Employee reactions to user incivility in academic libraries

Abstract

Workplace incivility and its consequences have been studied by many scholars; however, little attention has been given to the phenomenon in the library environment. More specifically, empirical research in the Library and Information Science (LIS) literature has focused on deviant behaviors, such as bullying, mobbing, and aggression, mainly from colleagues and supervisors rather than from users. However, incivility in the workplace is more common than other forms of negative behaviors, such as aggression. Moreover, in service organizations uncivil behavior from patrons is more frequently encountered than from co-workers and supervisors. In this vein, the current exploratory study aimed to investigate the manifestations and frequency of user incivility, as well as employee reactions to these behaviors in Greek academic libraries. Employee perceptions regarding the causes of user incivility were also explored. Results indicated that users are mainly impatient, angry and make unreasonable demands. These behaviors are attributed to user personality. Finally, respondents reported milder reactions to user incivility compared to those of their colleagues. Implications of the findings for library leaders are also discussed.