Public sector organizations are multirational organizations. They do not fall under a single rationality archetype — for example, they are not uniquely political organizations or economic organizations or legal organizations, but rather all of the above. Two researchers from St. Gallen University, Ali Asker Guenduez and Kuno Schedler, build on the social systems theory of […]
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Why do employees choose to stay silent instead of reporting a problem, expressing their differing opinion or offering suggestions? Past research has examined this issue from a variety of perspectives, including the role of fear in keeping employees silent. Elizabeth Morrison of NYU’s Stern School of Business, joined by her colleagues Kelly See of NYU […]
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Workplace conflicts are, unfortunately, a common and difficult problem for managers. The traditional approach to resolving conflict is to examine the content of the conflict: what are you fighting about, and how can we reach some kind of agreement or resolution about this topic? Past research has focused on helping managers effectively manoeuvre this conversation. […]
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Abusive behaviour from bosses, what researchers call ‘downward hostility’, has a negative psychological effect on employees, undermining job satisfaction and the commitment to the employee. Such hostility also causes psychological distress, such as anxiety and depression. Persistent hostility leads employees to adopt a ‘victim identity’, the negative self-image that one is destined to be a […]
Read More… from Bullying Bosses: Don’t Just Take It, Fight Back
In most hierarchies, power is malleable, which means that it can change. A leader at the top can lose his or her power, and be replaced by subordinates who have, usually through their superior skills and accomplishments, managed to rise through the hierarchy. One of the characteristics of highly skilled subordinates is their ability to […]
January 2008 to April 2011 was a shocking time for France Telecom, when more than 60 employees committed suicide — a large number leaving behind notes blaming stress and misery at work. Though initially labelled isolated incidents, the company eventually took note of the increasing problem and initiated measures ranging from suggestion boxes to opening […]
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Blowing the whistle on internal wrongdoing can be a risky endeavour. What if nothing happens and you’re now branded a fink? What if there’s retaliation from your boss or even your peers? A team of researchers decided to empirically test the influence of the social environment — including both management and peers — on whistleblowing […]
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In a survey by Staples, Inc. in 2010, three out of four respondents admitted to ‘office-chair envy’ – that is, coveting a co-worker’s office chair. It may sound laughable, but various degrees and forms of envy in the workplace are a reality. Whether it is for the time and attention of senior managers or for […]
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"One-half of all employees reported being on the receiving end of rudeness at least once a week — compared to only one-quarter 1998." Christine Pearson of Thunderbird and Christine Porath of Georgetown have been researching rudeness and incivility in the workplace for many years, and in 2009 published a book about their research called The […]
In traditional Chinese Confucian culture, an emphasis is placed on the development, maintenance, and exploitation of social networks, which depend on reciprocity, integrity, and the highest individual ethical standards. In China, inter-firm relationships (such as supplier/buyer relationships) cannot be well understood without recognition of this. The research here suggests that ethical leadership not only affects […]
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