In situations of mobbing in organizations, experts recommend not to isolate yourself, inform your superiors and turn to experts. Here are six specific recommendations.
Social isolation, gradual changes in the workplace, attacks on private life and even verbal threats are some of the typical behaviors of mobbing or psychological harassment at work, an increasingly common situation in today's organizations.
These behaviors have their origin in psychological violence and persecution, which aim to cause deliberate harm to a co-worker, with consequences not only for their physical and mental health, but also for the environment where they are inserted.
According to specialists, the presence of organizational changes such as the arrival of a new supervisor, the restructuring of positions or the reduction of personnel - all situations that generate stress, which in turn weaken defense mechanisms and self-control in individuals - are factors triggers with which a mobbing sequence can be activated.
Mobbing is intended to cause deliberate psychological harm to a co-worker.
Below, various experts provide some basic advice to learn to cope with what is also called workplace bullying:
1. PERFORM AN ANALYSIS OF THE SITUATION.
According to Beatriz Pereira, a psychologist, hypnotherapist and specialist in personal development at Universidad Santo Tomás, the first thing to do when dealing with mobbing is to carefully analyze the problem. Faced with evidence or suspicion of being mobbed, an analysis must be carried out, keeping calm, generating a prior analysis and describing the situations as neutrally as possible, she explains. Share
2. RECOGNIZE THE PROBLEM.
For specialists, the feeling of phobia during the working day or when entering a new job, can be the product of a mobbing picture. However, this would not be the case in all cases, as Pereira clarifies. You have to distinguish very clearly who is suffering from this problem, it is a delicate issue, because in many cases you can confuse a situation, which would end up discrediting the problem in the face of legal and medical aspects, he says. For this reason, the expert emphasizes that they must learn to recognize the characteristics of the problem and then begin to solve it.
3. DON'T ISOLATE YOURSELF.
Staying in a participatory attitude is another of the recommendations made by experts in the field. In this sense, the academic from the Santo Tomás University advises lobbying, talking informally about their achievements, as well as reinforcing and congratulating others. The expert insists that the most convenient thing is to stay alert to the integration and development of teamwork to achieve common goals and to be clear about one's own fulfillment, as well as the effective performance of tasks, since the link becomes a factor. protective.
4. PAY ATTENTION TO THE IMAGE YOU PROJECT.
Reflecting their good practices in relation to moral values such as respect, responsibility, honesty, discipline, will be fundamental factors when facing workplace harassment.
5. COMMUNICATE THE SITUATION TO THE CORRESPONDING INSTANCES.
The experts assure that in any case, it will be the responsibility of the employee to communicate to the corresponding instances the negative manifestations of his immediate boss, subordinate or peers. In this regard, Lydia Arbaiza, an expert in Human Resources at Esan University, proposes a psychological treatment so that this problem does not lead to something bigger, and emphasizes the importance of carrying out relaxation exercises and stress control.
6. LEARN ABOUT MOBBING.
Finally, the professor at the Universidad del Mar de Valparaíso, Alfonso Riquelme, recommends that those who suspect they are suffering from workplace harassment, know the risk factors and use them strategically, in addition to being informed about the defined and expected standards of behavior in the organization. Pereira, for his part, advises staying on the plane of advantage and making the other party see that taking care of the employment relationship will avoid difficulties.