Any healthcare setting may witness disrespectful behaviour, which is a result of human nature as well as the stressful nature of the setting. Humans are born with a survival instinct. We are compelled to operate in “survival” mode when confronted with challenging personal annoyances and malfunctioning systems. A common mistake in disrespectful behaviour is “survival” behaviour. While systemic shortcomings and personal frustrations do not justify disrespectful behaviour, they frequently serve as a tipping point that pushes someone over the edge and into fully disrespectful behaviour. Individual traits like narcissism, aggression, depression, anxiety, and insecurity can also surface and act as a kind of self-defense against feelings of inadequacy. Disrespectful behaviour is also influenced by current events that affect mood, attitude, and actions, as well as cultural, generational, and gender biases. Very disruptive behaviour frequently stems from practitioner impairment, such as substance abuse, mental illness, or personality disorder. Variations in power relationships and communication philosophies may also be important. For instance, when nurses provide information in greater detail than they think is necessary, doctors may become irate. When doctors don’t seem interested in the information given, nurses may become irate. These disparities in communication styles may give rise to actions that are hurtful. Because healthcare is a hierarchical field, people at the top of a hierarchy may treat those lower down with disdain due to their sense of privilege and status.
