The effects of personality and spirituality on workplace incivility perceptions

Abstract

The relationships between negative affectivity (NA), locus of control, agreeableness, and workplace spirituality were tested with workplace incivility perceptions. Hundred and two part-time and full-time college students, 90 of whom were aged 25 and older, completed measures of the previous variables; measures of remaining Five Factor Model traits, civility, and social desirability were administered for supplemental purposes. Significant relationships were found between NA and incivility, agreeableness and incivility, and workplace spirituality and incivility. Workplace spirituality provided a unique contribution in the prediction of incivility perceptions. The spirituality measure was factor analyzed to test factors’ relationships with incivility when controlling for the related construct of civility. Spirituality components of meaning and spiritual blocks were found to predict incivility perceptions independently of civility scores. Results suggest that spirituality levels affect incivility perceptions above and beyond that of traditional personality variables.

Keywords:

• incivility
• civility
• workplace spirituality
• personality
• locus of control
• spirituality
• Big Five personality factors