Variables socioprofesionales implicadas en el hostigamiento psicológico en enfermería

Variables involved in the perception of psychological harassment in the nursing work environment

This is a descriptive-exploratory study with a quantitative approach, with the objective of identifying how nurses perceive psychological harassment at work, the behaviors experienced and the variables involved. In collecting data, two questionnaires were used: one socio-professional and another for identifying the behaviors involving psychological harassment experienced by the subjects in the previous twelve months, along with the duration and frequency of the behaviors. At the end of the questionnaire, a dichotomous question was added, which addressed nurses' perceptions in relation to feeling victimized by psychological harassment at work. Both the questionnaires were applied in electronic and print format between May and September 2010. The data was analyzed through descriptive statistics. The results showed that some of the subjects felt that they were victims of psychological harassment. Only the variables related to characterization of the psychological harassment presented significant association. The following were highlighted among the most-referred-to behaviors: "They question your decisions" and "You receive verbal attacks criticizing work you have done". It's important to open spaces for discussing violence at work, so that managers may establish strategic measures for preventing and containing this type of violence, so as to ensure health, dignity and well-being at work. It is also important to discuss this issue in the academic space, so as to give the theme greater visibility, such that future nurses will be able to identify and appropriately confront this type of violence.

[Tendency of the studies on moral harassment and nurses]

This is an Integrative Literature Review that aims to analyze productions on moral harassment in nursing published in journals in Brazil and abroad. Articles from 1999 to 2009 were researched in online databases, comprising a sample of 18 publications. After careful reading seven thematic categories were built: evaluation of the moral harassment; behaviors of moral harassment on the part of male nurses; consequences of the moral harassment; coping strategies adopted by nurses; moral harassment in nursing as race and gender discrimination; moral harassment among nursing professionals; institutions as propagators of moral harassment. Results confirm the presence of moral harassment in nursing. However, they indicate that these professionals have been accepting and reproducing this kind of violence as part of the organizational culture, thus showing a need to educate this population and the health institutions themselves about moral harassment and its damages.

Psychological harassment in the nursing workplace: an observational study

Psychological harassment in the workplace involves disrespectful or humiliating behavior to workers. Nurses make up one of the groups that are most exposed to these behaviors. This descriptive study investigated the most common types of psychological harassment in the nursing workplace and their relationship with sociodemographic variables among 285 nurses in Spain. Findings indicate differences in the prevalence of psychological harassment depending on the criterion that was used. Psychological harassment is positively correlated with a desire to abandon the profession and negatively with participation in decision making. The results suggest combining different measures to evaluate psychological harassment in the workplace and zero-tolerance polices for psychological abuse.