Workplace Bullying Institute



Book Review:
Driving Fear Out of the Workplace

by Dan Oestrich and Kathleen Ryan
Jossey-Bass, 1991



We all know someone who "manages" through intimidation. Angry outbursts, abrasive tones, perhaps even abusive or threatening language, are used to force compliance in the organization. On the surface, this approach seems to work. Employees back down and follow the manager's dictates. Below the surface, however, the reality is a culture of apathy and cynicism. It is an environment of fear.

In Driving Fear Out of the Workplace, authors Dan Oestrich and Kathleen Ryan share one employee's account of an incident of this kind:

"I did not think my boss was technically competent. Our conversations would get adamant and personal. He would twist my words, so that I felt 'damned if I did and damned if I didn't.' I did a lot of rear-end covering. All our conversations degenerated into him yelling at me and my leaving. He violated my personal space, and I felt trapped and became afraid he would assault me.

"At the end of one workday after many others had left, he followed me into my cubicle. He whispered harshly, 'You will do this!' I backed up to a corner. His fists were clenching and unclenching. He was breathing rapidly and his shoulders were heaving up and down. He had a wild look in his eyes. I thought he was going to hit me. At that point my values kicked in. 'You're harassing me,' I said to him. My boss defused at that point and walked away. Nobody was there to help.

"I fell apart. It was hell. I went home and called the employee relations rep. I was afraid to go back to work. As far as I know, he was never reprimanded. He wasn't fired. I had a real fear for a long time afterward about working at night. It was a feeling of terror."

Ramifications of Fear in the Workplace

It is easy to see from this example that fear is not conducive to a company's success. The behavior demonstrated by the manager is the kind that severs working relationships, destroys trust, and devastates morale. If there is compliance, there is not commitment. Productivity, risk-taking and innovation suffer, as do the employees.

And one other interesting thing happens: fear creates an environment of "undiscussables." These, according to the authors, are crucial business issues that need to be addressed -- that need to be brought up in front of management -- but they are not because employees fear repercussions.

"Their concerns are all about powerlessness. People feel there will be a loss of reputation or credibility, a lack of career advancement, damage to their relationship with their boss, or loss of employment."

The Effects of Undiscussables

- Negative feelings about the organization
- Increased political behavior
- Transfers and resignations
- Sabotage
- Lack of extra effort
- Hiding mistakes and providing false information
- No effort on the most important problems facing the business
- Reduced innovation and risk-taking
- Loss of self-esteem
- Cynicism and negative feelings, which become a pervasive, permanent feature of the organization
- Reduced commitment

"The most undiscussed issues in a corporation deal with management practices which comprise half of the things that people do not discuss. Only 10% of what they do not discuss is about co-worker performance."

Causes of Fear in the Workplace

In the example cited earlier, the manager's behavior toward the employee was overtly aggressive. There are a number of less extreme, perhaps more subtle behaviors which also generate fear in the workplace. These include:

  • poor management of personnel systems
  • ineffective problem-solving and decision-making
  • secretive decision-making
  • indirect communication
  • unresponsiveness to input or suggestions
  • inconsistency or mixed messages
  • uninviting behavior, e.g., unfriendliness
  • unethical behavior, e.g., taking credit for others' ideas
    • Common to all of these behaviors is an ambiguous nature, which causes employees to constantly be "on guard."

    "In (one) company, the CEO had a reputation for blowing his stack. He would get so angry that his pant legs would hike up. There was an underground rating system among the managers about whether a particular episode was a 'one-leg' or 'two-leg' tantrum."

    Eliminating Fear from the Workplace

    As leaders of our organizations, it is incumbent upon us to drive fear out of the workplace. This is a crucial part of our role as the ecologist of the organization.

    Key to this, according to Oestrich and Ryan, is to establish "a new vision of workplace relationships." This new vision cultivates a working environment in which all employees, regardless of hierarchical levels, adopt core behaviors which have been found to be the most satisfying qualities of co-worker relationships.

    According to the authors' research, these core behaviors include:

  • mutual helpfulness, understanding and trust
  • serving as a reality check for one another
  • providing feedback for one another, on strengths and weaknesses
  • influencing each other's ideas and decisions; willingness to be influenced
  • humor; enjoyment of each other's company
  • creative, synergistic problem-solving where the results are greater than the sum of the parts
  • respect for different backgrounds and talents; reliance on each other's expertise
  • willingness and ability to work through conflicts and disagreements
  • common commitment to the same goal; commitment to each other's success
  • a high level of rapport and honesty with one another
  • straightforward communication

    • "These qualities suggest an interpersonal relationship which genuinely supports the performance and success of both people... In such relationships there are strong feelings of trust. Collaboration is seen as a joyful, positive thing, even when it includes or has been generated by disagreement. When undiscussable issues are discovered, they are quickly brought to the surface. Conflicts and negative feedback, while still painful, are recognized as a powerful source of mutual learning and growth. People can be vulnerable with one another and confident that their interpersonal risks will pay off."

    "Such relationships clearly contribute to the development of each person's competence and sense of personal well-being. At their best, they include a high level of rapport and mutual understanding which gives work a special sense of purpose and value. The high quality of this partnership and the high quality of the work produced are inseparable."

    In this situation, the manager and employee adopt the same core behaviors as co-workers, yet maintain different areas of expertise and accountability. Thus, although there are differences in "formal hierarchical power," the quality of the relationship between a manager and employee (as people) should be the same as the quality of the relationship between co-workers.

    "This vision of workplace relationships represents a significant shift from models that emphasize control, separation of functions, and authority differences. Interdependence and cooperation between individuals -- be they boss, employee, or peers -- are essential to success. For the manager and the employee, this vision defines a level of equality in which both flourish. When people know that they are fully and equally committed to one another's success, there is no room for fear to exist."

    10 Skills Required to Establish a High-Trust Environment

    Building a high-trust environment in which all employees adopt the core behaviors may take some time and effort, but you can facilitate this by serving as a role model to your people. Here, the authors offer 10 skills you should employ:

    1. Demonstrate that you are listening. Listen accurately to what others are saying.
    2. Serve as a role model. Be willing to do what you ask others to do.
    3. Be an initiator. Take the lead in turning fear into trust.
    4. Be open to feedback. You will need to be able to accept sensitive feedback about your own communication and leadership style.
    5. Be willing to make personal changes. Be open to adjusting personal behavior as a result of feedback or other learning.
    6. Be vigilant. Stay in touch with the work environment and observe the behaviors of others.
    7. Deal with your own fear of speaking up. Encourage others to speak up, as well.
    8. Facilitate, rather than direct, discussions and meetings. Be a catalyst for others' discussion and reflection.
    9. Take a developmental, learning-oriented approach. See the experience of reducing fear as a way to create new insights for yourself and others.
    10. If you feel that you are in over your head with interpersonal or group dynamics, seek the services of an outside consultant who will help in the problem-solving process.

    Thanks to Craig