Passive-Aggressive Behavior and Leadership Styles in Organizations

Abstract

In this phenomenological study, 13 experts were asked about passive-aggressive (PA) behaviors in the workplace, specifically, whether leadership styles (autocratic, transactional, and transformational) can predict them. Participants were asked to consider the occurrence of PA behaviors in typically healthy working individuals' (rather than disordered individuals') responses to leadership styles and organizational events. Of the eight themes that emerged from the analyzed interviews, three hold particular significance to the workplace. First, a majority of the participants viewed PA behaviors in organizations as a combination of exogenous and endogenous factors. Second, most interviewees agreed that specific types of change in organizations contribute to PA behaviors. Third, most participants viewed the autocratic leadership style as a predictor of PA behaviors.