Experiences with workplace bullying among athletic trainers in the collegiate setting

Workplace bullying (WPB) is a series of persistent negative interactions that affect a clinician's ability to perform his or her role. Although WPB has been studied in other health professions, to date, no information exists pertaining to WPB in athletic training.

To determine the prevalence of WPB in the collegiate setting and examine factors that influence its occurrence.

Cross-sectional study.

Collegiate setting.

There were 723 (329 female, 394 male) athletic trainers (ATs) aged 37.5 ± 10.4 years.

We collected data via the validated and reliable online Athletic Training Environment Survey. Descriptive statistics were obtained to determine a bullying score for each AT and examine the prevalence of WPB. Chi-square analyses were performed to examine the differences between (1) sex, (2) academic degree level, (3) employment title, and (4) National Athletic Trainers' Association district.

A total of 106 participants (14.7%) had a score of 2 or higher, indicating they were bullied in the athletic training setting. Of those bullied, 47 (44.3%) were women and 59 (55.7%) were men. There was no difference between women and men with respect to having experienced bullying (χ(2)1 = 0.068, P = .794). Moreover, no difference existed in the prevalence of bullying among ATs holding various degrees (χ(2)3 = 6.73, P = .081) or among ATs holding various titles within an organization (χ(2)5 = 3.55, P = .616). More (χ(2)1 = 23.77, P = < .001) perpetrators were male (74.2%, n = 75) than female (25.8%, n = 26); of these, 38.2% (n = 39) were coaches, 17.6% (n = 18) were supervisory ATs, and 8.8% (n = 9) were coworker ATs.

Bullying was experienced by both male and female ATs in the collegiate setting, and a higher number of bullies were male. More research is necessary to explore WPB in other work settings.