Love at the Office? Understanding Workplace Romance Disclosures and Reactions from the Coworker Perspective

Workplace Romances: “Going to Work Is Amazing and Really Fun”

“…Most empirical studies on workplace romance (e.g., Anderson & Fisher, 1991;Brown & Allgeier, 1996;Horan & Chory, 2011;Mainiero, 1986;Powell, 2001;Quinn, 1977) have relied mainly on data from co-workers' observations and self-report surveys (Wilson, 2015), which can provide useful knowledge on organization morale and equitable employee treatment (Cowan & Horan, 2014;Liberman & Okimoto, 2008;Pierce & Aguinis, 2009). However, it is also important to conduct interviews and discussions with people who have experienced workplace romance to supplement the largely third-person perspective of previous research with first-person perceptions.…”

“…Other policies focus on hierarchical relationships in which power differences exist. Many policies focus on avoiding workplace gossip and rumors (Cowan & Horan, 2014;Paul & Townsend, 1998;Pierce & Aguinis, 2009) and discourage fraternization among employees (Shaefer & Tudor, 2001). Despite such policies, some organizations avoid interfering in workplace romances out of concern about possibly violating human rights (Wilson, 2015).…”

Male-Female Workplace Friendships: Third Party Coworkers' Perceptions of and Behavior toward Organizational Peers in Cross-Sex Workplace Friendships

“…One factor that appears to influence how workplace romances are perceived is the way in which the romance is disclosed to coworkers. Cowan and Horan (2014) found that, overall, when coworkers found out about a workplace romance through personal disclosures (the workplace romance partners telling the respondent) the reaction to or perception of the relationship was much more positive than when the workplace romance was discovered through impersonal revelations (such as overt and covert nonverbal behaviors, gossip, and "getting caught in the act"). Further, Doll (2011) found that relationship secrecy was negatively related to both projected life and job satisfaction.…”

“…In addition to being perceived negatively, research has suggested that the way in which a romance is discovered impacts how others in the organization perceive the relationship. For example, Cowan and Horan (2014) found that workplace romances are perceived most negatively when they are discovered through gossip or "getting caught in the act," as opposed to through personal disclosures. That is, when workplace romances are believed to be "hidden" or kept secret, others in the organization tend to perceive them even more negatively than when they are openly exposed to others.…”

Invisible Pain: Looking At Women’s Fibromyalgia Disclosure In The Workplace Through The Lens Of Communication Privacy Management Theory

“…In short, they seemed to reveal to those they trusted, and hence, also believed that this confidant would not share the information with others. Thus, although there are interpersonal motivations to workplace gossip such as gathering work information, venting, building relationships, and interconnectedness (Blithe, 2014;Blithe & Tracy, 2009;Cowan & Horan, 2014;Dillard, 1987;Ellwardt, Steglich, & Wittek, 2012), participants were selective in who they confided in and did not believe there were risks of that person sharing information inappropriately with others and/or to gossip. But because workplace gossip often targets those low in informal status (Ellwardt, Labianca, & Wittek, 2012) and can be used for social capital in the organization (Hafen, 2004), women with an illness that they believe is stigmatized and can impact their workplace performance should use caution when revealing information and not creating explicit boundary rules.…”