title: Who strikes back? A daily investigation of when and why incivility begets incivility.
abstract: Incivility at work-low intensity deviant behaviors with an ambiguous intent to harm-has been on the rise, yielding negative consequences for employees' well-being and companies' bottom-lines. Although examinations of incivility have gained momentum in organizational research, theory and empirical tests involving dynamic, within-person processes associated with this negative interpersonal behavior are limited. Drawing from ego depletion theory, we test how experiencing incivility precipitates instigating incivility toward others at work via reduced self-control. Using an experience sampling design across 2 work weeks, we found that experiencing incivility earlier in the day reduced one's levels of self-control (captured via a performance-based measure of self-control), which in turn resulted in increased instigated incivility later in the day. Moreover, organizational politics-a stable, environmental factor-strengthened the relation between experienced incivility and reduced self-control, whereas construal level-a stable, personal factor-weakened the relation between reduced self-control and instigated incivility. Combined, our results yield multiple theoretical, empirical, and practical implications for the study of incivility at work. (PsycINFO Database Record
authors: Department of Management, University of Arkansas.
authors: Christopher C
authors: CC
authors: Rosen
authors: Department of Management, University of Cincinnati.
authors: Joel
authors: J
authors: Koopman
authors: Department of Management and Organizations, University of Arizona.
authors: Allison S
authors: AS
authors: Gabriel
authors: Department of Management, Michigan State University.
authors: Russell E
authors: RE
authors: Johnson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D058445:Bullying; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015279:Organizational Culture; D000068356:Self-Control / Q000523:psychology*; D012919:Social Behavior; D017132:Workplace / Q000523:psychology*