research
The abrasive leader
An abrasive leader is “any individual charged with managerial authority whose interpersonal behavior causes emotional distress in coworkers sufficient to disrupt organizational functioning” (Crawshaw, 2005, p. 5).
Levinson asserted the leader who has an abrasive personality will “puzzle, dismay, frustrate, and enrage others in organizations.” He further remarked these, “Men and women of high, sometimes brilliant, achievement who stubbornly insist on having their own way, and are contemptuous of others, are the bane of bosses, subordinates, peers, and colleagues.”
(Levinson, 1978, p. 87).
“Although these leaders are interested in production and achieve short-term results, abrasive leaders are, simultaneously, destructive to those around them.”
(Tucker, 2019, p. 9)
THE FIVE MOST
COMMONLY USED
ABRASIVE BEHAVIORS
Overcontrol
Threats
Public Humiliation
Condescension
Overreaction
(Crawshaw, 2013, p. 6)
the prevalence of psychological aggression
Psychological aggression in the workplace is not uncommon.
95% of employees
indicated they had,
within a 5-year time span,
some exposure to
bullying behaviors.
(Fox & Stallworth, 2005)
the harm for coworkers
The negative impact of psychological aggression in the workplace is undisputed.
80.5% of employees
who felt targeted by psychological aggression communicated, “No other event in their life affected them more negatively than the [workplace] bully," even though the research participants, collectively also experienced divorce, bereavement, and grave illness.
(Mikkelsen and Einarsen, 2002, p. 98)
the impact upon production and organizational culture
Psychological aggression decreases productivity and negatively impacts organizational culture.
In response to psychological aggression, coworkers may
• Demonstrate aggression
(Burton & Hoobler, 2011)
•Decrease effort
(Harris, Harvey, & Kaemar, 2011)
•Reduce performance
(Tepper, Moss, & Duffy, 2011)
•Decrease organizational citizenship
(Rafferty & Restubog, 2011; Xu, Huang, Lam, & Miao, 2012)
•Increase workplace deviance, resistance, and/or retaliation against another employee or the organization
(Bowling & Michel, 2011; Mitchell & Ambrose, 2007)
16.00
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE
In essence,
production declines
and culture is
negatively impacted.
Change course: the benefit of a workplace intervention
Thirty years of research indicates Boss Whispering® has an 85% success rate in helping leaders develop acceptable interpersonal workplace behaviors.
QUOTES FROM FORMERLY ABRASIVE LEADERS
“While I never intentionally threatened anybody, I think it was perceived…No one was ever fired. No one ever walked out, and we still have very little turnover. But my behavior was definitely counter to the culture that I helped create and would want.”
“I didn’t realize if someone judged my mood to be negative how it draws down the morale in the company…I had a much bigger [negative] impact than I realized.”
“Ironically, when I was not behaving abrasively people actually performed better. Actually, they delivered a better work product, more timely, when I was not abrasive.”
“Right now, during our VP meetings, there is a lot of great stuff going on…The team at this moment…is really humming.”
CEO & President, 2018.
“I’ve gotten to be quite a good leader through all this training…Now, I’ve learned through all this training how to be that leader.”
Safety Director, 2018.
“I saw myself one way, but then there was how others saw me.”
“I had lacked situational awareness for years. Years.”
“Having gone through the program, I gained insight into my own behaviors and I developed some level of emotional intelligence. The whole thing has just helped me better understand who I was–my evolutionary journey. I had to learn to like myself. I am at a much better place now.”
Surgeon, 2018
All quotes are from research participants as they reflected back on their journey away from the use of abrasive behavior.
(Tucker, 2019)
Additional research
Below you will find links to further research. The sources for the above statistics can be found in the reference pages from Dr. Tucker’s dissertation.
Research, publications, and speaking engagements by Dr. Crawshaw about the Boss Whispering® method can be located by clicking this link.
Dr. Tucker’s dissertation, which tells numerous stories of three formerly abrasive leaders and their experience in moving away from the use of abrasive behavior, can be found at 2019.06.06 Published Dissertation