Workplace bullying and personality change: evidence from a 4-year Swiss panel study

Abstract

Bullying is amongst the most extreme and unpleasant working experiences one can face, with well-documented negative consequences for well-being. However, theoretical claims that the harmful consequences of workplace bullying extend beyond short-term effects to changes in victims’ personality traits have only been tentatively explored. Using longitudinal panel data collected by the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research Lives project (N = 2,469), we investigated the relationship between perceived workplace bullying and changes in the Big Five personality traits, over 4-years. We hypothesised that experiences of bullying would be related to decreased agreeableness, conscientiousness, extraversion, and openness, and increased neuroticism. Latent change score analyses revealed that changes in, and the total amount, of workplace bullying, were related to increased neuroticism and decreased extraversion, with changes in bullying status also related to decreased conscientiousness. This study provides the strongest evidence to-date that experiencing workplace bullying can manifest in undesirable personality trait changes.