Do you work in a hostile work environment? A shockingly high number of us think so:
Bottom Line: There are two types realities. Actual and perceived. Of course there's a reason why "perception is reality". Whatever our perception of a situation may be, in this case our workplace, is or becomes our reality. With that in mind a new study from the Rand Corp., Harvard Medical School and the University of California in LA have produced results that are pretty alarming. Among the findings:
- 55% of us say we face "unpleasant and potentially hazardous" work place environments
Worse still...
- 20% say they work in a "hostile or threatening" workplace
It's unlikely that actual conditions are quite as awful as these numbers suggest based on economic indicators, workplace engagement surveys, work place satisfaction surveys. However, clearly when specifically asked we're carrying a lot of baggage and negativity around with us in the workplace. These days I think it's important to disengage from optional negativity (in or out of the workplace) to find out what's not optional. At that point you can determine whether you do work in conditions that are problematic. I suspect that the political environment (which previous research has shown commonly spills over into the workplace), is a driving force behind much of what's not acceptable to us.