ABSTRACT

Gossip is an everyday part of organizational life and has been increasingly researched. However, some gossip has a particular character, whereby it is to some degree secret. Drawing on studies of both gossip and secrecy, in this paper we explore this ‘confidential gossip’ via a participant observation case study. This was based on an internship with Quinza, a British media company, and had a covert element which is discussed and justified. Specifically, we show how the boundaries around confidential gossip are marked in organizational interactions. The paper contributes to existing knowledge about organizational gossip by showing the particular significance of secrecy which makes confidential gossip a more potent source of group inclusion and exclusion.

摘要

八卦是组织生活中的日常工作，并且已得到越来越多的研究。但是，有些八卦具有特定的特征，因此在某种程度上是秘密的。本文基于对八卦和保密性的研究，在本文中，我们通过参加者观察案例研究来探索这种“机密八卦”。这是基于与英国媒体公司Quinza进行的实习，并具有讨论和论证的秘密元素。具体来说，我们展示了机密八卦周围的边界是如何在组织交互中进行标记的。本文通过展示保密的特殊意义，使现有的有关组织八卦的知识变得更加有用，这使机密八卦成为更有效的团体包容和排斥来源。