Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems
Various forms of silence counteract the idea of an open organisation. A work environment in which employees express themselves freely about risks and problems, is a prerequisite for a sustainable and safe working environment. Diverse types of risks and problems must be detected, discussed and when r...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences and Humanities Open |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S259029112500302X |
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| author | Kristina Hermansson Erica Nordlander Lotta Dellve |
| author_facet | Kristina Hermansson Erica Nordlander Lotta Dellve |
| author_sort | Kristina Hermansson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Various forms of silence counteract the idea of an open organisation. A work environment in which employees express themselves freely about risks and problems, is a prerequisite for a sustainable and safe working environment. Diverse types of risks and problems must be detected, discussed and when relevant reported and subsequently managed. In relation to other factors, gender-stereotypical norms influence safety and health management, and affect communication regarding risks and injuries. By using focus groups and individual interviews, this study aims to investigate how employees' silence and communication about risks and problems in the workplace relate to gender norms, focusing municipal organisations in Sweden. The theoretical starting point is a critical gender perspective, focusing employee communication and silence. The research questions are: (i) What gendered norms can be found in employees' communication regarding risks and problems at work? (ii) How are these norms being manifested verbally? (iii) In what ways may these norms affect employee communication including silence? Analyses of clusters of gendered norms influencing employees’ communication about risks and problems at their workplace identified two themes: norms of toughness and norms of niceness. Both of them may pave the way for a workplace culture, where employees withhold information to avoid negative consequences; hence striving to maintain their position in the group rather than contributing to a safer, better-functioning working environment for everyone. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-30c8edd4877f411aa9339d706b7f4c2f |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2590-2911 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences and Humanities Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-30c8edd4877f411aa9339d706b7f4c2f2025-08-20T03:30:51ZengElsevierSocial Sciences and Humanities Open2590-29112025-01-011110157410.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101574Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problemsKristina Hermansson0Erica Nordlander1Lotta Dellve2Department of Literature, History of Ideas and Religion, University of Gothenburg, Box 100, 405 30, Gothenburg, Sweden; Corresponding author.Department of Sociology and Work Science, University of Gothenburg, Box 720, 405 30, Göteborg, SwedenDepartment of Sociology and Work Science, University of Gothenburg, Box 720, 405 30, Göteborg, SwedenVarious forms of silence counteract the idea of an open organisation. A work environment in which employees express themselves freely about risks and problems, is a prerequisite for a sustainable and safe working environment. Diverse types of risks and problems must be detected, discussed and when relevant reported and subsequently managed. In relation to other factors, gender-stereotypical norms influence safety and health management, and affect communication regarding risks and injuries. By using focus groups and individual interviews, this study aims to investigate how employees' silence and communication about risks and problems in the workplace relate to gender norms, focusing municipal organisations in Sweden. The theoretical starting point is a critical gender perspective, focusing employee communication and silence. The research questions are: (i) What gendered norms can be found in employees' communication regarding risks and problems at work? (ii) How are these norms being manifested verbally? (iii) In what ways may these norms affect employee communication including silence? Analyses of clusters of gendered norms influencing employees’ communication about risks and problems at their workplace identified two themes: norms of toughness and norms of niceness. Both of them may pave the way for a workplace culture, where employees withhold information to avoid negative consequences; hence striving to maintain their position in the group rather than contributing to a safer, better-functioning working environment for everyone.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S259029112500302XEmployee silenceEmployee communicationGenderToughnessNiceness |
| spellingShingle | Kristina Hermansson Erica Nordlander Lotta Dellve Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems Social Sciences and Humanities Open Employee silence Employee communication Gender Toughness Niceness |
| title | Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems |
| title_full | Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems |
| title_fullStr | Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems |
| title_full_unstemmed | Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems |
| title_short | Niceness or toughness? Gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems |
| title_sort | niceness or toughness gendered norms as regulators of employee communication of risks and problems |
| topic | Employee silence Employee communication Gender Toughness Niceness |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S259029112500302X |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kristinahermansson nicenessortoughnessgenderednormsasregulatorsofemployeecommunicationofrisksandproblems AT ericanordlander nicenessortoughnessgenderednormsasregulatorsofemployeecommunicationofrisksandproblems AT lottadellve nicenessortoughnessgenderednormsasregulatorsofemployeecommunicationofrisksandproblems |