Baruch, Yehuda

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Association for Information SystemsAIS Electronic Library (AISeL)AMCIS 2001 Proceedings Americas Conference on Information Systems(AMCIS)December 2001Bullying on the Net: Adverse Behavior on the E-Mail and Its ImpactYehuda BaruchUniversity of East AngliaFollow this and additional works at: http://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2001This material is brought to you by the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) at AIS Electronic Library (AISeL). It has been acceptedfor inclusion in AMCIS 2001 Proceedings by an authorized administrator of AIS Electronic Library (AISeL). For more information, please contactelibrary@aisnet.org.Recommended CitationBaruch, Yehuda, "Bullying on the Net: Adverse Behavior on the E-Mail and Its Impact" (2001). AMCIS 2001 Proceedings. 97.http://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2001/972001  Seventh Americas Conference on Information Systems 477BULLYING ON THE NET:ADVERSE BEHAVIOR ON THE E-MAIL AND ITS IMPACTYehuda BaruchUniversity of East Angliay.baruch@uea.ac.ukAbstractA study into the effects of bullying at work, including bullying via e-mail, was conducted in a large MultiNational Corporation. A considerable amount of bullying was found on the e-mail system, with negativeoutcomes similar to those of conventional bullying. Bullying was associated with anxiety and tendency to quit,and negatively associated with job satisfaction and performance. The results  expand current understandingof the drawbacks associated with misuse and abuse of information technology in an organizational context.Information Technology, Communication and OrganizationsThe electronic network, and in particular the e-mail media, form technology tools  which enables a fast, accurate and effectivemeans of communication. Moreover, the utilization of e-mail systems has far reaching outcomes; perhaps even more than it wasdesigned to achieve. This paper will focus on a negative side effect of e-mail system - misuse and abuse of the system via bullyingand will explore the extent and possible impact of the use of e-mail systems for bullying in the workplace. Theoretical Model DevelopmentThe theoretical base for understanding adverse behavior in organizations and its outcomes can be traced back to Gouldner’s (1960)classic article about norms of reciprocity. Bullying is a form of verbal aggressive behavior. In addition to accidental cases, certainpeople may intentionally use malicious or defamatory messages to bully others. Vardi & Winer 1996 ‘misbehavior inorganizations’ and Anderson and Pearson, 1999, ‘mistreatment in organizations’ may act here as a cover frameworkE-MailE-mail is a recent, different type of communication system, a cost-effective, user friendly internal and external information system,which speedily spread in organizations. e-mail may be placed in the middle range on the dimension of richness, complexity andformality. It is easily accessed, enables a quick response, but also allows an unsynchronized two-way conversation. These featurescan cause communication problems in office related environment (Joseph, 1998). With no face-to-face interactions there is neitherthe tone of the spoken word, nor eye contact. Sproull and Kiesler (1986) have already pointed out the risks of misunderstandingand distortion of messages’ meaning, following lack of social context cues in e-mail communication. E-mail history of communication can be kept and be retrieved. Thus it can serve as formal evidence to prove indecent or incorrectapproaches, unethical or impolite manners, use of improper language, and bullying. This in itself should deter the sensible senderfrom using this medium for bullying and other malicious practice. However, lack of awareness, and the above mentioned optionof immediacy in response might end with undesired consequences, one of them could be bullying. Thus, there is a need to exploreits full impact on other facets of organizational life. Hypothesis 1. Bullying will be apparent on the e-mail system, at a level similar to other methods used for bullying Electronic Commerce478 2001  Seventh Americas Conference on Information SystemsBullying at WorkBullying in the workplace is considered a great obstacle for individual and organizational effectiveness. It is perceived to causea high level of anxiety and stress, which subsequently leads to low performance and high turnover amongst employees at alllevels. Bullying is a clear manifestation of violence in the workplace (Neuman & Baron, 1998) and workplace incivility (Anderson& Pearson, 1999), which is gaining attention in recent literature due to its adverse impact on people and organizations (Pearson,Anderson & Porath, 2000). The issue of workplace bullying has gained a lot of attention in media and academic circles, including involvement of the legalprocedures for treating cases of bullying. Also flame e-mail could cause an increase in stress related illness and harassment(Welch, 1997). Misuse and even abuse of the system such as using e-mail communication for bullying is a real life phenomenon,as suggested by Novell (1998).  