No abstract

This study examines the complex relationships b e h e n diferentinl superior-subordinate relations,foirness perceptions, and coworker communication. Data gatheredfrom employees in a variety of organizations indicate that diferential treatmentfrom a supervisor to his or her subordinates influences coworker communication by (a) leading coworkers to talk about the differential treatment itself, and (b) influencing the nature of the communication relationships among the coworkers. Data also proznde insight into issues of perceived organizntional fairness, indicating that fairness perceptions are open socially constructed by work group members through discourse.esearch on leader-member exchange theory (LMX) shows that supervisors tend to develop distinctive types of relationships

No abstract

An exploratory examination of workplace friendship deterioration processes was conducted using employees’ narrative accounts of their experiences. Narratives revealed five primary causes of workplace friendship deterioration – personality, distracting life events, conflicting expectations, promotion, and betrayal. Narratives also indicated that individuals relied primarily on indirect communication tactics, including avoidance of nonwork topics in conversation, nonverbal cues, and avoidance of socializing away from the workplace to disengage from workplace friendships. Consequences of workplace friendship deterioration included emotional stress, reduced ability to perform tasks, turnover, and altered perceptions regarding the role of friendships in the workplace. Discussion and suggestions for future research are provided.

Organizational newcomers go through various socialization processes before becoming organizational veterans. Information seeking (a self-socialization process) involves newcomers' proactively seeking new information, most times to reduce uncertainty. This study assessed how personality traits, specifically, Costa and McCrae's Big Five, affect this process. Multiple regression analyses indicate that certain traits influence information seeking directly and via the mediation of social costs. Of particular note are the results surrounding extroversion. Specifically, the data suggest a direct relationship between extroversion and covert relational information seeking, whereas perceived relational social costs also mediate this relationship. Several important extensions to the literature are discussed herein.