oa Pesten op het werk: de relatie met gezondheid en verzuim en de rol van coping

Bullying at work: the relation with health en absenteeism and the role of coping

F. Dehue, C. Bolman, T. Völlink & M. Pouwelse, Gedrag & Organisatie, volume 20, June 2009, nr. 2, pp. 97-117

In this study, the influence of coping on the relation between bullying experiences at work and health complaints and absenteeism has been investigated. One thousand randomly chosen employees received a questionnaire which was completed and returned by 361 employees. Results revealed that 139 employees (39%) were bullied at least once a month and 64 employees (18%) at least once a week on at least one of the bullying experiences listed in the questionnaire. Employees who have been bullied weekly, report more health complaints and were absent during more days than employees who have been bullied monthly or who have not been bullied at all. They are also more often inclined to compensate as a means of coping with problematic situations. Compensating and a positive active attitude towards problematic situations are coping strategies which moderate the relation between bullying experiences and health complaints and absenteeism. However, using these coping strategies as a response to bullying experiences is detrimental to one's health and supports absenteeism, just as negative organizational and leadership aspects, which are also associated with bullying experiences.