Dark Sides of Organizational Life : Hostility, Rivalry, Gossip, Envy and Other Difficult Behaviors

"Exploring the darkest side of organizations may have a potential to change our previous assumptions about business life. Scholars both in management and organizational research fields have shown interest in the "bright" side of behavioral life and have looked for the ways to create a positive organizational climate and assumed a positive relation between happiness of employees and productivity. These main assumptions of the Human Relations School have dominated the scientific inquiry on organizational behavior. However, "the dark side of organizational life" may have more explanatory power than "the bright side". Hostility, jealousy, envy, rivalry, gossip, problematic personalities, dislike, revenge, and social exclusion are the realities of business life. A manager may devote most of their time to cope with conflicts, deviant behaviors, ambitious individuals, gossips, and dysfunctional rivalry among employees. It is evident that negative events and interactions among employees cost more time and energy for a manager than the positive side of organizational life. This edited collection specifically focuses on these issues and will be of interest to researchers, academics, and advanced students in the fields of management, organizational studies and behavior, sociology, social psychology, and human resource management"-- Provided by publisher Exploring the darkest side of organizations may have a potential to change our previous assumptions about business life. Scholars both in management and organizational research fields have shown interest in the â••brightâ•• side of behavioral life and ha Cover 1 Half Title 2 Series Information 3 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Table of Contents 6 Preface 8 1 Nepotism 14 Introduction 14 Individual Factors in Nepotism 15 Experience and Education 15 Personality 16 Cultural Values 17 Intentions 17 Personal Objectives 18 Gender 19 Familial Factors in Nepotism 19 Expectations 19 Position in Organization 20 Inheritance 21 Positive/negative Situations 21 Family Goals and Values 22 Finances and Socioeconomic Status 22 Generational Status 23 Degree of Kinship 24 Organizational Factors in Nepotism 25 Positive/negative Situations 25 Company Goals and Values 25 HR Selection Policies 26 Available Opportunities 26 Company Size 27 Company Age 27 Applicant Pool 27 Family-owned Versus Nonfamily-Owned Businesses 28 Concluding Remarks 28 References 29 2 Mobbing 33 Basic Concepts 34 Mobbing and Violence 34 Mobbing and Bullying 36 Mobbing and Conflict 37 Mobbing and Sexual Harassment 37 Process of Mobbing 37 Causes of Mobbing 39 Characteristics of Mobbers 39 Causes Associated With Victim’s Personality Traits 40 Causes Associated With Organizational Culture and Structure 41 Consequences of Mobbing 41 Effects of Mobbing On the Victim 42 Effects of Mobbing On the Organization 42 Effects of Mobbing at Societal and National Level 44 Coping With Mobbing 44 Coping as an Individual 44 Coping as an Organization 45 Conclusion 46 References 46 3 Dysfunctional Conflict: Antecedents and Outcomes 49 Introduction 49 When Does Conflict Become Dysfunctional? 51 Minimizing Dysfunctional Outcomes 54 Conclusion 60 References 61 4 Burnout Syndrome 66 Introduction 66 Defining Burnout Syndrome 66 Theoretical Bases of Burnout Syndrome 68 Conservation of Resources Theory 69 Job Demands–resources Theory 69 Six Areas of Work-Life Theory 70 Cherniss’ Theory of Burnout 70 Golembiewski’s Theory of Burnout 71 Leiter’s Process Theory of Burnout 71 Perspectives of Burnout Syndrome 72 Individual Perspective 72 Contextual/organizational Perspective 73 Regulatory Perspective 74 How to Effectively Deal With Burnout Syndrome? 75 Discussion 78 Conclusion 79 Note 79 References 79 5 Psychological Harassment at Work 89 Introduction 89 Definition of Psychological Harassment 91 Causes of Psychological Harassment 92 Personal Factors 92 Work Environment 93 Organizational Structure 93 Organizational Culture, Organizational Climate, and Psychological Harassment 94 Social Values, Norms, and Modernization 94 Modernization and Change in Working Life 95 People Involved in Psychological Harassment 96 Models of Psychological Harassment 97 Comparing Psychological Harassment With Similar Concepts 98 Bullying Vs. Harassment 98 Sexual Harassment at Work 98 Stalking (Abusive Behavior) 99 Cyber Harassment 99 Impact of Psychological Harassment On Organizations 100 Organizational Responses to Psychological Harassment 101 Legislation On Psychological Harassment 103 Conclusion 104 References 105 6 The Glass Ceiling 110 Introduction 110 Concept of the “Glass Ceiling” 110 Current Global Perceptions of the Glass Ceiling 112 Glass Ceiling Barriers 114 Societal Barriers 115 Organizational Barriers 117 Personal/individual Barriers 119 How the Glass Ceiling Works 120 Glass Ceiling in the 21st Century 120 How to Shatter the Glass Ceiling 123 Corporate Culture 123 Balancing Multiple Roles 125 Leadership Development 125 Government Practices 126 Political Changes 126 Conclusion 127 References 127 7 Organizational Silence 134 Introduction 134 Concept of Organizational Silence 135 Evolution of Organizational Silence: Research and Theory 136 Types of Organizational Silence 138 Deviant Silence 138 Relational Silence 138 Defensive Silence 139 Diffident Silence 139 Ineffectual Silence 139 Disengaged Silence 139 Antecedents of Organizational Silence 139 Consequences of Organizational Silence 142 Future Research On Organizational Silence 145 Conclusion 146 References 147 8 Understanding Alienation 152 Introduction 152 History and Evolution of “Alienation” 152 Operationalization of the Concept 157 Related Concepts 160 Studies On the Relationship of Alienation With Other Organizational Behavior Variables 161 Work Alienation 161 The Causes of Work Alienation 163 The Effects of Work Alienation 165 Work Alienation Scales 165 Organizational Alienation 166 Occupational Alienation 168 Conclusion 169 References 170 9 Counterproductive Aspects of Teamwork 179 Introduction 179 Social Comparison Theory 180 Leader–member Exchange Theory 181 Social Loafing 183 Groupthink Theory 185 Antecedent Conditions 186 Type A Antecedents: Decision Makers Constitute a Cohesive Group 186 Type B1 Antecedents: Structural Faults of the Organization 187 Type B2 Antecedents: Provocative Situational Context 187 Symptoms of Groupthink 188 Type 1 Symptoms: Overestimation of Group 188 Type 2 Symptoms 189 Type 3 Symptoms 189 Moderator Variables 190 Social Identity Maintenance Approach to Groupthink 191 How to Prevent Groupthink 191 Empirical and Experimental Research On Groupthink 193 Concluding Remarks 194 References 195 Index 203 mobbing;,burnout;,discrimination;,alienation;,teamwork;,conflict;,nepotism mobbing,burnout,discrimination,alienation,teamwork,conflict,nepotism This book explores how "the dark side of organizational life" may have more explanatory power than "the bright side" through topics of hostility, jealousy, envy, rivalry, gossip, problematic personalities, dislike, revenge, and social exclusion in business life.