Suppose you work late nights and deliver a project on time. Yet when promotions are announced, someone else gets the recognition. Despite you performing well and meeting every deadline, the colleague closer to management gets better opportunities. This does sound really unfair, doesn’t it? However, for many employees, this is the reality.
Most workplaces have a competitive environment. Employees compete to receive recognition and better opportunities from their management. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, issues arise when favouritism comes into the picture. Research suggests that unfairly treated employees often develop a negative attitude towards their job (Miller et al., 2008). Thus, it is important for both the employees and the organisation to understand the underlying psychology of workplace politics.
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Why Office Politics Develops
Organisations are a structured social system where individuals interact to perform tasks and compete for limited opportunities at the same time. Suppose two individuals compete to showcase their ability to get the lead on an important project. While both are strongly capable, only one can lead. Their competition often involves their ability to become more visible to the senior authorities. This is where office politics might come into play. Office politics may influence how employees interact with one another and how they try to gain recognition within the organisation. Office politics may include:
- Influencing decisions
- Managing one’s professional image
- Forming informal alliances
- Controlling access to information
- Competing for recognition or opportunities
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When Politics Feels Unfair
Suppose an employee works really hard for the promotion and is deserving of it. But a different person is given the promotion because of their close relationship with the manager. Here, even if the promotion was actually given on the basis of performance, the employee might perceive it to be an unfair decision.
The work of Harris et al. (2007) concluded that organisational justice can influence how an employee perceives workplace politics. If an employee believes that their organisation treats them fairly, the negative effects of workplace politics are often ignored by the employee. This is why two people working in the same place may have different perspectives on their organization’s political environment. One might think, “I understand why they made this decision.” While the other might conclude, “No matter how hard I work, it does not matter.”
The second response reflects more than simple disappointment. When employees repeatedly perceive that their effort is not fairly rewarded, they may begin to feel that they have little control over their professional outcomes. This perception can gradually reduce motivation and job satisfaction while increasing frustration and psychological strain (Miller et al., 2008).
The psychological impact can become stronger when the employee is unable to predict how decisions are made. Uncertainty about whether performance, relationships, visibility, or personal preferences determine outcomes can make employees constantly monitor their workplace environment. Instead of focusing entirely on their responsibilities, they may begin spending mental energy interpreting other people’s behaviour and anticipating possible consequences.
Research on organisational politics has linked such perceptions with job stress and other negative work outcomes. In particular, perceived workplace politics has been associated with stress, burnout, turnover intention, and lower job satisfaction (Labrague et al., 2017).
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The Hidden Stress of “Reading the Room”
When there is politics in the workplace, it creates a psychological stress that often gets overlooked. Employees may constantly wonder whether they can trust a colleague with their work, what their manager will think of a particular decision, whether they should address an issue in a meeting, or whether they should share an idea. Thus, workplace politics can make an employee feel more pressured.
They might sense the need to constantly manage their social environment while accomplishing their job responsibilities. This constant pressure can contribute to psychological strain, particularly when employees feel uncertain about how their behaviour may affect their reputation or career. Research suggests that political skill can influence the relationship between workplace stressors and psychological strain, including burnout (Summers et al., 2020).
The problem becomes more serious when employees feel that making one wrong social decision could affect their reputation or career. Over time, this can create a state of continuous social vigilance in which employees feel that they must always “read the room” before acting. Some common signs of this psychological pressure include hesitation to share information, excessive concern about professional appearances, reluctance to express opinions, reduced trust among co-workers, and an increase in rumours rather than direct communication.
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How Employees Can Navigate Politics Ethically
The political atmosphere is often beyond the control of the employees. However, they can develop certain political skills to safeguard themselves from the negative impact of workplace politics. Political skill involves understanding social situations, communicating effectively, building relationships, and knowing how to present one’s work appropriately. Research has associated political skill with positive work outcomes, including job satisfaction, career success, and personal reputation (Munyon et al., 2015). Some of them are listed as follows:
- Make your work more visible: One should never assume that if they do good work, it will always get noticed. Individuals need to come forward and showcase their work, share clear project updates, and ensure that they highlight their contribution without exaggerating.
