Theft, daydreaming and everything in between: Most of us are a bit 'deviant' at work

We usually think of workplace deviance as linked to "bad apples"—the troublemakers who egregiously slack off, steal from the company or openly clash with coworkers. But what if deviant behavior was also more subtle—daydreaming, taking long coffee breaks or cracking an edgy joke in a meeting? It turns out most employees engage in quieter patterns of minor misbehaviors, and it's changing how we think about deviance on the job.

Mar 18, 2025 - 15:05
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Theft, daydreaming and everything in between: Most of us are a bit 'deviant' at work
We usually think of workplace deviance as linked to "bad apples"—the troublemakers who egregiously slack off, steal from the company or openly clash with coworkers. But what if deviant behavior was also more subtle—daydreaming, taking long coffee breaks or cracking an edgy joke in a meeting? It turns out most employees engage in quieter patterns of minor misbehaviors, and it's changing how we think about deviance on the job.