Experienced bullying and hostile behavior in the workplace and symptoms of burnout in teachers

Background: The aim of the study was to assess the relationship between the exposure to workplace bullying and hostile behavior and occupational burnout in a sample of Polish teachers. Material and Methods: In our research we studied a nationwide random sample of 1214 teachers. The frequency and type of hostile behaviors against employees was measured with the use of MDM Questionnaire, (“Mobbing, dręczenie, molestowanie” – “Bullying, harrasement, maltreatment”) by Mościcka, Drabek, Merecz, developed in the Department of Occupational Psychology of the Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine in Łódź (Poland), and the level of burnout was assessed with Maslach Burnout Inventory – General Survey (MBI-GS). Results: As many as 63% of teachers experienced hostile behavior in their workplace and 7% of them experienced workplace bullying. Employees affected by bullying and hostile behavior reported more symptoms of professional burnout, such as emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and lower level of professional efficacy. Conclusions: The majority of teachers in this study experienced some form of hostile behavior in the workplace. One in ten respondents was the subject of workplace bullying. The experience of hostile behavior and bullying at work was significantly connected with symptoms of professional burnout. Therefore, it is desirable to take care of good interpersonal relationships in educational institutions, strengthen teachers’ abilities to cope with difficult interpersonal situations, and implement procedures to prevent bullying and hostile behavior in the workplace. Med Pr 2014;65(4):535–542