplace". Journal of Occupational Health Psychology. 8 (4): 247–265. doi:10.1037/1076-8998.8.4.247. ISSN   1076-8998. PMID   14570522.
  3. ↑ "Retaliation". DOL. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  4. ↑ Forsyth, Donelson R. (2006). Group Dynamics (5th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. pp. 388–89.
  5. ↑ "Procedural Justice - Yale Law School". law.yale.edu. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  6. ↑ Bradfield, Murray; Aquino, Karl (1999). "The Effects of Blame Attributions and Offender Likableness on Forgiveness and Revenge in the Workplace". Journal of Management. 25 (5): 607–631. doi:10.1177/014920639902500501. ISSN   0149-2063. S2CID   143941851 – via Sage Journals.
  7. ↑ Promoting Forgiveness Among Co-Workers Following a Workplace Transgression: The Effects of Social Motivation Training
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