Quiet quitting: What TikTok Teaches Us About "Silent Quitters"
Following the "big quit, " the "quiet quitting" emerged in July 2022. The Gallup polling institute uses this term to describe people who “don’t go above and beyond at work and are content to simply meet the requirements of their job description.” Does quiet quitting reflect a gradual disengagement from one’s professional duties? Could it be a precursor to a career change?
Sylvie Rascol-Boutard, University of Montpellier and Aurélia El Yacoubi, University of Montpellier
In an effort to understand this supposedly silent phenomenon, we went to investigate a rather noisy place: TikTok. There, we analyzed all the videos posted between July and December 2022, as well as their comments, which appeared when we searched for the keywords “quiet quitting” or “silent resignation.”
The videos feature a wide variety of profiles from around the world.The manual and subsequently automated textualanalysis we conducted—which was presented at the 2023 conference of the Association francophone de gestion des ressources humaines (AGRH)—highlighted several key aspects of this phenomenon.
Reasonable or lazy?
“No longer putting in the effort,” “no commitment, ” “disconnecting from the company’s values, ” “defining oneself in ways other than through work.” Those who are part of the “quiet resignation” phenomenon primarily express a loss of meaning and a sense of unease at work. The obvious signs of this quiet resignation are disengagement, demotivation, and detachment from work. Among their wishes are the pursuit of a work-life balance and greater respect for their private lives. Quiet quitting can even be presented as a matter of course: it is simply a matter of “doing one’s job normally” or “working in a reasonable manner”; it is sometimes even vigorously advocated.
Some continue to work as usual but without crossing certain boundaries they set for themselves: “no overtime, ” “no extra tasks.” They say they are “doing the bare minimum”; they may also deliberately “turn in work late,” or even claim they are “not adhering to the schedule.”
Many people test the limits of what is (and isn’t) acceptable. “Taking breaks” is allowed, but doing so excessively is unprofessional—or even prohibited. The issue is the blurred line between what the employee does and what is acceptable to the employer. Often, the “quiet quitter” is labeled as such because the line, if crossed, is crossed in a way that is barely noticeable or hardly reprehensible. We are talking here about “withdrawal” behaviors.
More critical views of “quiet quitters” are often expressed by people who claim to be in management positions. To them, the silent quitter is lazy, a “slacker.” They claim he lacks ambition and is “cheating his employer.” They say his behavior is counterproductive and a waste of the company’s time; moreover, he “has no desire to grow.”
Take a step back
Several reasons are cited to explain why people quietly resign. The first has to do with compensation that falls short of expectations given the work performed: the desire is to “work in a way that justifies [“one’s”] salary.” This would thus address a perceived injustice.
Another set of reasons relates to the perceived work overload. The “quiet quitter” has “no time, no vacation”; they suffer from “burnout.” They may also feel that they receive “no recognition from [“their”] employer for [“their”] work.” Some of the reasons cited also relate to societal issues to which they are reacting: a “deep unease [“inherent in”] the world of work” as a whole; “post-COVID reflection and self-questioning”; or even the “aftermath of the Great Resignation.”
When this takes the form of disengagement, is it an early stage of a career change? These “silent quitters” may, perhaps, be in the process of gradually disengaging from the organization. Disengagement could be a coping mechanism used by the individual—a strategy of psychological disengagement designed, for example, to protect themselves from potential burnout.
While waiting for a change, our TikTokers would maintain a minimal level of activity. They might also adjust their work commitment to devote more time to their personal lives, describing this approach using a trendy term. Finally, because they would be on their way out—perhaps at the end of their contract—they would naturally disengage from the organization and their work. We therefore have several hypotheses here regarding the future of their careers, which more in-depth, longitudinal research could help explore.
For HR to identify early warning signs
Nevertheless, this research offers human resources managers new avenues for identifying career transitions before they actually occur.
Before an employee decides to leave, subtle signs often emerge. “Quiet quitting” could be one of them. By identifying even subtle signs of disengagement—such as a reluctance to take on responsibilities or work overtime—the human resources manager can pinpoint employees who need to be re-engaged in the workforce. The manager can also help facilitate their career transition, whether it involves a move within or outside the organization.
Our research does not allow for definitive long-term conclusions: “quiet quitters” may or may not decide to leave, and may or may not continue to behave in this way. Furthermore, the social network studied is not without limitations and biases. However, the richness of the verbatim data, the diversity of the respondents, and the consistency of the data and their analysis with the literature on career change make this material particularly fascinating, especially for understanding a phenomenon that claims to be “silent.”
Sylvie Rascol-Boutard, Associate Professor (HDR) in Management Sciences, University of Montpellier and Aurélia El Yacoubi, PhD Candidate in Management Sciences, University of Montpellier
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Readthe original article.