Toronto: Children could be unintended victims of workplace incivility, say scientists who found that women who encounter rude coworkers are more likely to engage in stricter parenting practices, negatively affecting their kids. Workplace incivility is any behaviour that is rude, disrespectful, impolite or otherwise, violates workplace norms of respect. This behaviour shows a lack of concern for others, said Kathryne Dupre, of Carleton University in Canada.

Some examples of workplace incivility include ignoring or making derogatory remarks about someone, taking credit for the work of others, passing blame for your own mistakes, avoiding someone or shutting people out of a network or team. To better understand the effects of workplace incivility spill-over at home, the researchers conducted an online survey of 146 working mothers and their spouses.