The meaning of rudeness

“To fail to be civil to someone — to treat them harshly, rudely or condescendingly — is not only to be guilty of bad manners,” he wrote in a 2006 article, “The Value of Civility?” for the journal Urban Studies. “It also, and more ominously, signals a disdain or contempt for them as moral beings. Treating someone rudely, brusquely or condescendingly says loudly and clearly that you do not regard her as your equal.”

 

60 percent of disrespectful behavior came from above, 20 percent from colleagues on the same level and 20 percent from below. And half said they decreased their effort on the job after experiencing ongoing rude behavior. Professor Pearson said that could mean that the workers did not put in the extra effort they otherwise might have, or that they worked strictly to their job description, or even that they slacked off.

There are solutions, although they are not easy. “First, leaders can put something into their orientation code or credo that they expect employees to be treated with respect,” Professor Pearson said. ”It’s amazing how many expect their employees to treat customers with respect and how few worry about how their colleagues treat each other.”

I always liked the probably apocryphal tale of a guest who arrived in shirtsleeves at an English country house where everyone was wearing dinner jackets.

What did the host do to remedy the situation? Offer a jacket to the abashed guest? No, he removed his own jacket.