Workplace Incivility

Sidle, S. (2009). Workplace incivility: How should employees and managers respond? Academy of Management Perspectives; Nov2009, Vol. 23 Issue 4, p88-89, 2p. Retrieved April 4, 2010 from: http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.waterfield.murraystate.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&hid=6&sid=1b8ac4a5-a0a9-47e4-96be-c874f90cbab1%40sessionmgr4

This research brief is published in the Academy of Management Perspective and outlines research done by Lilia Cortina of the University of Michigan and Vicki Magley of the University of Connecticut, regarding the effects on employees that are victimized by uncivil co-workers. Many workers choose to ignore incivility because they may not see it as a serious enough offence to report; however, the research shows that this is not a healthy way to deal with this problem and that there are negative consequences associated with incivility. Targeted employees are likely to experience stress, distraction, negative emotions, lower job satisfaction, and reduced creativity as a result of uncivil acts against them. In a survey done by the researchers, workers that faced incivility were likely to feel frustrated, annoyed, and offended; however, few felt threatened by the actions. They conclude that unless incivility escalates over time to a more serious behavior, it is not likely to be reported to managers. So, managers need to take proactive steps to avoid this type of problem instead of only dealing with it when there is something reported. The researchers recommends that managers have training programs to teach their employees about these types of workplace problems and they should also have and promulgate a formal code of ethics that deals with these and other potential workplace problems. I think this is an interesting subject that managers should be aware of because if incivility is happening in the area the manager is responsible for and he r she is not aware of it, it could escalate into a bigger problem that can erode the workplace atmosphere and cause serious problems that could have been dealt with in a much easier way earlier in the process.