Mobbing in the workplace is a major psychosocial risk that involves exposure to intense psychologically violent behaviour towards one or more people, such as offending or ostracising individuals, humiliating their honour and dignity by knowingly disseminating false information, making insulting remarks, performing intimidating behaviours, or taking actions that negatively affect an individual’s job. These behaviours aim to create a hostile or humiliating environment to disrupt the victim’s working life and pose a risk to their health.
The study was carried out in collaboration by researchers from the Group of psychosocial research on organizational behaviour (UNIPSICO), from the Department of Behavioural Sciences Methodology and the Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology of the Universitat de València.
Professor at the Department of Behavioural Sciences Methodology Begoña Espejo, and Professor at the Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology Irene Checa explain that repeated exposure to mobbing behaviour (at least once a week) over a long period of time (at least six months) increases the need to seek specialist support to overcome some personal crisis related to work.
They also explain that people exposed to workplace mobbing increase significantly their daily consumption of alcohol and tobacco. Furthermore, a consequence of the psychological or psychosomatic health problems caused by workplace mobbing is a higher use of medicines to alleviate them.
Previous studies have concluded that the prevalence of mobbing in educational workplaces is higher than average and that teachers are often victims of mobbing in the workplace. However, Director of UNIPSICO and UV’s Full Professor of Social Psychology Pedro R. Gil-Monte points out that there are not many studies in Spain with large samples that examine the consequences of mobbing on the health of primary and secondary school teachers.
This psychological violence at work also has a social cost for the public health system. Therefore, Pedro Gil-LaOrden, member of the UNIPSICO, recommends carrying out regular assessments of the psychosocial risks in educational workplaces, such as the development and activation of protocols to prevent mobbing in the workplace.
The sample
The study was carried out with a sample of 9,350 non-university teachers from different levels of public education in Valencia (70.67% of whom are women). The data on mobbing were analysed using the UNIPSICO questionnaire.Scientific article reference: Gil-Monte, P. R., Espejo, B., Checa, I., & Gil-LaOrden, P. (2024). ’Mobbing as a predictor of health risk behaviours and seeking specialist support in non-university teachers.’ Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 40 (1), 41-49. https://doi.org/10.5093/jwop2024a4
