How Treating Your Coworkers Poorly Can Affect Your Children

To better understand the effects of workplace incivility on children, the researchers conducted an online survey of 146 working mothers and their spouses. Mothers were asked about their experience with incivility in the workplace as well as their feelings of effectiveness as a parent. Their spouses were also asked to report on the mothers’ negative parenting behaviors.

The data showed a significant association between experiencing rude behavior at work and authoritarian parenting by working mothers at home. Survey results also showed that incivility in the workplace was associated with mothers feeling less effective as parents.

“This style of parenting has been associated with a variety of negative child outcomes, including associating obedience and success with love, exhibiting aggressive behavior outside the home, being fearful or overly shy around others, having difficulty in social situations due to a lack of social competence, suffering from depression and anxiety, and struggling with self-control,” said researcher Angela Dionisi, PhD, of Carleton University.

According to researchers, workplace incivility has also been linked to lower levels of effort and performance on the job, higher levels of stress, plus impaired attention, information processing, and decision-making.