When Witnessing Wrong Feels Wrong: How Observing Supervisor Ostracism Sparks Employee Guilt

What is it about?

This study explores how employees feel guilty after witnessing supervisors ostracize their coworkers, emphasizing the emotional and behavioral processes behind this reaction. Drawing on social exchange and moral emotion theories, the authors propose that employee silence—choosing not to speak up against such mistreatment—acts as a key mechanism linking observed supervisor ostracism to feelings of guilt. Across two studies in Pakistan—a three-wave field survey of 219 employees and a scenario-based experiment with 118 participants—the results show that when employees see supervisors excluding or ignoring colleagues, they often stay silent to avoid conflict or retaliation. This silence later triggers guilt, as employees view their inaction as morally wrong. The effect is strongest among those with high-quality supervisor relationships, who feel more personally responsible for not intervening. These findings help organizations understand that employees’ moral distress can stem not only from being mistreated directly but also from witnessing unethical leader behavior. Encouraging open communication and psychological safety can reduce such silent complicity and promote collective accountability when confronting workplace exclusion.

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Photo by Galen Crout on Unsplash

Photo by Galen Crout on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This research is unique in showing how employees’ guilt arises from observing rather than experiencing misconduct, identifying silence as the psychological bridge and leader–member relationship quality as an intensifier. It enriches understanding of moral emotions at work by revealing how social proximity to authority figures shapes employees’ emotional reactions to others’ mistreatment. Conducted in Pakistan, where hierarchical and collectivist workplace cultures may heighten the tension between loyalty and moral action, the study is timely in its call for leaders to foster transparency and respect. It underscores that organizations thrive not only when they prevent mistreatment but also when they empower employees to speak up against it without fear of reprisal.