Abstract:

The social nature of the workplace presents the potential for conflicting personalities and unfair treatment. Mistreatment in the form of favouritism, verbal abuse, bullying, physical abuse, sexual harassment among others is rife in Nigerian workplaces. This study explores the phenomenon of mistreatment as a deviant workplace behaviour, its root causes and practical strategies that may be employed in preventing it. To enable a robust framework, a systematic review of literature was the primary means of enquiry. Utilising equity theory and social cognitive theory to explain the perception, practice and proliferation of mistreatment in organisations, practical preventive measures are deduced. It was found that organisations need to take a proactive approach to curbing mistreatment by putting in place policies that attract the right personalities, promote appropriate behaviour and control deviance. A Workplace Mistreatment Prevention Model that can be utilised by organisations is proposed.