DOI: 10.5176/2251-3426_THoR15.3
Authors: Matthew H. T. Yap and Elizabeth M. Ineson
Abstract: This exploratory study aims to determine and analyze hospitality interns’ workplace bullying (WB) issues. A qualitative philosophy was adopted. It required 85 culturally diverse hospitality interns to complete a semi-structured questionnaire; subsequently a subsample of 22 interns volunteered to narrate heard/seen/experienced WB incidents while on internships in Switzerland. The questionnaire data were manipulated using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 22, while the narratives were analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The interns have encountered WB while on internships due to widespread incidents. The causes were attributed to negative emotions, race disparity, gender, country of origin and unequal stati. The consequences were negative psychological and physical health outcomes for both individuals and organizations. This study recommends the cooperation of interns, internship providers and hospitality institutions in Switzerland to combat WB.
Keywords: workplace bullying; qualitative research; hospitality industry; Switzerland; internship; experiential learning
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