Impact of Workplace Mobbing on Knowledge Sabotage among Academicians in the Higher Education Sector: The Mediation Role of Emotional Exhaustion

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29145/jmr.132.01

Keywords:

emotional exhaustion, knowledge sabotage, workplace mobbing

Abstract

This study highlights one of the triggering factors of counterproductive work behavior i.e. knowledge sabotage. Using social exchange theory as a guiding lens, this study aims to understand how these behaviors transit and coexist. A quantitative research design was used by collecting data of 200 academicians working in universities accredited by higher education commission of Pakistan. The data was analyzed using smart PLS and the results indicated that emotional exhaustion does mediate the relationship between workplace mobbing and knowledge sabotage. The aim of this study is to provide a guiding lens to companies asserting that a regular mobbing among their employees could reach to a catastrophic workplace behavior i.e. knowledge sabotage. It will guide companies to identify mobbers and try to mitigate this act as much as possible so that the effective and efficient flow of knowledge could be established. Last but not the least it will provide a seamless environment to flourish and grow.

Author Biographies

Khizra Tanveer, Universiti Putra Malaysia

Putra Business School, University Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia

Noor Azman Ali, Universiti Putra Malaysia

Putra Business School, University Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia

References

Ahmad, S., Kalim, R., & Kaleem, A. (2017). Academics' perceptions of bullying at work: Insights from Pakistan. International Journal of Educational Management, 31(2), 204–220. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-10-2015-0141

Al Hassan, S., Majeed, M., & Parveen, R. (2025). The dog-eat-dog phenomenon of perceived over-qualification sparking knowledge sabotage with the dark side of LMX. Evidence-based HRM: A Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, 14(2), 371–384. https://doi.org/10.1108/ebhrm-06-2024-0227

Alaydi, B., Mahomed, A. S. B., Imm, N. S., & Hwa, C. J. (2021). The consequences of knowledge hiding behavior in organizations: A systematic literature review. Studies of Applied Economics, 39(10). https://doi.org/10.25115/eea.v39i10.5392

Balsak, H., Ayhan, F., Narin Balsak, H., & Gün, İ. (2025). Workplace mobbing as a predictor of quality of work life in early-career clinical nurses. BMC Nursing, 24(1), Article e1124. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-025-03391-4

Biswakarma, G., Aithal, P. S., Singh, S. K., Gnawali, A., & Ghimire, J. (2024). Workplace bullying and employees' turnover intention in hospitality industry: Evidence of Nepal. Cogent Business & Management, 11(1), Article e2317197. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2317197

Blau, P. M. (1964). Exchange and power in social life. Wiley Publishers.

Butt, A. S. (2020). Mitigating knowledge hiding in firms: An exploratory study. Baltic Journal of Management, 15(4), 631–645. https://doi.org/10.1108/BJM-01-2020-0016

Cabrera, E. F., & Cabrera, A. (2005). Fostering knowledge sharing through people management practices. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 16(5), 720–735. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585190500083020

Cao, Y. (2022). Effect of interpersonal injustice on knowledge hiding behavior: Moderating role of high-performance work stress. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article e858669. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.858669

Chaudhary, A., & Islam, T. (2025). How workplace bullying affects knowledge hiding? The roles of psychological contract breach and learning goal orientation. VINE Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Systems, 55(2), 269–286. https://doi.org/10.1108/VJIKMS-06-2022-0201

Cultural Atlas. (2021). Pakistani culture. https://culturalatlas.sbs.com.au/pakistani-culture/pakistani-culture-references#pakistani-culture-references

Ditzel, E. (2008). A study of perceived occupational stress, burnout and sense of community among New Zealand nurses.

