Published date: Dec 07 2023

Journal Title: KnE Social Sciences

Issue title: The International Conference on Environmental, Social and Governance (ICESG 2022)

Pages: 393–408

DOI: 10.18502/kss.v8i20.14617

Siti Khadijah Zainal BadriSitiKhadijah.Zainal@nottingham.edu.myDivision of Organisational and Applied Psychology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus

Sheryl L.F. ChiengDivision of Organisational and Applied Psychology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus

The entering of new cohorts into the workforce like millennials and gen-Z has sparked many discussions on strategies to sustain them at work. Studies have suggested that each generation is bound to unique qualities which distinguish one group from another. Despite the newer generation starting to occupy the workplace that was once dominated by baby boomers, there is still a lack of understanding towards occupational behaviours of other generations like millennials. Besides popular opinions of tech-savvy and emotionally vulnerable generations (especially in comparison to baby boomers), more comprehensive research is needed to understand the pattern and risk factors for their wellbeing concerns. In this paper, we investigate the prevalence of various aspects of toxic behaviour at work towards millennial employee wellbeing from the perspective of work-family conflict, burnout, and mental health. The objective is to address and identify patterns related to the problematic workplace that can affect millennials wellbeing at work. Results were analysed using SPSS software by using descriptive, correlation, and logistic regression methods with samples of 133 millennial workers. Findings suggest that the millennial experience of toxic behaviour at work were linked to the increased commonness of risk of wellbeing problems in terms of mental health and burnout symptoms. This paper highlights the importance of managing toxic behaviours and events for millennial employees at work. The millennial generation often thrives on the emotional aspect of work while showing an increased risk of wellbeing problems such as burnout, when exposed to a problematic environment. This paper therefore suggests the importance of sustaining and promoting a healthy working environment for the millennial generation to flourish.

Keywords: toxic work environment, wellbeing, burnout, mental health, work-family conflict

[1] Allen BC, Holland P, Reynolds R. The effect of bullying on burnout in nurses: the moderating role of psychological detachment. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 2015 Feb;71(2):381–390.

[2] Anjum A, Ming X. Combating toxic workplace environment: an empirical study in the context of Pakistan. Journal of Model Management. 2018;13(3):675–697.

[3] Anjum A, Ming X, Siddiqi AF, Rasool SF. An empirical study analyzing job productivity in toxic workplace environments. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2018 May;15(5):1035.

[4] Ariza-Montes A, Muniz NM, Montero-Simó MJ, Araque-Padilla RA. Workplace bullying among healthcare workers. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2013 Jul;10(8):3121–3139.

[5] Badri SK, Yap WM, Ramos HM. Workplace affective well-being: Gratitude and friendship in helping millennials to thrive at work. International Journal of Organization Analysis. 2021.

[6] Chillakuri B, Mogili R. Managing millennials in the digital era: Building a sustainable culture. Human Resource Management International Digest. . 2018;26(3):7–10.

[7] Ciby M, Raya RP. Workplace bullying: A review of the defining features, measurement methods and prevalence across continents. IIM Kozhikode Society & Management Review. 2015;4(1):38–47.

[8] Conway PM, Høgh A, Balducci C, Ebbesen DK. Workplace bullying and mental health. Pathways of job-related negative behaviour. 2021:101-128.

[9] Demsky CA, Ellis AM, Fritz C. Shrugging it off: Does psychological detachment from work mediate the relationship between workplace aggression and work-family conflict? Journal of Occupational Health Psychology. 2014 Apr;19(2):195–205.

[10] Enos G. Millennials, Generation Z targeted in new mental health initiative. Mental Health Weekly. 2020;30(39):1–5.

[11] Ferri-Reed J. Millennials-generation” screwed” or generation” shrewd? Journal of Quality Participation. 2013;36(1):22.

[12] Galderisi S, Heinz A, Kastrup M, Beezhold J, Sartorius N. Toward a new definition of mental health. World Psychiatry. 2015 Jun;14(2):231–233.

[13] Greenhaus JH, Beutell NJ. Sources of conflict between work and family roles. Academic Management Review. 1985;10(1):76–88.

[14] Greenwood K, Anas J. It’sa new era for mental health at work. Harvard Business Review. 2021.

[15] Hakanen JJ, Bakker AB, Schaufeli WB. Burnout and work engagement among teachers. Journal of School Psychology. 2006;43(6):495–513.

[16] Hershatter A, Epstein M. Millennials and the world of work: An organization and management perspective. Journal of Business Psychology. 2010;25(2):211–223.

[17] Islam T, Ali M, Jamil S, Ali HF. How workplace bullying affects nurses’ well-being? The roles of burnout and passive avoidant leadership. International Journal of Human Rights Healthcare. 2021.

