Acessibilidade / Reportar erro

Moral harassment among professors in a public university in Brazil

OBJECTIVE: To identify the existence of moral harassment (SA) among professors in a public university in Brazil. METHODS: This was a quantitative, descriptive and sectional research; the sample consisted of 54 professors (62.8%) who answered questions about moral harassment at work. RESULTS: Most were women (92.6%), between 40 and 59 years (72.2%), working at the institution less than 15 years (61.1), 40.7% admitted being victims of SA at work, 59.3% knew the fellow who had suffered SA and 70.4% stated that it is a common problem in the institution. The cases described participation of: chiefs, superiors, peers, teachers and advisers. CONCLUSION: Universities are places where there is competition for positions and for research/publication resources, which facilitates the occurrence of this phenomenon. The individualities must be overcome with ethical values such as equity and solidarity to avoid the happening of moral harassment.

Occupational health; Faculty; Ethics; Moral damage; Social behavior


Escola Paulista de Enfermagem, Universidade Federal de São Paulo R. Napoleão de Barros, 754, 04024-002 São Paulo - SP/Brasil, Tel./Fax: (55 11) 5576 4430 - São Paulo - SP - Brazil
E-mail: actapaulista@unifesp.br