Earlier this year, I wrote something for the blog that struck a nerve with lots of people.
What was the post? Five Signs Your Boss Might be Making You Sick. Turns out there are a lot of toxic bosses out there.
I didn’t get a lot of public engagement with the post, but I did get a LOT of private messages, all some variation of: “That really hit home. I didn’t comment or “like” because I didn’t want my boss to see.” Read it if you haven’t, and let me know what you think. (If you want to keep it between us, you can always message me directly.)
Recently a friend sent me this article. Research out of Ohio State University shows that employees consistently let high performing managers get away with abusive behavior – they view it as tough love as opposed to abuse.
“If employees see their boss as a successful leader, that seems to be incompatible with being abusive. So they label the abuse as something more positive, like ‘tough love.’” says lead author of the study, Robert Lount.
Some might see the study as excusing toxic leadership – since the teams and leaders are, after all, producing results. But the authors are quick to note that this is not the right conclusion. From the article, “There is overwhelming evidence from years of research that abusive leadership is not good for employees or organizations, they said. In fact, other research suggests that successful bosses known for their ‘tough love’ approach might be even more successful if they used more accepted management techniques.”
Those of us who have experienced abusive leadership also understand the cost. This weekend I read a book co-authored by Gary Chapman (the psychologist behind the Five Love Languages) called Rising Above a Toxic Workplace: Taking Care of Yourself in an Unhealthy Environment. The authors often refer to the psychological, emotional, and often implications of toxic work environments. “The environment causes people to have physiological responses as if they are in fight-or-flight situations. Healthy people become ill. Immune systems are less effective.”
If you or someone you love has been a part of a toxic work environment, you have likely seen the impact first hand. Yet these leaders continue to behave in this way, and all too often, their behavior is excused.
What can we do to change this culture?
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