A bullying boss probably won't punch you in the face or extort your milk money, but he'll do persistent, subtle things that will take time for you to recognize as an undermining pattern of behavior. He might, for example, belittle your opinions; spread malicious gossip about you; exclude you from meetings; make sarcastic remarks when you speak; take credit for your successes and make you the scapegoat for his failures. And he's probably a consummate politician, toadying up to his superiors who would then be incapable of believing such a jolly good fellow could do such nasty things. So if you're inclined to speak up, you look like a whiner and malcontent. It's a pretty good Catch-22 and excellent way to consolidate power. Dr. Loraleigh Keashly, associate professor of communications at Wayne State University in Detroit , says a WSU study presented in 2004 shows that 7% of Michigan workers report being persistently mistreated by bosses. "[Bad] behaviors that come from a boss hurt more than the same behaviors coming from a subordinate, because bosses are in a position to control things that people value, like salaries and performance reviews" Keashly says. "It's seen as an abuse of authority."