Psychological Warfare at Work: Emotional Intelligence as a Moderator between Workplace Gaslighting and Employee Well-being

Abstract

Gaslighting is an emerging notion that is linked to the psychological manipulation that seeks to sow doubt in individuals and typically leads to affecting the individual's well-being. However, there are limited studies in this regard. Hence, this study examines how workplace gaslighting (WPGL) impacts employee well-being (EWB) in the presence of emotional Intelligence (EI) as a moderator, from the lens of the job demands-resources (JD-R) theory. In this study, a deductive (quantitative) approach was employed to test the hypothesis, utilising a survey method to collect information from employees working in Pakistan's banking sector, with a sample of 259 respondents. SmartPLS was used as a tool for analysing the collected data. According to the results, WPGL has a significant impact on EWB, while EI has a moderating effect on both WPGL and EWB. This suggests that some employees not only withstand manipulation but also use it as a source of inner growth. Practical implications are discussed for mitigating the harmful effects of WPGL on EWB through the provision of ET training.

Keywords: Workplace Gaslighting, Employee Well-being, Emotional Intelligence