Neuroendocrine and psychophysiological investigation of the evolutionary roots of gossip

This study investigates an evolutionary hypothesis of gossip postulating that in humans it serves a similar function as social grooming in other primates. It examines whether gossip decreases physiological markers of stress and increases markers of positive emotionality and sociability. Dyads of friends (N = 66) recruited at the university, participated in an experiment where they experienced a stressor followed by social interaction (gossip or control task). Individual levels of salivary cortisol and [Formula: see text]-endorphins were assessed at before and after social interactions. Sympathetic activity and parasympathetic activity were monitored throughout the experiment. Individual differences in Tendency and Attitude towards Gossip were investigated as potential covariates. Gossip condition was characterized with increased sympathetic and parasympathetic activity, but did not differ in cortisol or [Formula: see text]-endorphins levels. However, high Tendency to Gossip was associated with decreases in cortisol. Gossip was shown to be more emotionally salient than non-social talk, but the evidence with regard to lowering stress was not sufficient to support an analogy to social grooming.

Linking corporate social irresponsibility with workplace deviant behaviour: mediated by moral outrage

Purpose

This study aims to examine the effects of external corporate social irresponsibility on organisational workplace deviant behaviours through the mediation of moral outrage (MO) among non-managerial employees.

Design/methodology/approach

The primary quantitative data was collected from a sample of 328 non-managerial employees working in banking, refinery, petroleum and power distribution companies in Pakistan. Partial least square-structural equation modelling was used to estimate the modelled relationships.

Findings

Results confirmed that external corporate social irresponsibility has a positive effect on organisational workplace deviant behaviours. MO mediated relationships between external corporate social irresponsibility and organisational workplace deviant behaviours positively.

Research limitations/implications

Theoretically, the findings indicate that moral values are also close to the hearts of non-managerial employees, as external corporate social irresponsibility has proved to be one of the significant predictors of organisational deviance.

Practical implications

This study provides a new, substantial pathway for the executive management of organisations and evidence that eliminating social irresponsibility is equally important as pursuing sustainability initiatives for addressing workplace deviant behaviour.

Originality/value

The originality of this study is twofold. Firstly, it has confirmed the impact of external corporate social irresponsibility on employees’ deviant behaviours targeted at the organisation. Secondly, it has extended the scope of expectancy violation theory into the field of human resource management.

Spilling tea at the water cooler: A meta-analysis of the literature on workplace gossip

This paper presents a meta-analysis on workplace gossip as a predictor of individual, relational, and organizational outcomes. Our systematic review yielded 52 independent studies ( n = 14,143). Results suggested that negative workplace gossip has a more deleterious association with workplace outcomes than positive gossip. Furthermore, findings indicated that negative gossip has a disproportionately negative association with attitudinal/affective outcomes and coworker relationships for targets of gossip. Unexpectedly, results also suggested that senders and recipients of negative gossip may also experience highly deleterious outcomes; in fact, the relations between negative gossip and well-being, engagement/performance, supervisor relationships, and organizational outcomes were more negative for gossip participants than targets, although the direction of causality for these relations has yet to be conclusively determined. Overall, our results suggest that organizations and managers should take seriously the threat of negative gossip to the health of the organization at large, while simultaneously leveraging the potential benefits of positive gossip. Plain Language Summary This paper presents a meta-analysis on the topic of workplace gossip as a predictor of work-relevant outcomes. Results—which were based on 52 independent studies that, in total, employed 14,143 independent research participants—suggested that negative workplace gossip has a worse impact on individual, relational, and organizational outcomes than positive gossip does. Furthermore, our findings indicated that targets of negative gossip experience the worst outcomes in terms of attitudes/affect and coworker relationships, when compared with the outcomes of individuals who exchanged the gossip. Unexpectedly, patterns of results also suggested that individuals who exchange negative gossip at work may also experience highly deleterious outcomes, although the direction of causality for these relations has yet to be conclusively determined. Overall, our results suggest that organizations and managers should take seriously the threat of negative gossip to the health of the organization at large, and may also be able to leverage the potentially beneficial effects of positive gossip. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of our results.

Can authentic leaders reduce the spread of negative workplace gossip? The roles of subordinates' perceived procedural justice and interactional justice

Many studies suggest that leaders should discourage or prevent the spread of negative workplace gossip (NWG), but yet little is understood about the relationship between leaders and their subordinates' NWG. This study interprets the linkage between authentic leadership and two types of NWG via individuals' perceptions of justice based on fairness heuristic and justice views. The data were collected in a three-stage process from a large information technology corporation in China. The findings revealed that interactional justice mediated authentic leadership and NWG's relationship with supervisors and the relationship between authentic leadership and NWG about coworkers. The procedural justice mediated the relationship between authentic leadership and NWG about supervisors, while it didn't mediate the relationship between authentic leadership and NWG about coworkers. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.