An Individual Psychology Approach to Underlying Factors of Workplace Bullying

Abstract

The phenomenon of workplace bullying is complex, as the various theoretical interpretations of its underlying factors reflect. The field, however, is lacking a holistic view of the antecedents of the phenomenon. Individual Psychology is a useful theory for explaining the underlying factors of workplace bullying because it provides insights related to dysfunctional behavior, principles for successful implementation of the work task, the impact of the social context, and viewing of the individual from a holistic perspective. This article explains the underlying factors of workplace bullying based on the Individual Psychology principles of family of origin, belonging, inferiority and superiority dynamics, social interest, lifestyle, and social context of an organization.