Duffy, M. K., Scott, K. L., Shaw, J. D., Tepper, B. J., & Aquino, K. (2012). A social context model of envy and social undermining. Academy of Management Journal, 55(3), 643–666. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2009.0804

García, G. M., Desrumaux, P., Ayala Calvo, J. C., & Naouële, B. (2022). The impact of social support on emotional exhaustion and workplace bullying in social workers. European Journal of Social Work, 25(5), 752–765. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691457.2021.1934417

Hancock, T., Adams, F., Breazeale, M., & Lueg, J. (2020). Exploring jealousy and envy in communal relationship revenge-seeking. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 37(6), 687–699. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-06-2019-3300

Ilieva, J., Stoilkovska, A., & Todosovski, A. (2024). Enhancing workplace environment by addressing mobbing: Impacts on motivation and productivity. UTMS Journal of Economics, 15(1), 54–63.

Ince-Yenilmez, M. (2024). The problem of academic gender mobbing in Turkish universities. Revista de Investigaciones Universidad del Quindío, 33(2), 97–108. https://doi.org/10.33975/riuq.vol33n2.544

Islam, T., & Chaudhary, A. (2024). Impact of workplace bullying on knowledge hiding: The mediating role of emotional exhaustion and moderating role of workplace friendship. Kybernetes, 53(1), 238–255. https://doi.org/10.1108/K-06-2022-0842

Islam, T., Ali, H. F., & Abdullah, H. (2025). Unfolding knowledge sabotage: The roles of knowledge-sharing climate, trustful climate and dark triad. Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication. https://doi.org/10.1108/gkmc-08-2024-0544

Jantunen, S., Surakka, J., Sinervo, T., Ruotsalainen, S., & Burström, T. (2020, October 15–16). Antecedents and consequences of counterproductive knowledge behaviours [Paper presentation]. Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Intellectual Capital, Knowledge Management & Organisational Learning, Canada.

Jia, X., Liao, S., & Yin, W. (2022). Job insecurity, emotional exhaustion, and workplace deviance: The role of corporate social responsibility. Frontiers in Public Health, 10, Article e1000628. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.1000628

Kearns, G. S., & Sabherwal, R. (2006). Strategic alignment between business and information technology: A knowledge-based view of behaviors, outcome, and consequences. Journal of Management Information Systems, 23(3), 129–162. https://doi.org/10.2753/MIS0742-1222230306

Khan, J., Ali, A., & Nisar, H. G. (2021). Workplace bullying and intention to leave: The mediating role of emotional exhaustion. Business & Economic Review, 13(3), 117–140. https://doi.org/10.22547/BER/13.3.5

Koç, O., Kıray, A., & Özdemir, S. (2020). Revanchist behaviors in an academic style: A qualitative study to analyze academics' revenge. Iranian Journal of Management Studies, 13(3), 345–366. https://doi.org/10.22059/ijms.2020.289237.673796

Kong, F., Zhao, L., Tao, X., & Wu, G. (2024). The effect of workplace bullying on knowledge sharing of employees in scientific and technological enterprises: A moderated mediation model. BMC Psychology, 12(1), Article e546. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-02056-2

Leymann, H. (1990). Mobbing and psychological terror at workplaces. Violence and Victims, 5(2), 119–126. https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.5.2.119

Ly, N. L., & Duy, T. M. (2024). Employees' feelings of mobbing and intention to sabotage information technology organizations. VNUHCM Journal of Economics, Law and Management, 8(1), 5029–5039.

Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (2016). Burnout. In Stress: Concepts, cognition, emotion, and behavior (pp. 351–357). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-800951-2.00044-3

Ness, A. M., & Connelly, S. (2017). Situational influences on ethical sensemaking. Human Performance, 30(2–3), 57–78. https://doi.org/10.1080/08959285.2017.1301454

Perotti, F. A., Ferraris, A., Candelo, E., & Busso, D. (2022). The dark side of knowledge sharing: Exploring knowledge sabotage and its antecedents. Journal of Business Research, 141, 422–432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.11.033

Perotti, F. A., Rozsa, Z., Kuděj, M., & Ferraris, A. (2024). Building a knowledge sharing climate amid shadows of sabotage. Journal of Knowledge Management, 28(5), 1490–1516. https://doi.org/10.1108/jkm-03-2023-0262

