Workplace bullying: A qualitative study on experiences of Turkish nurse managers

Abstract

Aim This study was conducted to determine whether workplace bullying by subordinates and superiors is present among nurse managers and, if so, to identify its causes and impact. Background It is important to understand the bullying in the working environment exposed by the nurses forming a great majority of the health sector and the nurse managers who are directly responsible for providing safe and effective patient care. Methods The qualitative study was conducted with a phenomenological design. The study involved administering 11 open-ended, semi-structured, in-depth interview questions to 25 hospital ward nurse managers between November 2016 and March 2017. The interviews were analysed via content analysis. Results At the end of the study, four themes-workplace bullying, reasons for exposure to workplace bullying, impacts of workplace bullying and coping methods for workplace bullying-were discovered. Conclusions The findings revealed that the nurse managers were exposed to bullying in many forms. Implications for Nursing Management It is important to recognize that workplace bullying directly affects the performance of nurse managers in positive and negative ways and to develop strategies to prevent workplace bullying.