Social-psychological and personality factors in the perception of workplace bullying: the role of professional environment and emotional stability

Abstract

B a c k g r o u n d . Workplace bullying is a widespread negative phenomenon that not only affects individual psychological health but also poses a threat to the collective workplace climate, reducing productivity and fostering professional burnout. For organizations, it leads to financial costs and damages corporate reputation. Special attention has been directed toward the social-psychological and personal factors that may reduce the adverse impact of bullying or serve as protective mechanisms. A critical aspect of this study is to determine the roles of professional environment and emotional stability as key variables that influence the perception of workplace bullying. The objective of this study is to examine the relationship between bullying, social-psychological, and personal factors, and to assess whether emotional stability can mitigate the negative outcomes of bullying.

M e t h o d s . This study was conducted in September 2023 among 1,667 employees of the public institution "Probation Center" using an anonymous online survey. The questionnaire consisted of 39 items divided into blocks assessing socio-demographic characteristics, professional environment, working conditions, and psychological well-being at work. A short five-factor personality inventory TIPI-UKR was employed to assess personality traits. The analysis was conducted using correlation, regression, and moderation methods to explore relationships between bullying and professional environment, as well as the influence of emotional stability.

R e s u l t s . Bullying was reported by 9.4 % of respondents, of whom 1.9 % experienced bullying from colleagues, 4.9 % from supervisors, and 2.6 % from both groups. Correlation analysis revealed that bullying has a statistically significant negative relationship with professional environment perception (r = -0.241, p < 0.01) and workplace well-being (r = -0.137, p < 0.01). At the same time, regression analysis indicated that emotional stability serves a protective role by reducing the likelihood of bullying (Exp(B) = 0.824, p = 0.017). However, moderation analysis did not confirm a significant interaction between bullying level and emotional stability on workplace well-being (p > 0.05).

C o n c l u s i o n s . Social-psychological factors, particularly the professional environment, significantly influence the perception and consequences of bullying. Emotional stability was found to mitigate the negative impact of bullying on psychological well-being, whereas the role of other personality characteristics in this context was limited. Further research is recommended to consider cross-cultural aspects of workplace bullying and to focus on a more detailed analysis of the interaction between personality traits and the work environment.