Rincon-Hoyos, H. G., Figueroa-Paz, R., Cardozo-Rengifo, M. M., Gil-González, D., Zúñiga-Martinez, J. F., Arias-Valderrama, O., & Gempeler, A. (2025). Understanding the burden of mental illness induced by workplace mobbing. Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría, 53(5), 1104–1121. https://doi.org/10.62641/aep.v53i5.1930

Serenko, A. (2019). Knowledge sabotage as an extreme form of counterproductive knowledge behavior. Journal of Knowledge Management, 23(7),1260–1288. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-01-2018-0007

Serenko, A. (2020). Knowledge sabotage as an extreme form of counterproductive knowledge behavior: The perspective of the target. Journal of Knowledge Management, 24(4),737–773. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-06-2019-0337

Serenko, A., & Abubakar, A. M. (2023). Antecedents and consequences of knowledge sabotage in the Turkish telecommunication and retail sectors. Journal of Knowledge Management, 27(5), 1409–1435. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-01-2022-0029

Serenko, A., & Choo, C. W. (2020). Knowledge sabotage as an extreme form of counterproductive knowledge behavior. Journal of Knowledge Management, 24(9), 2299–2325. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-06-2020-0416

Shao, Z., Gogia, E. H., Khan, M. A., & Meyer, N. (2025). Cyberbullying, ostracism and job performance. South African Journal of Business Management, 56(1), Article e4793. https://doi.org/10.4102/SAJBM.v56i1.4793

Soliman, M., Aideed, H., Alkathiri, N., & Sousa, M. J. (2025). Dissecting the hidden triggers and consequences of knowledge sabotage. Journal of Knowledge Management, 30(5), 1790–1814. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-05-2025-0649

Steffgen, G., Sischka, P., Schmidt, A. F., Kohl, D., & Happ, C. (2016). The Luxembourg workplace mobbing scale. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 35(2), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1027/1015-5759/a000381

Swider, B. W., & Zimmerman, R. D. (2010). Born to burnout. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 76(3), 487–506. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2010.01.003

Tan, Z., Yuan, L., Wang, J., & Wan, Q. (2024). When victims fight back. Journal of Knowledge Management, 28(5), 1249–1277. https://doi.org/10.1108/jkm-04-2023-0303

Tarafdar, M., Cooper, C. L., & Stich, J. F. (2019). The technostress trifecta. Information Systems Journal, 29(1), 6–42. https://doi.org/10.1111/isj.12169

Thomas, A. (2025). The dynamics of knowledge behaviors. Journal of Knowledge Management, 29(11), 117–144. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-03-2025-0399

Yadav, R., & Tiwari, P. (2026). Workplace ostracism. In Mental health: Psycho-social perspectives (Vol. 8). Concept Publishing Company.

Yao, Z., Zhang, X., Luo, J., & Huang, H. (2018). Offense is the best defense. Journal of Knowledge Management, 24(3), 675–695. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-12-2019-0755

Zapf, D., Einarsen, S., Hoel, H., & Vartia, M. (2003). Empirical findings on bullying in the workplace. In Bullying and emotional abuse in the workplace (pp. 103–125). Taylor & Francis. https://doi.org/10.1201/9780203164662.pt2

Zhou, H., & Chen, J. (2021). How does psychological empowerment prevent emotional exhaustion? Frontiers in Psychology, 12, Article e546687. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.546687

Downloads

Published

2026-07-03

How to Cite

Tanveer, K., & Ali, N. A. (2026). Impact of Workplace Mobbing on Knowledge Sabotage among Academicians in the Higher Education Sector: The Mediation Role of Emotional Exhaustion. Journal of Management and Research, 13(2), 01–24. https://doi.org/10.29145/jmr.132.01

Issue

Section

Articles

Similar Articles

1 2 3 4 5 > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.