Dossier 193/2010 [Abstract] Mobbing between individual and group demand. Analysis of an organization through focus group technique

In the last years the attention of media, trade unions and politicians has been increasing on mobbing, considered as a form of moral or psychic violence by the employer or other employees toward one person. Harassing episodes and oppressive situations, more and more often reported, provoke negative consequences both on the single persons and in the work environment. Therefore, many initiatives, also normative one, stress the importance to focus on occupational wellbeing aspects and on their influence on the quality of services provided to citizens.

This report presents the results of the survey “Professionals’ influence on organization’s wellbeing”, conducted between the end of 2006 and the first half of 2007 at a Local Health Trust of Emilia-Romagna by the Regional Agency for Health and Social Care. The survey premise is that a correct reading of mobbing phenomenon, as an expression of interpersonal dynamics, cannot only register the single events, but needs to understand the contextual-organizational framework in which the events occur.

Starting from this consideration, it was decided to gather professionals’ opinion on mobbing and more generally on occupational uneasiness using focus group technique (n. 10, in the period November 2006-April 2007), involving 63 professionals (also managers) of the Health Trust. In particular, the survey was meant at:

• verifying the perception of wellbeing/uneasiness in the Health Trust professionals;
• studying the values at the basis of professional relationships;
• collecting elements on knowledge, perception, diffusion and characteristics of mobbing;
• proving the hypothesis on aspects that could favour the phenomenon, in order to formulate intervention proposals.

The report is organized in four parts. In the first part, information on occupational uneasiness (uneasiness ingredients; “uneasiness maps”), occupational wellbeing (words used by participants to express their idea of wellbeing) and organization’s values (metaphors) is presented. The second part presents data on mobbing, in particular mobbing ingredients, and the identikit of the mobbed person and the mobber. The third part focuses on the analysis of discussion groups emerged during the meetings. In the final part an analysis of “change” as a cross reading key of mobbing and uneasiness is suggested.