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Workplace incivilities: the role of interest conflicts, social closure and organizational chaos

Author

Listed:
  • Vincent J. Roscigno

    (Ohio State University, roscigno.1@osu.edu)

  • Randy Hodson

    (Ohio State University, hodson.8@sociology.osu.edu)

  • Steven H. Lopez

    (Ohio State University, lopez.137@osu.edu)

Abstract

Workplace incivility — that is, negative relational dimensions of employment with consequences for worker integrity and dignity — affects millions every year. In this article, the ‘organizational misbehaviour’ and ‘workplace chaos’ literatures offer building blocks for a conception wherein workplace incivility is viewed as emanating from the joint and sometimes interconnected influence of organizational processes and status-based social closure. The resulting multi-method analyses draw on coded information on incivility, organizational context, and relational and status dynamics from a large population of organizational ethnographies (N=204). Analyses reveal that all forms of incivility except sexual harassment are rooted in organizational chaos. Qualitative re-immersion into these ethnographic accounts provides further insights into how conflicts endemic to paid employment and broader social closure projects surrounding class, race, and gender play a role as well, albeit often in distinct ways.

Suggested Citation

  • Vincent J. Roscigno & Randy Hodson & Steven H. Lopez, 2009. "Workplace incivilities: the role of interest conflicts, social closure and organizational chaos," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 23(4), pages 747-773, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:woemps:v:23:y:2009:i:4:p:747-773
    DOI: 10.1177/0950017009344875
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hodson,Randy, 2001. "Dignity at Work," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521771313.
    2. Richard B. Freeman, 1994. "Working Under Different Rules," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number free94-1.
    3. Paul McCarthy & Claire Mayhew, 2004. "Safeguarding the Organization against Violence and Bullying," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-0-230-50420-2, December.
    4. Hodson,Randy, 2001. "Dignity at Work," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521778121.
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    Cited by:

    1. Elisa Ansoleaga & Magdalena Ahumada & Andrés González-Santa Cruz, 2019. "Association of Workplace Bullying and Workplace Vulnerability in the Psychological Distress of Chilean Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-14, October.
    2. Boateng, Godfred O. & Adams, Tracey L., 2016. "“Drop dead … I need your job”: An exploratory study of intra-professional conflict amongst nurses in two Ontario cities," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 35-42.
    3. Elizabeth Quinlan & Susan Robertson & Ann-Marie Urban & Isobel M Findlay & Beth Bilson, 2020. "Ameliorating Workplace Harassment among Direct Caregivers in Canada’s Healthcare System: A Theatre-Based Intervention," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 34(4), pages 626-643, August.
    4. Devi Akella, 2016. "Workplace Bullying," SAGE Open, , vol. 6(1), pages 21582440166, February.
    5. Clive Boddy, 2014. "Corporate Psychopaths, Conflict, Employee Affective Well-Being and Counterproductive Work Behaviour," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 121(1), pages 107-121, April.
    6. Carl Rhodes & Geraint Harvey, 2012. "Agonism and the Possibilities of Ethics for HRM," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 111(1), pages 49-59, November.

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