Measuring exposure to bullying and harassment at work: Validity, factor structure and psychometric properties of the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised

TLDR

The study examines the psychometric properties, factor structure, and validity of the revised Negative Acts Questionnaire‑Revised (NAQ‑R) as a tool for measuring workplace bullying exposure. Criterion validity was assessed by correlating NAQ‑R scores with a single‑item perceived victimization measure, revealing strong associations with the total score and each of the three factors. The NAQ‑R demonstrated high internal consistency, a three‑factor structure (personal, work‑related, and physical bullying) that can also be used as a single factor, and strong correlations with perceived victimization, mental health, psychosocial environment, and leadership; latent class analysis distinguished exposure levels, and the instrument reliably identifies bullying targets, supporting its use as a standardized, valid measure. Keywords include bullying, harassment, victimization, survey, inventory, prevalence, and the Negative Acts Questionnaire.

Abstract

Abstract This study investigates the psychometric properties, factor structure and validity of the revised Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R), an instrument designed to measure exposure to bullying in the workplace. By reanalyzing data based on a heterogeneous sample of 5288 UK employees, the results show that the 22-item instrument has a high internal stability, with three underlying factors: personal bullying, work-related bullying and physically intimidating forms of bullying, although the instrument may also be used as a single factor measure. Criterion validity was explored by relating the scores on the NAQ-R to a single-item measure of perceived victimization from bullying, showing high correlations with both the total NAQ-R and scores on the three factors. Targets of bullying scored significantly higher on all 22 items compared to non-targets. The NAQ-R correlated as expected with measures of mental health, psychosocial work environment and leadership, indicating a good construct validity of the instrument. Furthermore, a latent class cluster (LCC) analysis showed that the instrument may be used to differentiate between groups of employees with different levels of exposure to bullying, ranging from infrequent exposure to incivility at work to severe victimization from bullying and harassment. The more commonly used operational criteria can also be used to detect targets of bullying. Hence, the NAQ-R is proposed as a standardized and valid instrument for the measurement of workplace bullying. Keywords: bullyingharassmentvictimizationsurveyinventoryprevalenceNegative Acts Questionnaire