Is quiet quitting a quiet killer?
New research has found that rude behavior on the job “could have potentially life-threatening consequences” to recipients and beyond.
“Many workplaces treat rudeness as a minor interpersonal issue,” said University of Florida researcher Amir Erez. “Our research shows that it’s a major threat to productivity and even safety. Organizations should treat it as such.”
The new study, now published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, found that several industries such as health care see a legitimate risk to those slighted by rude co-workers by reducing their functionality abilities.
In one of the studies, “mild rude comments” swayed a medical team’s performance by 44%.
On a team level, rudeness brought on selfish behavior among peers and stifled both “cooperation and coordination essential for effective teamwork.”
This was highly evident in sharing workloads and information with one another.
In healthcare, it brought on “poorer execution of lifesaving procedures.
“It’s a powerful reminder that the way we interact with each other has real-world consequences, especially in critical situations,” said researcher Jake Gale of Indiana University.
Although the medical field was noted as the most life-threatening line of work where codes of conduct should be followed, treating colleagues properly should be universal for all careers, the researchers preach.
In short, a team or company’s morale depends on it.
The researchers stress that corporations should build training around this to help employees focus on “resilience and mindfulness.”
“As our understanding of workplace dynamics evolves, our research underscores a critical point: in the quest for high-performing teams, sometimes the smallest courtesies can make the biggest difference,” Erez said.
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