[18] Khoo S. Academic mobbing: Hidden health hazard at workplace. Malaysian Family Physician. 2010 Aug;5(2):61–67.

[19] Kozáková R, Bužgová R, Zeleníková R. Mobbing of nurses: Prevalence, forms and psychological consequences in the moravian-silesian region. Cesk Psychology. 2018;62(4):316–329.

[20] Laschinger HK, Grau AL, Finegan J, Wilk P. New graduate nurses’ experiences of bullying and burnout in hospital settings. Journal of Advanced Nursing. . 2010 Dec;66(12):2732–2742.

[21] Leiter MP, Bakker AB, Maslach C, editors. Burnout at work: A psychological perspective. Psychology Press; 2014. https://doi.org/10.4324/978131589416

[22] Leymann H. The content and development of mobbing at work. European Journal of Work Organization in Psychol. 1996;5(2):165–184.

[23] Liang HL. How workplace bullying relates to facades of conformity and work–family conflict: The mediating role of psychological strain. Psychological Reports: Sage Journals. 2020 Dec;123(6):2479–2500.

[24] Maslach C, Schaufeli WB, Leiter MP. Job burnout. Annual Review Psychology. 2001;52(1):397–422.

[25] Mauno S, Kinnunen U, Pyykkö M. Does work–family conflict mediate the relationship between work–family culture and self￿reported distress? Evidence from five Finnish organizations. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. 2005;78(4):509–530.

[26] Medina-Craven MN, Ostermeier K. Investigating justice and bullying among healthcare workers. Employee Relations: The International Journal. 2020.

[27] Moen P, Chesley N. Toxic job ecologies, time convoys, and work-family conflict: Can families (re) gain control and life-course “fit”? Handbook of Work-Family Integration. Academic Press; 2008:95–122.

[28] Novitasari D Sr, Sasono I Sr, Asbari M Sr. Work-family conflict and worker’s performance during Covid-19 pandemic: What is the role of readiness to change mentality [IJSMS]. International Journal of Science and Management Studies. 2020;3(4):122–134.

[29] Okcu V, Çetin H. Investigating the relationship among the level of mobbing experience, job satisfaction and burnout levels of primary and secondary school teachers. Universal Journal of Educational Research. 2017;5(1):148–161.

[30] Pejtersen JH, Kristensen TS, Borg V, Bjorner JB. The second version of the Copenhagen psychosocial questionnaire. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. 2010 Feb;38(3 Suppl):8–24.

[31] Petersen AH. How millennials became the burnout generation. BuzzFeed News, 5. 2019.

[32] Powell GN. Work–family lockdown: Implications for a post-pandemic research Raagenda. Gender Management. 2020;35(7/8):639–646.

[33] Quine L. Workplace bullying in NHS community trust: Staff questionnaire survey. BMJ. 1999 Jan;318(7178):228–232.

[34] Quine L. Workplace bullying in nurses. Journal of Health Psychology. 2001 Jan;6(1):73–84.

[35] Raines C. Managing millennials. Connecting Generations: The Sourcebook, 16. 2002.

[36] Rasool SF, Wang M, Tang M, Saeed A, Iqbal J. How toxic workplace environment effects the employee engagement: The mediating role of organizational support and employee wellbeing. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021 Feb;18(5):2294.

[37] Rasool SF, Wang M, Zhang Y, Samma M. Sustainable work performance: The roles of workplace violence and occupational stress. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2020 Feb;17(3):912.

[38] Stein J. Millennials: The me me me generation. Time magazine, 20. 2013:1-8.

[39] Ullah R, Siddiqui F, Zafar MS, Iqbal K. Bullying experiences of dental interns working at four dental institutions of a developing country: A cross-sectional study. Work. 2018;61(1):91–100.

[40] Verkuil B, Atasayi S, Molendijk ML. Workplace bullying and mental health: A meta-analysis on cross-sectional and longitudinal data. PLoS One. 2015 Aug;10(8):e0135225.

[41] Wang Z, Zaman S, Rasool SF, Zaman QU, Amin A. Exploring the relationships between a toxic workplace environment, workplace stress, and project success with the moderating effect of organizational support: Empirical evidence from Pakistan. Risk Management and Healthcare Policy. 2020 Aug;13:1055–1067.

[42] Yap WM, Badri SK. What makes millennials happy in their workplace? Asian Academy of Management Journal. 2020;25(1).

[43] Yap WM, Badri SK, Yunus WM, Mansilla O. Empowering millennials working in small and medium enterprises (SMEs)’affective wellbeing: Role of volition, justice and meaning at work. Singapore Conference of Applied Psychology. Singapore: Springer. 2022:163–77.

[44] Zapf D. Organisational, work group related and personal causes of mobbing/bullying at work. International Journal of Manpower. 1999;20(1/2):70–85.