Relating at work
As a psychologist I’m very interested in the dynamics of relationships in the work place. Too often one persons behaviour can have a detrimental impact on a group.
When someone demonstrates negatvie team working behaviours such as not pulling their weight, making negative comments etc it leads to us ewither having to work much harder to make up for their lack of input or create a lot of negative energy as we discuss what they said.did; how it makes us feel and what we should do about it.
Researchers at the University of Washington Business School, led by Will Felps, have concluded that if team members have the power and confidence they should either attempt to motivate the negative person or reject them from the group. The research says that what usually happens is that the rest of the team gets defensive which can lead to disruption within the team. The person’s bad morale can spread through the group affecting the morale of many and also impacting on business productivity. Managers should be mindful of the impact of negative behaviour but as team members we also have choices in how we can deal with this.
How will this help you in the future?
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