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Office Chit-Chat as a Social Ritual: The Uplifting Yet Distracting Effects of Daily Small Talk at Work
Academy of Management Journal ( IF 9.5 ) Pub Date : 2020-06-05 , DOI: 10.5465/amj.2018.1474
Jessica R. Methot 1 , Emily Rosado-Solomon 2 , Patrick Downes 3 , Allison S Gabriel 4
Affiliation  

Small talk—short, superficial, or trivial communication not core to task completion—is normative and ubiquitous in organizations. Although small talk comprises one-third of adults’ speech, its effects at work have been discounted. Integrating theories of interaction rituals and micro-role transitions, we explore how and why seemingly inconsequential conversations during the workday generate meaningful effects on employees’ experiences. In a sample of employed adults from a Northeast US University’s alumni database and LinkedIn (n = 151), we used an experience sampling method (ESM) to capture within-individual variation in small talk over three weeks. We also conducted a validation of our daily small talk measure with Masters students from a Northeastern US University (n = 73) and two samples of employed adults registered with Amazon Turk (n = 180 and n = 202). Results showed that, on one hand, small talk enhanced employees’ daily positive social emotions at work, which translated into heightened organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) and well-being at the end of the workday; on the other hand, small talk disrupted employees’ ability to cognitively engage in their work, which compromised their OCB. Our results also showed higher levels of trait-level self-monitoring mitigated the negative effects of small talk on work engagement. Combined, results suggest that the polite, ritualistic, and formulaic nature of small talk is often uplifting yet distracting.

中文翻译:

办公室闲聊作为一种社交仪式:工作中日常闲聊的令人振奋但令人分心的效果

闲聊——不是完成任务的核心的简短、肤浅或琐碎的交流——在组织中是规范和普遍存在的。尽管闲聊占成人演讲的三分之一,但其对工作的影响却被低估了。整合互动仪式和微观角色转换的理论,我们探讨了工作日看似无关紧要的对话如何以及为何会对员工的体验产生有意义的影响。在来自美国东北大学校友数据库和 LinkedIn (n = 151) 的受雇成年人样本中,我们使用经验抽样方法 (ESM) 来捕捉三周内闲聊中的个体差异。我们还对来自美国东北部大学的硕士生 (n = 73) 和两个在 Amazon Turk 注册的受雇成年人样本 (n = 180 和 n = 202) 进行了日常闲聊测量的验证。结果表明,一方面,闲聊增强了员工在工作中的日常积极社会情绪,从而转化为更高的组织公民行为(OCB)和工作日结束时的幸福感;另一方面,闲聊打乱了员工认知参与工作的能力,从而损害了他们的 OCB。我们的结果还表明,更高水平的特质水平自我监控减轻了闲聊对工作投入的负面影响。综合起来,结果表明闲聊的礼貌、仪式和公式化的性质往往令人振奋但又会分散注意力。一方面,闲聊增强了员工在工作中的日常积极社交情绪,从而转化为更高的组织公民行为(OCB)和工作日结束时的幸福感;另一方面,闲聊打乱了员工认知参与工作的能力,从而损害了他们的 OCB。我们的结果还表明,更高水平的特质水平自我监控减轻了闲聊对工作投入的负面影响。综合起来,结果表明闲聊的礼貌、仪式和公式化的性质往往令人振奋但又会分散注意力。一方面,闲聊增强了员工在工作中的日常积极社交情绪,从而转化为更高的组织公民行为(OCB)和工作日结束时的幸福感;另一方面,闲聊打乱了员工认知参与工作的能力,从而损害了他们的 OCB。我们的结果还表明,更高水平的特质水平自我监控减轻了闲聊对工作投入的负面影响。综合起来,结果表明闲聊的礼貌、仪式和公式化的性质往往令人振奋但又会分散注意力。闲聊打乱了员工在认知上参与工作的能力,从而损害了他们的 OCB。我们的结果还表明,更高水平的特质水平自我监控减轻了闲聊对工作投入的负面影响。综合起来,结果表明闲聊的礼貌、仪式和公式化的性质往往令人振奋但又会分散注意力。闲聊打乱了员工在认知上参与工作的能力,从而损害了他们的 OCB。我们的结果还表明,更高水平的特质水平自我监控减轻了闲聊对工作投入的负面影响。综合起来,结果表明闲聊的礼貌、仪式和公式化的性质往往令人振奋但又会分散注意力。
更新日期:2020-06-05
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