Abstract:
Background and rationale: Workplace bullying which has severe negative consequences at
individual, group, organizational and societal level is becoming a growing research interest.
Individual and organizational factors have been studied through previous studies. However,
there are inconsistent findings on individual factors and exposure to workplace bullying.
Aim: This paper examines the impact of individual factors (gender and personality) on being
exposed to workplace bullying in Management faculties in state universities in Sri Lanka.
Proposed methodology: A cross-sectional survey design will be adopted and data will be
collected through self-administered questionnaire. Bullying is assessed using the Negative
Activity Questionnaire (NAQ). The Five Personality Factors Inventory will be used to
measure the personality.
Expected Outcomes: This study contributes to the existing literature with inconsistent
findings on individual factors and workplace bullying. Further, the existence of the workplace
bullying in Sri Lankan academia will be revealed.