Being popular in the office is also important

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You might think you left the world of cliques and in-crowds behind when you left high school. You’d be wrong. The benefits of being popular extend all the way into the adult workplace, according to research in the latest issue of the Journal of Applied Psychology. Just like children on the playground, coworkers not only agree on who’s popular but also give those lucky few more favorable treatment—more help and courteous behavior, as well as less rudeness and a reluctance to withhold useful information. This was found through a study of 255 employees in hospital, restaurant, sales, and administrative roles. The researchers, Brent Scott from Michigan State University and Timothy Judge from the University of Florida, said that popular employees received more support from their colleagues regardless of their position in the organizational hierarchy. They may also gain an unfair advantage over less popular colleagues, which can undermine a meritocratic system. “By valuing popularity, organizations may be fostering a ‘clubby’ atmosphere that mirrors school culture” rather than rewarding merit, the researchers write. I’ve been fortunate enough to work in environments based on merit most of my life, but that’s not the norm. Take the TV comedy “The Office” as an example: Who in their right mind would promote the cold and manipulative Angela Martin over the friendly Jim Halpert? The popular salesperson in the show proves the study’s point—he rises quickly in the company hierarchy thanks to his clever “people skills,” despite his lack of enthusiasm for his work. What these researchers call popularity, career coaches might refer to as savvy office politics—the art of getting people on your side. And it clearly plays a significant role in many workplaces. A Salary.com survey last fall found that dealing with office politics was one of the top two time-wasters at work, right after “faking someone else’s work.” You might be wrong. A study published in the latest issue of the Journal of Applied Psychology shows that the benefits of having good relationships persist throughout an adult’s professional career. Just as children play on the playground, colleagues not only agree on who is popular but also show more kindness toward those few lucky ones. Research shows that these lucky ones receive more help and kindness, as well as less rudeness and information concealment. In this study, Brent Scott from Michigan State University and Timothy Judge from the University of Florida surveyed 255 employees in hospital, restaurant, sales, and administrative positions, as well as their colleagues. Researchers say that, regardless of their position in the organization, employees who are popular always receive more help from their colleagues. The two researchers suggested that these employees would also gain unfair advantages over those with less charisma, which could hinder the principle of hiring based on merit. The researchers wrote that, if popularity were the criterion, organizations might favor a club atmosphere similar to that of a school, rather than selecting people based on their merit. I’m glad that I spend most of my time in an environment that values talent, but this is not the norm. If we were to find a fictional example, we could think of the situation in the TV comedy \"The Office\": which rational person would promote the cold and hardworking Angela Martin over the kind and friendly Jim Halpert? This popular paper products salesman verified the findings of the aforementioned research through his own experiences: despite having no interest in his work, Hubert managed to rise rapidly within Dunder Mifflin thanks to his clever ways of interacting with others. In fact, what these researchers call interpersonal relationships might be referred to by workplace coaches as “office **” – the techniques used to get people on your side. This is clearly very important in many workplaces. A survey conducted by Salary.com last fall found that dealing with the office **ranked as the second biggest distraction at work, right after having to clean up others’ messes**. Reposted from Hai Ci Happy English, for sharing among Hai friends