Mobbing in Slovenia: Prevalence, Mobbing Victim Characteristics, and the Connection with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Abstract

An increasing number of organizations face the problem of mobbing, which represents a serious, widespread problem with numerous consequences for victims, organizations, and society. We also recognize the connection this phenomenon has with the emergence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD poses one of the most critical consequences for victims of mobbing, who mostly consist of employees at lower organizational levels. Our research focuses on the prevalence of mobbing in Slovenia, its correlation to PTSD, and some differences in the subjective and objective assessments of being exposed to mobbing. We found that the prevalence of mobbing in Slovenia can be compared to some previous assessments as well as data from other countries. Among the study's participants, 24% could be classified as regular victims of mobbing. For the first time, we link mobbing with PTSD using a Slovenian sample. We also recorded some interesting differences between subjective and objective assessments of mobbing, thereby indicating the importance of subjective conceptualizations of mobbing acts, which should be investigated in greater detail in future research.

The prevalence and mental health correlates of exposure to offensive behaviours at work in Hungary: results of a national representative survey

“…Likewise, in Estonia, approximately 90% made similar claims, and in Slovenia, 0% perceived that these behaviours would pose a major concern, while only 5% reported some concern [ 42 ]. Despite these claims, evidence contrarily indicates that these countries are among the many other nations where workplace bullying is a concerning and prevalent risk [ 43 , 44 ]. For instance, in the fourth European Working Conditions Survey, Slovenia was ranked 11th of the 31 countries surveyed into the prevalence of workplace bullying, with Estonia following in the 14th position [ 22 ].…”

“…More recently, research has sought to ascertain a more accurate assessment of the problem in these countries, barring Hungary. To that end, Mumel and colleagues set out to investigate the relationship between offensive workplace behaviours and PTSD [ 43 ]. Their findings suggested, despite the reported low level of concern from Slovenian managers and health and safety representatives, that bullying was a serious problem, with as many as 63% of participants identified as occasional victims of bullying (experienced at least one negative act occasionally or monthly) and 24% as regular victims (experienced at least two negative acts weekly or more often).…”

Presenteeism, Overcommitment, Workplace Bullying, and Job Satisfaction: A Moderated Mediation Relationship

“…On the other hand, although there have been attempts to create better workplaces and obtain job satisfaction within the organization, some negative aspects seem difficult to remove. Some undesirable social dynamics keep happening within the organization; one proof of this is the amount of investigations on mobbing [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]. This undesirable situation is even more dangerous right now due to the found relationship between economic stress and workplace bullying [ 7 ].…”

Mobbing in a Non-Profit Organisation

“…According to this logic, psychological and physical pressures on employees should also, in a way, be smaller. The presence of mobbing in Slovenian companies has already been studied by Brečko (2003), Mumel, Jan, Treven, and Malc (2015)which represents a serious, widespread problem with numerous consequences for victims, organizations, and society. We also recognize the connection this phenomenon has with the emergence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD, confirming its presence as well as its influence on the stress level of workers.…”