How has cyber technology created opportunities for workplace deviance?
Technology has made society a little bit easier for us to enjoy. Food, cars, artwork, even World War II military aircraft can be delivered anywhere with a simple stroke of some keys and buttons. It really is a marvelous and exciting time we live in. However, technology also has its darker side as humans abuse the tech for their own selfish needs, especially deviance in the workplace. To better understand this let us define workplace deviance. Workplace deviance is a considered to be “… employee actions that run contrary to organizational norms and values and may potentially cause harm to the organization are labeled as employee deviance” (Bennett and Robinson 2000‚2003; Keen 1981; Marakas and Homik 1996; Markus 1983). Examples of deviant behavior can include Aggressive (intimidation or sexual harassment), Unproductive (wasting time, late for work), or Abuse of property (deface work areas, theft of office supplies) type behaviors. Deviance in the workplace is not a new concept as this type of behavior has been taking place for centuries.
Most (if not all) businesses today use some form of technology (web page, electronic spreadsheets, electronic credit card readers, smart phones, etc.) to assist with their day-to-day business tasks. Now that the tech has made the running of a business a little bit simpler; the tech has also made it easier for anyone to commit workplace deviance. Workplace tech (like computers, phones, tablets, etc.) provides culpable parties with more tools to help enact revenge, bully, sexual harass, or other deviant behavior. For instance, in 2015, a senior executive of the Dallas Cowboys football team was accused of using a cellphone to record the undressing of Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders in their locker room. This example clearly shows how technology made it easier for the gentlemen to execute his deviant voyeuristic behavior. I am sure he would have found another way to implement this behavior; however, the cell phone was a tool to better aid his behavior. Workplace deviance will likely never be eradicated; however, it (like cybersecurity education) needs to be addressed because if this behavior is allowed to get out of control it can quickly cause a volatile workplace, and this is not good for any business.
Sources
Tapia, A. (2004). RESISTANCE OR DEVIANCE? A High-Tech Workplace During the Bursting of the Dot-Com Bubble [Review of RESISTANCE OR DEVIANCE? A High-Tech Workplace During the Bursting of the Dot-Com Bubble]. https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/1-4020-8095-6_31.pdf
Weatherbee, T., & Kelloway, E. (n.d.). A Case of Cyberdeviancy: Cyberaggression in the Workplace. Handbook of Workplace Violence, 445–488. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412976947.n19
Bennett‚ R. J.‚ and Robinson‚ S. L. “The Past Present and Future of Workplace Deviance Research‚” in J. Greenberg (ed.) ‚ Organizational Behavior: The State of the Science‚ Mahwah‚ NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates‚ 2003.
Marakas‚ G. M.‚ and Hornik‚ S. “Passive Resistance Misuse: Overt Support and Covert Recalcitrate in IS Implementation‚” European Journal of Information Systems (5:3) ‚ 1996‚ pp. 208-220.
Markus‚ M. L. “Power‚ Politics‚ and MIS Implementation‚” Communications of the ACM (26:6) ‚ 1983‚ pp. 430-444.