Bullying could be a direct result of daily pressures people experience in today’s stressful life.However, the adverse results of bullying are not expected to be subject to the system that carries the message. Hypothesis 2. Negative outcomes of bullying will exist irrespectively to the media of communication. The Impact of Bullying on Job Attitudes, Emotions and BehaviorsBullying is a highly negative behavior, and similarly to the prospect impact of other adverse behaviors, its existence will resultin negative impact on people attitudes and behaviors in organizations.  The negative impact of adverse behavior is not restricted to attitudes, and another human response is manifested through emotionalreaction. Office politics provide a vivid example of exploitation and abuse of emotions in work environment. Clarke (1999)suggests a framework that distinguishes between the kind of motives and the level of competence (in organizational politics). E-mail abuse may follow negative motives, and may come from people of varied level of competence and status. The office, onceconsidered hazard-free in relation to health and safety, is increasingly losing its reputation (Mogensen, 1996), with stress relatedissues such as bullying held responsible for the shift. Fisher and Ashkanasy emphasized the expected impact on performance,satisfaction, commitment, well-being, stress and health. Many theoretical frameworks as well as empirical studies pointed  the anticipated effects of stress and anxiety on performance(cf. Bhagat, 1983). Stress leads to anxiety, which describes the effect of combined emotional negative affect and physiologicalarousal (Freud, 1926). Anxiety can be a response to an actual situation, or related to a perceived threat. Anxiety therefore is nota simple, unidimensional concept, but one that "may involve complex chains of behaviour and vicious cycle phenomena" (Hallam,1992). Hypothesis 3. Bullying in general and bullying on the e-mail in particular will have a negative impact on job satisfaction,performance, anxiety, absenteeism, and tendency to quit. MethodSampleA questionnaire was sent as an attachment to e-mail message, which was conveyed to the e-mail users of the UK subsidiary ina large Multi National Corporation (the vast majority of the company’s office-based workforce, including managers, professionaland support staff). Altogether the list included some 1600 employees. A reminder message followed two weeks later. An optionenabled those interested to respond through regular mail or fax, due to the sensitivity of the subject.Instruments included a set of single item measures for the following research variables: job satisfaction, performance, anxiety,absenteeism, and tendency to quit. They were also asked if they have experienced bullying at work, and if so, was it conveyedvia the e-mail system. Six hundred and forty nine participants replied, representing a response rate of 43.6. Those who hadexperienced bullying via the e-mail were asked to respond in addition to a wider set of questions, including already validatedmeasures, using multiple item questions. Sixty of them did so, plus 19 of those bullied via other means (all in all, 79 sub-sample).Baruch/Bullying on E-Mail2001  Seventh Americas Conference on Information Systems 479ResultsFrequency of general bullying in the company was similar to that experienced in the UK – of the 649 respondents 501 (77.2%)reported that they have never experienced it. The remainder were 88 (13.6%) who experienced bullying but not via e-mail, and60 (9.2%) who experienced it also on e-mail. Out of those bullied, 54 did not perceive themselves  to respond similarly, but 22admitted that they were bullying others, usually as a response (as claimed in most cases).  See Table 1a-c for the media andfrequency of bullying, and the type and source of bullying on e-mail, and personal characteristics of population. Table 1a.  Media and Frequency of Bullyingonlyonceabout oncea yearabout oncea monthabout oncea weekabout once adaymore thanonce a dayface-to face 21 21 40 20 14 6meeting(s) 21 18 20 16 3 -letters/memos 5 14 15 4 1 -phone conversation 10 15 19 16 2 1e-mail 14 11 23 4 3 1other (please specify) 4 2 2 1 - 1Table 1b. Type and Source of Bullying on E-Maildirectmanagerhigherlevelmanager peerssub-ordinates customers suppliersInsults, work related 19 9 18 2 4 1Insults of a personal nature 4 4 4 2 - -Intimidation 23 10 14 3 4 1Personal threats 5 2 3 1 - -Verbal abuse 4 2 8 - 1 -Sexual bullying 2 1 - 1 - -Others 3 - - - - -Table 1c.  