Have you witnessed or been made aware of culture damaging behaviours taking place at Culture Shift?
According to Smart Pension, almost 6 in 10 people have witnessed or suffered bullying in the workplace. Yet far fewer choose to report the incident, particularly witnesses.
This is due in part to something called the Bystander Effect, which according to Very Well Mind is “a phenomenon in which the greater the number of people present, the less likely people are to help a person in distress.”
The ‘diffusion of responsibility’ is to blame, with people assuming others will take action or report what they have seen. When this happens it can make it much more difficult for organisations to learn what is happening, support the victims of the behaviour or take action to address the problem.
The importance of the active bystander
Inaction due to the bystander effect is why it’s so important for witnesses of culture damaging behaviours to take on the role of an active bystander and report what they have seen or heard.
If you’ve witnessed an incident of unacceptable behaviour, you can help bring about positive change by using Report + Support. Your voice can help us to identify problems and prevent your colleagues from experiencing behaviour that threatens their mental health and wellbeing.
Be a voice for others
Even though we’re committed to taking every report we receive seriously, there can be many reasons why the targets of bullying and harassment choose not to report incidents. They may be traumatised by the incident or have concerns about what might happen to them if it’s their word against the perpetrator's.
Even if a target of such behaviour does make a report, a corroborating account of events will help us to build up a clearer picture of what has happened and take the right action.
Without reports, however, we may never be aware of what has happened. That could mean destructive patterns of behaviour continue, leading to more suffering for the target as well as the potential for similar incidents to happen to more people in the future.
The good news is that reporting unacceptable behaviour with Report + Support is a simple and confidential process, with the option for anonymity. Your voice can make a difference to the people you work with and the future of the organisation. Don’t stay silent.