Skip to main content

Workplace Deviance

Workplace deviance is a deliberate or intentional desire to cause harm to an organisation. This can be the organisation which employs an individual or an organisation of which they are a member. It is, perhaps, best described as “voluntary behaviour which contravenes the established norms of the organisation and, in doing so, compromises its viability.”

Workplace deviance can vary greatly, from minor non-violent misbehaviour to extreme violence, up to and including murder, but any of which causes harm or potential harm to the organisation. Broadly speaking workplace deviance falls into two distinct categories, Interpersonal Deviance and Organisational Deviance.

Interpersonal deviance is misconduct which targets specific co-workers and includes behaviours such as gossiping about them, blaming them for things that are not their fault, falsely raising grievances against them and so on. It is believed that these unhealthy behaviours may be due to jealousy of the target co-workers abilities or a sense of entitlement. In other words the misbehaviour has one aim, to benefit the person doing it.

Organisation deviance is behaviour aimed at the organisation itself and most frequently manifests itself as frequent lateness or excessive absenteeism.
Workplace deviance can be a symptom of a toxic workplace or a toxic employee.
by AKACroatalin September 26, 2015
mugGet the Workplace Deviance mug.

Workplace Aggression

Logically enough workplace aggression is specifically aggression that occurs in the workplace. It is commonly found within a toxic workplace and can include a variety of unpleasant behaviours. These can range from verbal, (insulting people, spreading rumours, telling lies or maliciously instituting grievance procedures), to physical attacks (pushing, slapping, punching or attacking with a weapon). It’s the sort of behaviour which, if it was carried out on the street would, in many cases result in arrest by the police or prosecution in the Civil Courts.
by AKACroatalin May 26, 2015
mugGet the Workplace Aggression mug.

Counterproductive Workplace Behaviour

This is behaviour on the part of an employee or employees that works against the legitimate interests of the organisation that employs them or indeed their own interests. This sort of behaviour is detrimental to the organisation, its employees, clients and customers. It is believed that persons with a tendency to experience anger are more likely to respond to a stressful situation, such as being treated unfairly with counterproductive workplace behaviour.
When the supervisor blamed Charlie for his own mistake, Charlie deliberately jammed all three photocopiers in a fit of counterproductive workplace behaviour.
by AKACroatalin June 11, 2015
mugGet the Counterproductive Workplace Behaviour mug.

Workplace Cyber-aggression

Workplace cyber-aggression takes place through emails or text messages which are intended to threaten or intimidate. They may also be emails or texts which have offensive content such as sexist or racist material or expressions of religious hatred or homophobia. What is different about this form of aggression, compared to more traditional forms, is that it is not limited to work colleagues but can come from people outside the organisation, or even in the form of spam.

The phenomenon of cyber aggression seems to have originated with teenagers who have grown up with the internet and electronic communication. They have brought this familiarity with them into the workplace and do not appreciate that this workplace cyber-aggression is just as hurtful as any other sort of aggression.

Workplace cyber-aggression is often the result of individuals within the workplace being offended, upset or feeling threatened by problems within the workplace and who resort to this form of virtual communication as a means of retaliation. This action, directed at a person or persons within the organisation, is frequently referred to as flaming. Along with workplace bullying and workplace aggression, workplace cyber aggression can be a symptom of a toxic workplace.
If workplace cyber-aggression is endemic in your workplace, find a new job.
by AKACroatalin December 15, 2015
mugGet the Workplace Cyber-aggression mug.

Workplace

It’s the place where you work, shop, office, farm, building site. Anywhere work is carried out is a workplace.
This definition of workplace is quite basic but is better than none.
by AKACroatalin May 23, 2015
mugGet the Workplace mug.

Toxic workplace

A toxic workplace is somewhere you really don’t want to be as, even if you try to avoid it, you will be dragged into the backstabbing shit that’s going on and it will adversely affect you. It’s a place usually characterised by drama and infighting and where the personal battles between individuals or departments harm productivity. Toxic workplaces are often the result of workers who are, themselves, best described as toxic. These individuals are motivated solely by personal interest, the desire for money, power and status. They will use any means no matter how unethical, mean-spirited or illegal to manipulate the system for their own ends whilst undermining others and diverting attention away from their own shortcomings.

Toxic workplaces have been found to have profoundly adverse effects on the health and wellbeing of the non-toxic people working in them. The best advice if you find yourself working in such an environment, no matter how good the money or benefits, get out as quickly as possible.
“Malcolm’s crawling round Mark again trying to undermine Nick.”
“That toe-rag really is poisonous; he’s turning this into a real toxic workplace.”
by AKACroatalin May 26, 2015
mugGet the Toxic workplace mug.

Workplace Conflict

As the name suggests this is conflict within the workplace. These conflicts can be due to people with different personalities that just don’t get on well, or different opinions as to how the work should be done. Managers showing favouritism can cause or exacerbate workplace conflict as can the environment of the workplace itself or the hierarchical structure of the organisation.
Workplace conflict is pernicious and unpleasant and if there is no way that this conflict can be resolved you could be better off working for another organisation.
“Mark and Terry are butting heads over product development again.”
“No surprise there, this place is full of workplace conflict, I’m just glad I’m gone at the end of the month."
by AKACroatalin June 2, 2015
mugGet the Workplace Conflict mug.

Share this definition

Sign in to vote

We'll email you a link to sign in instantly.

Or

Check your email

We sent a link to

Open your email