Formulating a response to bullying as experienced and interpreted by Church of England clergy within one diocese

This research is an investigation into the prevalence and pattern of bullying that the clergy of a single Church of England diocese experience in the course of their ministry. The purpose of this is to develop a framework for anti-bullying activity within the diocese. This study consists of a mixed method approach in four parts. Part One is the examination of my experiences as a curate, growing out of my perception that I experienced bullying by my training incumbent. Part Two is an analysis of the current anti-bullying policy of the Church of England. Part Three is a numerical component based on the Negative Acts Questionnaire. Part Four is an interpretive phenomenological analysis of the interviews of eight clergy within the diocese. Together these parts form a significant critique of the current approach within the diocese and suggest features for an improved approach. The findings of this study are that: there are barriers to the disclosure of bullying which can usefully be thought of as either partial or double silencing; the current anti-bullying policy does not reflect the complexity of the concept of bullying; in contrast to an official position rating bullying as rare in the church context, bullying in the diocese is not rare and is comparable to levels of bullying in other British work contexts; when clergy talk about bullying they reveal an organization with vulnerabilities to bullying offering an ineffective response. This study formulates the key features for an alternative framework for anti-bullying measures within the context of the Church of England diocese.