Managing Ostracising Behaviour: The Role of Coping Appraisals and Emotional Intelligence in Employee Responses to Health Threat

This study examines the relationship between coping appraisals (self-efficacy and response efficacy) and ostracising behaviour, moderated by emotional intelligence, within the banking sector. Drawing from the Protection Motivation Theory (PMT), the study explores how employees’ perceived ability to implement protective measures, influences their likelihood of engaging in ostracising behaviour. Data were collected from back-end employees in local commercial banks within Kuala Lumpur, using a cross-sectional survey approach. The findings revealed a significant positive relationship between self-efficacy and ostracising behaviour, indicating that employees with high self-efficacy, were more likely to avoid colleagues perceived as health risks. Conversely, response efficacy was negatively related to ostracising behaviour, suggesting that employees who believe in the effectiveness of preventive measures, were less likely to engage in exclusionary actions. However, emotional intelligence did not moderate these relationships, highlighting that individuals’ confidence in managing health risks may overshadow the role of emotional regulation in workplace interactions. Future research should explore the impact of organizational factors, geographical variations and different occupational sectors to gain deeper insights into the workplace ostracism dynamics.