WBI Research Begins With You
Your responses to the questions contribute to knowledge about Workplace Bullying. We've been collecting data and interpreting findings since 1998.The Economic Crisis and Bullying
WBI Study -- June, 2009
Purpose: To gauge whether or not bullying has been affected by the post-Sept. 2008 economic crisis. Note: This is a non-scientific study. The 454 people who completed the survey (called respondents) visited the website designed to help people with bullying problems. They do not represent a random sample of adult Americans (as was done in the WBI-Zogby survey). Conclusions are limited to people who believe they are or have been bullied.
Principal Findings 27.5% said the bullying got worse (question 7). 22% of people surveyed said the bullying began after or on Sept. 2008 (question 5) (the date recognized as the start of the global economic crisis).
Note: WBI owns the copyright to the survey questions and results. Do not cite without crediting the Workplace Bullying Institute, workplacebullying.org
1. Workplace Bullying was defined as sabotage that prevents work from getting done, verbal abuse, threatening conduct, intimidation, humiliation, or exploitation of a known vulnerability (psychological or physical)
64.4% said it is happening to them now
32.5% had it happen to them before, but it is not happening now
2.4% have only witnessed it happening to others; it never happened to me
0.7% I have not seen or heard it myself, but others told me it happened
[Only 2 people out of 456 said that they had neither seen it directly nor heard about it from others and stopped answering the survey.]
2. Perpetrator's rank
5.9% of perpetrators had a lower rank than the target
18.7% of perpetrators were peers with the same rank
75.4% of perpetrators ranked higher than the target
3. Perpetrator's gender
65.9% Female
34.1% Male
4. Target's gender
81.3% Female
18.7% Male
5. The bullying began
- AFTER/on September 2008 (the date of recognition that there was a global economic crisis - 21.8%
- BEFORE September 2008 -- 75.2%
- Not sure when -- 3.1%
6. Has the employer claimed financial trouble due to the economic crisis?
36.9% Yes
47.5% No
15.7% Not sure
7. Did the bullying CHANGE since the economic downturn?
27.5% said it became MORE abusive/severe/frequent
2% No change -- mistreatment was rare and still is
67% No change -- mistreatment was common and still is
3.4% Yes; It became LESS abusive/severe/frequent
8. Did the perpetrator or anyone else (e.g., perpetrator's friends, HR, managers) suggest that different levels of bullying were caused of the economic downturn?
4.5% Yes
78.7% No
16.8% Not sure
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