This article investigates the long-term effect of role ambiguity on exposure to bullying, how this may be driven by a hostile work climate, and how supportive leadership is the key to buffering this effect.

CIPD member content

This content is only available for CIPD members

Reviewed by

Jake Young, Research Associate

Jake joined the CIPD in 2018, having completed a master’s degree in Social Science Research Methods at the University of Nottingham. He also holds an undergraduate degree in Criminology and Sociology.

Jake’s research interests concern aspects of equality, diversity and inclusion, such as inequality, gender and identity in the workplace. Jake is currently involved in the creation of a research project examining the effectiveness of organisational recruitment programmes and their relationship with workplace performance.

Jake leads research on the CIPD Good Work Index programme of work, exploring the key dimensions of job quality in the UK. Jake has also written several CIPD evidence reviews on a variety of organisational topics, including employee engagement, employee resilience and digital work and wellbeing.

More on this topic

Factsheets
Leadership in the workplace

The basics of leadership and how to develop leaders in the workplace

Thought leadership
Prepare for new duty to prevent sexual harassment

Employers need to be ready to protect employees from sexual harassment under a new statutory obligation

CIPD Viewpoint
Bullying and harassment

Explore the CIPD’s point of view on bullying and harassment, including recommendations for employers

Latest Bitesize research

Bitesize research
Using algorithms to make decisions ethically and responsibly

Algorithms can help speed decisions and help organisations to operate more efficiently or profitably, but what are the pitfalls particularly from an ethical perspective?

For Members
Bitesize research
How to start using AI as an HRM assistant

An exploration of how generative AI tools like ChatGPT can be used effectively to support human resource management

For Members
Bitesize research
Pay cuts as an alternative to redundancies

When cost savings are required, what is the impact of making pay cuts instead of redundancies?

For Members
Bitesize research
Improving feedback to improve performance

This research outlines recommendations for making feedback discussions more constructive

For Members
All Bitesize research