NYTimes: "Women Bullying Women at Work"

The New York Times printed an article which speculates about the reasons why women often bully other women in the workplace.

'During this downturn, as stress levels rise, workplace researchers say, bullies are likely to sharpen their elbows and ratchet up their attacks.

It’s probably no surprise that most of these bullies are men, as a survey by the Workplace Bullying Institute, an advocacy group, makes clear. But a good 40 percent of bullies are women. And at least the male bullies take an egalitarian approach, mowing down men and women pretty much in equal measure. The women appear to prefer their own kind, choosing other women as targets more than 70 percent of the time.
...
Leadership specialists wonder, are women being "overly aggressive" because there are too few opportunities for advancement? Or is it stereotyping and women are only perceived as being overly aggressive? Is there a double standard at work?'

Of course, the article doesn't consider the obvious: That women bully others because they are more or less the same as men, and that it's only sexist to imagine that women, as a group, would be free of any particular failing that affects men as a group. Some men are bullies, and some women are bullies, too. This shouldn't surprise anyone.