Personal CharacteristicsRespondent Alleged bullygender                   Male                              Female51245316age (SD) 43.2 (17.7) 49.2 (22.2)ethnic origin White-64Others-6White-62Others-3position (please circle): Managerial-12Supervisory-12Professional-34Administrative & others-12Managerial-36Supervisory-13Professional-10Administrative & others-5                     Company staff                     contractor5714584The ANOVA analysis presented shows no significant difference, i.e. bullying is bullying, no matter what the media is, and thenegative impact has less to do with the media but with the issue itself. These results fully support the first two Hypotheses.Electronic Commerce480 2001  Seventh Americas Conference on Information SystemsAssociation among the Research VariablesSingle Measure Versus Combined, Validated Multiple Item MeasuresThe questionnaire form for people  who were bullied included, in addition to the single item measures, a wider set of measuresthat were already validated in earlier studies. In particular ‘job satisfaction’ and 'tendency to quit' were ‘properly’ measured viamultiple item measures for 75 participants. The correlation of .60 between the single item measure for job satisfaction and a fouritems measure for the same variable (Cronbach alpha=.75, N=75), and the correlation of .73 between the single item measure for'tendency to quit' and a four items measure for the same variable (Cronbach alpha=.89, N=75) strongly support the validity ofsingle item application in this study. Subsequently, the single-item measures were utilized in the study. Table 2 (correlation table)and Table 3 (regression’ output) focus on the impact of bullying. Table 2.  Correlation Among Research VariablesJOBSAT TTQUIT ABSENT ANXIETY PERFORMTTQUIT -.4983**     ABSENT  -.0680 .1944**    ANXIETY -.1517** .2417** .0162    PERFORM .2592** -.1128* -.0624 -.0777±TOTBULL -.1867** .2600** .0566 .2301** -.0109N-649;  p<.000; * p<.01; ± p<.05;   coefficient / (Cases) / 2-tailed Significance)Table 3a.  Regression (Stepwise) Analysis:  Tendency to Quit as aDependent Variable:  Model SummaryR R SquareAdjusted RSquareStd. Errorof theEstimate F Change df1 df2 Sig. F   .574 .329 .325 1.53 16.018 1 611 .000    Predictors: (Constant), Job Satisfaction, BULLY, absenteeism, ANXIETYTable 3a:  Regression (Stepwise) Analysis:  Tendency to Quit as aDependent Variable: Coefficients  UnstandardizedCoefficientsStandardizedCoefficients t Sig. Model  B Std. Error Beta (Constant) 3.962 .353 11.233 .000  Job Satisfaction -.626 .049 -.438 -12.901 .000  BULLY .509 .099 .175 5.130 .000  absenteeism .258 .055 .157 4.721 .000  Anxiety .155 .039 .136 4.002 .000a  Dependent Variable: tendency to quitBullying Impact on Job Attitudes and BehaviorsTo study the possible impact a regression analysis was conducted, and bullying was a significant factor (entering just followingJob satisfaction) as an antecedent of intention to quit. However no similar significant impact was identified for performance. Theremay be an indirect path leading to performance, which is supported by the correlation data. All in all, the results strongly supporthypothesis 3, and the model offered (see Figure 1 for the results).Baruch/Bullying on E-Mail2001  Seventh Americas Conference on Information Systems 481AnxietyJob satAbsenteeismTTQPerformance+.24** +.19**-.50+.26**-.11*Bullying-.15**+.26**+.23**-.19**Figure 1.  Analysis Results for the Research ModelDiscussion and ConclusionsThe results reported in this study expand ourunderstanding of the bullying phenomenon into thearea of IT and computer mediated communication. Themeaning of this for management in organizations isthat bullying at work, while not a new phenomenon,can be found in novel media i.e. the e-mail. Moreover,the study indicates that such bullying results in similarnegative effects as conventional bullying (cf. Adams,1998). That should send an alarming signal tomanagers in organizations. The implications of thestudy are of great importance since the use of e-mailsystems is on the increase. For some methods of flexible work and alternative work arrangements, e-mail is an essential part ofcommunication, such as the case of telecommuting and the virtual organization (Baruch & Nicholson, 1987; Davenport &Pearlson, 1998; Standen, 2000). As for bullying impact on job attitudes and behaviors, H3 was fully supported, as indicated inthe analysis and tables of results. Bullying in general and bullying on the e-mail in particular had strong negative impact,especially on work attitudes. Among the possible reasons for the results of the present study are both the nature of e-mail communication and pressures thatcharacterize the post-modern workplace. In addition, already known aspects of communication associated with IT correspondencegained further supporting evidence. Sproull and  Kiesler (1986) have acknowledged the negative effect of