Is Negative Attention Better Than No Attention? The Comparative Effects of Ostracism and Harassment at Work

Jane O'Reilly (), Sandra L. Robinson (), Jennifer L. Berdahl () and Sara Banki ()
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Jane O'Reilly: Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5, Canada
Sandra L. Robinson: Sauder School of Business, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z2, Canada
Jennifer L. Berdahl: Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E6, Canada
Sara Banki: Graduate School of Management and Economics, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, 1459973941 Iran

Organization Science, 2015, vol. 26, issue 3, 774-793

Abstract: Ostracism has been recognized as conceptually and empirically distinct from harassment. Drawing from theory and research that suggests that employees have a strong need to belong in their organizations, we examine the comparative frequency and impact of ostracism and harassment in organizations across three field studies. Study 1 finds that a wide range of employees perceive ostracism, compared with harassment, to be more socially acceptable, less psychologically harmful, and less likely to be prohibited in their organization. Study 2 surveyed employees from a variety of organizations to test our theory that ostracism is actually a more harmful workplace experience than harassment. Supporting our predictions, compared with harassment, ostracism was more strongly and negatively related to a sense of belonging and to various measures of employee well-being and work-related attitudes. We also found that the effects of ostracism on well-being and work-related attitudes were at least partially mediated by a sense of belonging. Study 3 replicated the results of Study 2 with data collected from employees of a large organization and also investigated the comparative impact of ostracism and harassment on employee turnover. Ostracism, but not harassment, significantly predicted actual turnover three years after ostracism and harassment were assessed, and this was mediated by a sense of belonging (albeit at p

Keywords: ostracism; harassment; belongingness; well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:inm:ororsc:v:26:y:2015:i:3:p:774-793

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