- Build genuine connections: It is important to have connections, and genuine connections take time to develop (Wei et al., 2012). Thus, one should never hesitate to approach the other to develop a professional relationship.
- Believe facts, not assumptions: Instead of concluding that your manager or co-worker is ignoring you, address the possible reason for it. If needed, try to address the matter respectfully.
- Maintain a clear record: Make sure to have a clear record of deadlines and agreements. Every decision must always be digitally recorded or documented to avoid confusion on later dates.
- Avoid gossip: While gossip might create temporary alliances, it often damages trust and professional credibility.
- Be generous: Always acknowledge other people’s contributions generously. This reduces unnecessary competition.
These strategies can help individuals protect their psychological well-being while responding to workplace politics without compromising their professional values.
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Organisations Have a Role Too
It is unfair to expect that it is the only responsibility of employees to resolve workplace politics. Organisations must also partly participate in ensuring a healthy workplace environment. Research suggests that perceptions of organisational politics can negatively affect workplace attitudes and outcomes, making organisational responsibility an important part of addressing the problem (Miller et al., 2008). Some of the changes organisations can think of adopting are as follows:
- Clearly communicating promotion criteria and maintaining transparency
- Acknowledging good performance and consistently evaluating performance
- Promoting transparency and communication while making important decisions
- Addressing favouritism
When organisations make decision-making processes more transparent, employees may have fewer reasons to rely on assumptions, rumours, or informal networks to understand how important decisions are made.
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Conclusion
Workplaces are social systems influenced by relationships and power. While employees do not always have the capability to manipulate the political environment of the workplace, they can always decide how they respond to it. Thus, developing certain political skills and making genuine professional relationships can help individuals navigate themselves through the workplace politics without having to compromise their values. In the end, it is the ability to understand workplace politics while maintaining our own integrity and treating people fairly while doing the right thing.
References +
- Ferris, G. R., Treadway, D. C., Kolodinsky, R. W., Hochwarter, W. A., Kacmar, C. J., Douglas, C., & Frink, D. D. (2005). Development and validation of the Political Skill Inventory. Journal of Management, 31(1), 126–152. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206304271386
- Harris, K. J., Andrews, M. C., & Kacmar, K. M. (2007). The moderating effects of justice on the relationship between organisational politics and workplace attitudes. Journal of Business and Psychology, 22(2), 135–144. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-007-9054-9
- Miller, B. K., Rutherford, M. A., & Kolodinsky, R. W. (2008). Perceptions of organisational politics: A meta-analysis of outcomes. Journal of Business and Psychology, 22(3), 209–222. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-008-9061-5
- Wei, L.-Q., Chiang, F. F. T., & Wu, L.-Z. (2012). Developing and utilising network resources: Roles of political skill. Journal of Management Studies, 49(2), 381–402. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2010.00987.x
- Munyon, T. P., Summers, J. K., Thompson, K. M., & Ferris, G. R. (2015). Political skill and work outcomes: A theoretical extension, meta-analytic investigation, and agenda for the future. Personnel Psychology, 68(1), 143–184. https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12066
- Labrague, L. J., McEnroe-Petitte, D. M., Gloe, D., Tsaras, K., Arteche, D. L., & Maldia, F. (2017). Organisational politics, nurses’ stress, burnout levels, turnover intention and job satisfaction. International Nursing Review, 64(1), 109–116. https://doi.org/10.1111/inr.12347
- Summers, J. K., Munyon, T. P., Brouer, R. L., Pahng, P., & Ferris, G. R. (2020). Political skill in the stressor–strain relationship: A meta-analytic update and extension. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 118, 103372. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2019.103372
- Chen, H., Jiang, S., & Wu, M. (2022). How important are political skills for career success? A systematic review and meta-analysis. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(19), 3942–3968. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1949626
