Leymann Inventory of Psychological Terror (LIPT)

Questionnaire and typography of 45 mobbing actions according to Prof. Dr. Heinz Leymann are listed below, covering 5 categories.
Mobbing (workplace bullying) is present if one or more actions happen about once per week and over a period of at least one year.
Other mobbing definitions allow for shorter periods of half a year and ask for more than one frequent mobbing action.

1. Effects on self-expression and communication:

• Your superior restricts the opportunity for you to express yourself.
• You are constantly interrupted.
• Colleagues restrict your opportunity to express yourself.
• You are yelled at and loudly scolded.
• Your work is constantly criticized.
• There is constant criticism about your personal life.
• You are terrorized on the telephone.
• Oral threats are made.
• Written threats are sent.
• Contact is denied through looks or gestures.
• Contact is denied through innuendo.

2. Effects on social contacts:

• People do not speak with you anymore.
• You cannot talk to anyone; access to others is denied.
• You are relocated to another room far away from colleagues.
• Colleagues are forbidden to talk with you.
• You are treated as if you are invisible.

3. Effects on personal reputation:

• People talk badly about you behind your back.
• Unfounded rumors about you are circulated.
• You are ridiculed.
• You are treated as if you are mentally ill.
• You are forced to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
• Your handicap is ridiculed.
• People imitate your gestures, walk, or voice to ridicule you.
• Your political or religious beliefs are ridiculed.
• Your private life is ridiculed.
• Your nationality is ridiculed.
• You are forced to do a job that affects your self-esteem.
• Your efforts are judged in a wrong and demeaning way.
• Your decisions are always questioned.
• You are called by demeaning names.
• Sexual innuendoes are present.

4. Effects on occupational situation and quality of life:

• There are no special tasks for you.
• Supervisors take away assignments so that you cannot invent new tasks to do.
• You are given meaningless jobs to carry out.
• You are given jobs that are below your qualifications.
• You are continually given new tasks.
• You are given tasks that affect your self-esteem.
• You are given tasks that are way beyond your qualifications in order to discredit you.

5. Effects on physical health:

• You are forced to do a physically strenuous job.
• Threats of physical violence are made.
• Light violence is used to threaten you.
• Physical abuse is present.
• Causing general damages that create financial costs to you.
• Damaging your workplace or home.
• Outright sexual harassment is present.

References:

• Leymann, Heinz (1990). Handbok för användning av LIPT-formuläret för kartläggning av risker för psykiskt våld (Manual of the LIPT questionnaire for assessing the risk of psychological violence at work). Stockholm: Violen.
• Leymann, Heinz (1990). Mobbing and Psychological Terror at Workplaces. Violence and Victims 5(2), pp. 119-126.

Other Mobbing/Bullying Indicators and Questionnaires are listed here.

Return to Anti-Mobbing Help for Scientists here.

Impressum: Albrecht, Altenstadt, Germany.