One of the ongoing debates among those who study psychological abuse at work is the question of “bullying” vs. “mobbing.” At times it is presented as an either/or dichotomy. Some will use the term bullying exclusively, while others will use only the term mobbing.
Personally, I think of workplace mobbing as a form or subset of workplace bullying, but others don’t necessarily agree with my distinction. In any event, I’d like to look at two forms of multiple-aggressor abuse at work that may stand at the fault lines between common conceptions of bullying and mobbing.
“Puppet master” bullying
Let’s start with what I call puppet master bullying. In these situations, a chief aggressor’s power and influence over a group of subordinates may be sufficient to enlist their participation in mistreating a target, creating what looks and feels like a mob. For example, if the aggressor is a mid-level manager, he may recruit HR to help out with the dirty work and encourage the target’s peers to shun or bully her.
Even in cases of peer bullying, one aggressor can use intimidation and persuasion to turn others against a peer-level target.
One of the key indicators of puppet master bullying, all too infrequently realized, is what happens when the master is removed from the scene. Typically, much of the malicious energy that fueled the puppets fades away, and so with it much of the bullying behavior.
Genuine mobbing
By contrast, genuine workplace mobbing occurs when the malicious energy is shared among the many, who proceed to go after the few. It may have started as puppet master bullying, but regardless of its origins, this is now a mob, with individuals owning that animus in ways that fuel each other’s antipathy toward the target.
In these situations, even removal of the key instigators may not be sufficient to end the target’s torment, because too many individuals are now emotionally invested in his demise.
Target perceptions
From the standpoint of the target, the distinctions often matter little in terms of the experience of being on the receiving end. Whether it’s someone surgically directing or controlling her minions to bully an individual, or a true mob descending upon a lone target, it sure as heck feels like a mobbing.
For those studying these behaviors and trying to develop measures to curb them, however, the distinctions do matter. With puppet master bullying, removing the instigator(s) may be enough to stop the abusive behavior. With genuine mobbing, however, the remedy is even more difficult, because the emotional impetus to act has now infected an entire group.
Is one more common than the other?
I have yet to find a study that delineates between these two forms of bullying. However, based largely on a decade’s worth of listening to accounts of personal experiences, I believe that puppet-master bullying is more common than genuine mobbing, perhaps by a significant margin.
That said, I also believe that in certain vocations or professions, one form of abuse or the other may be much more prevalent, grounded in variations among organizational hierarchies and group cultures.
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Related post
Does the Holocaust help us to comprehend targeted, malicious workplace bullying?
I experienced both work place bullying and mobbing~My aggressor managed to ‘recruit’ co-workers into her little game of mistreating me by not speaking to me and by talking about me while I stood right there! It was simply the most awful thing I have ever gone through in my life. I purchased a book about mobbing in the workplace and gave it to the person who I felt led the posse, the one who slapped the backside of the horse that they had me sit on with a noose around my neck,(figuratively speaking of course) as a retirement gift. He never thanked me or acknowledged receipt of this book. I feel workplace bullying and mobbing go hand in hand. Once a worker has been targeted by the aggressor the others simply seem to fall in place and begin to ignore and treat rudely the targeted person. It is one of the highest forms of emotional abuse that exists.
[...] “Puppet master” bullying vs. genuine mobbing at work [...]
Having been a target of multi-faceted bullying (the impetus behind which I have given up trying to understand) I am reminded of Eeyore’s wise words…
“But, Eeyore,” said Pooh, “was it a Joke, or an Accident? I mean…”
“I didn’t stop to ask, Pooh. Even at the very bottom of the river, I didn’t stop to say to myself, `Is this a Hearty Joke or the Merest Accident?’. I just floated to the surface and said to myself, `it’s wet’. If you know what I mean.”
I just struck out for dry land, shivering and praying I wouldn’t drown in the effort to save myself.
Dr. Yamada, thank you for this thoughtful post (as well as your previous post on the Holocaust).
Figuring out who is directing the workplace bullying and mobbing is getting to the essence of the problem. Is it one clever psychopath, a hierarchy of psychopaths, or just weak-minded “normal” people who gang up on individuals in an attempt to feel better about themselves or safer in their positions?
Normal people can be shamed, educated, made aware of how their behavior affects others. If they have a shred of empathy, they can learn to treat others better.
Psychopaths are a different story. The whole world needs to learn about charming psychopaths and how they manipulate situations. How is it, with all our degrees and forms of communication, that most of us remain naively unaware of these creatures? I was unaware and I suffered for it.
One person was overtly abusive to me and others kept their distance. Then I was isolated, picked apart, manipulated, and then thrown into an unethical situation of my supervisor’s making (which I did everything I could to straighten out). It took me a long time to figure out that my “nice” supervisor was orchestrating the whole situation, and enjoying every moment of it.
I saw occasional slip-ups, when she revealed her true nature. The last time was after I submitted my notice. She took me into a room and there, she dropped the mask, revealing pure rage. She was furious – how dare I quit when she wasn’t done playing with me? She then tried to humiliate me on my exit, a strategy that backfired on her.
Mary Lou and Kachina, in case you are interested, I have found the Workplace Bullying group on LinkedIn to be validating.
Kachina, great Eeyore quote. There were times when I wasn’t sure I would survive. Now that I have, I’m going to fight to keep others from drowning.
Dr. Yamada-
I’m curious to know if you would expand a bit on “That said, I also believe that in certain vocations or professions, one form of abuse or the other may be much more prevalent, grounded in variations among organizational hierarchies and group cultures.”
I realize you may be reluctant given a lack of empirical evidence and agreed upon definitions, but what are your hypotheses based on your subjective experience?
Hi Kachina, what you quoted IS my hypothesis, i.e., that certain patterns of abuse will be more prevalent than others based on institutional hierarchies and cultures.
For example, I think the dominant cultures of academic institutions may explain, at least in part, why researchers like Ken Westhues — whose case studies of academic mobbing are invaluable resources — tend to favor the mobbing paradigm.
Of course, there are variations among the variations, which is why I reiterate my point that it’s dicey to generalize too much from a single experience. Somewhere in that mish mash of personal understanding, subjective evaluation, and empirical data lies truths and insights that take us forward in our understanding.
Thank you. I agree that it can be dangerous and counter-productive to speculate and generalize. I know I am biased due to my subjective experience, but am interested in other perspectives that advance and broaden my understanding. I really appreciate your devotion to the cause/issue/problem and value your willingness to share your insights.