electronic mediatedcommunication on social context cues. Without the ability to transmit the latent elements of communication (such as bodylanguage), e-mail communication may opt or drift to more blunt expressions or cues that might be wrongly interpreted. Since the‘sender’ cannot identify a case of the  ‘receiver’ getting upset, such miscommunication cannot be rectified on the spot, leadingto possible major misunderstanding and communication breaks. The results of this study show clearly that the e-mail system, sought to be immune from hazards such as bullying, is just anothermedium through which bullying can occur. Due to its qualities and characteristics, the communication via e-mail can be easilymisinterpreted. Moreover, it is a less personalized system, and its use might add to feeling of social isolation (Baruch, 2001). Withincreasing use and strong reliance upon IT communication, the e-mail, a useful and practical managerial tool might be transformedinto an enabler of vicious behavior. Managers need to recognise the risks and apply safeguards where possible.Limitations and Suggestions for Future ResearchThe contribution of this study should be considered in light of its limitations. One limitation is that it was conducted in onecompany only. Another is the typical problem of most surveys, i.e. partial response rate. Another limitation is the use of a singlemeasure for the majority of the research population. However an argument for such use was presented earlier, and further test ofcomparing multiple item measures with the single ones for part of the population added to the validity of the measures. Future research may develop means to tackle these limitations. It is important that further such studies are carried out. There aretwo major aspects, which the present study brings to the area of management studies. One is concerned with the environment ofthe study: the virtual organizations and IT communication are increasingly becoming subject for academic study, and rightfullyso. The second relate to the specific topic under investigation – bullying. It shows that even new, up-to-date managerial tools arenot immune from hazards of misuse and abuse. The outcomes of such improper use of IT should be thoroughly explored. ReferencesAdams, A.  Bullying at Work. London: Virago. 1998.Anderson, L. M. & Pearson, C. M. Tit for tat? The spiralling effect of incivility in the workplace Academy of ManagementReview, 24/3, 1999, pp. 452-471. Baruch, Y. The Autistic Society Information & Management, 38/3, 2001, pp. 129-136.Baruch, Y. & Nicholson, N.  Home, sweet work, Journal of General Management,  23/2, 1997, pp. 15-30.Bhagat, R. S. Effects of stressful life events on individual performance effectiveness and work adjustment processes withinorganizational setting: A research model Academy of Management Review, 8/4, 1983, pp. 660-671. Electronic Commerce482 2001  Seventh Americas Conference on Information SystemsClarke, J. Office Politics. London: The Industrial Society, 1999.Davenport, T. H. & Pearlson, K.  Two cheers for the virtual office Sloan Management Review, 39/4, 1998, pp. 51-65.Freud, S. On Psychopathology: Inhibitions, Symptoms and anxiety. Cited in The Pelican Freud Library. (Ed. A. Richards). Vol.10 (1979), Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1926.Gouldner, A. W. The norm of reciprocity: A preliminary statement American Sociological Review, 25, 1960, pp. 161-178. Hallam, R. Counselling for anxiety problems. London: Sage Publications, 1992.Joseph, R. Electronic mail and petty tyranny. In P. McCarthy, M. Sheehan, S. Wilkie, & W. Wilkie, (Eds.) Bullying: Causes,Costs and Cures. Queensland: Beyond Bullying Association, 1998, pp. 115-131.Mogensen, V. L. Office Politics: Computers, Labor, and the Fight for Safety and Health. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers UniversityPress, 1996.Neuman J.H. & Baron R.A. Workplace violence and workplace aggression: evidence concerning specific forms, potential causes,and preferred targets, Journal of Management, 24, 1998, pp. 391-419.Novell  Shaming, Blaming and Flaming.  a report by Ronin Research, Berkshire: Novell, 1998.Sproull, L. & Kiesler, S. Reducing social context cues: the case of electronic mail Management Science, 32, 1986, pp. 1492-1512.Standen, P. The home/work interface. In K. Daniels, D. A. Lamond, & P. Standen, (Eds.) Managing Telework. London: BusinessPress, 2000, pp. 83-92.Vardi, Y. & Winer, Y. Misbehavior in organizations: A motivational framework Organization Science, 7, 1996, pp. 151-165.Welch, J. Electronic menaces are a flaming liability People Management, 3/12, 1997, pp. 14.

Bullying on the Net: Adverse Behavior on the E-Mail and Its Impact

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Bullying on the Net: Adverse Behavior on the E-Mail and Its Impact

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