“The Role of Political Skills on Organizational Engagement and Constructive Behavior”
By
Danish Hussain
(Reg # 49310)
Doctor of Philosophy in Management Sciences
(Management)
Iqra University Karachi
August, 2023
“The Role of Political Skills on Organizational Engagement and Constructive Behavior”
By
Danish Hussain
(Reg # 49310)
A thesis submitted to the Iqra University Faculty of Business Administration, Karachi
In Partial Fulfillment of the requirement for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy in Management Sciences
(Management)
Iqra University Karachi
August, 2023
I, at this moment, declare that this submission is my work and that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it contains no material previously published or written by another person nor material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma of the university or other institute of higher learning, except where acknowledgement has been made in the text.
Signature: ____________________________
Name: Danish Hussain
Reg. No. 49310
Date: ________________________________
It is certified that the thesis entitled Role of Political Skills on Organizational Engagement and Constructive Behavior has been completed by Mr. Danish Hussain, Registration No. 49310, under my supervision. It is also certified that the thesis is based on original research work and meets all criteria and standards for a PhD. degree.
The following areas have been critically monitored:-
Supervisor: Dr. M. Shahnawaz Adil
Signature: _____________________
Professor, Department of Business Administration, Iqra University, Karachi.
Department of Business Administration
PHD THESIS AND DEFENSE APPROVAL SHEET
The undersigned certify that they have read the following thesis, examined the defence, and are satisfied with the overall exam performance, a. They commend the thesis to the Department of Business Administration for acceptance.
“Role of Political Skills on Organizational Engagement and Constructive Behavior”
Submitted by: Danish Hussain Registration #: 49310
Doctor of Philosophy: (PhD Management Sciences – Management)
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To My Wife “Dr. Misbah Danish”
You are my support system. Your kind words have always helped me fight despair and hopelessness. You always instilled the will in me to achieve my goal. I always remember your words to me: “You can do it”.
To My Parents “Mr. Israr Hussain” & “Ms. Nadra Hussain”,
Your prayers proved to be a miracle for me and encouraged me to turn my dreams into a reality. You always felt the pain I have been through at every step. You always helped me and facilitated me. You inspire me as I have witnessed you dealing with hardships with a smile and always becoming a winner. Your faith in me means a lot. You have always reminded me that constantly is the essence of life.”
To the My Kids “Anoosha, Abdullah & Aimen”
You both are the world’s best additions to my life. You are the key to my soul.
Recently, political skills in employees have been highlighted as a critical problem. This study aims to investigate the impact of political skills on organizational engagement and the constructive behavior of employees in Pakistan. This study analyses the mediating role of OBSE and interpersonal trust between political skills and constructive behavior. Moreover, political will was assessed as a moderator between political skills and organizational engagement and political skills and constructive behavior. The research follows the Attribution theory and Social Exchange theory to explain the level of impact of political behaviors on employees. The research is based on quantitative analysis. In the first phase, 500 responses were collected through a questionnaire survey from the employees of banking sector and analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation coefficient and confirmatory factor analysis. Descriptive analysis and Pearson’s correlation coefficient test were conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics 24 while CFA was tested on SmartPLS4 and the hypotheses were analyzed using Partial Least Square-Semi Structured Modeling (PLS-SEM). Pearson’s coefficient correlation supported the hypotheses. By using SEM, the proposed hypotheses were confirmed except for the moderator analysis. The findings show that there is a significant impact of political skills and behaviors on organizational engagement and constructive behavior.
Keywords: Political skills; Organizational engagement; Constructive behavior; Political will; OBSE; Interpersonal trust
THESIS COMPLETION CERTIFICATE. IV
PHD THESIS AND DEFENSE APPROVAL SHEET. V
1.1 Background of the Study. 1
1.5 Significance of the Study. 12
1.6 Organization of the study. 15
CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW… 17
2.2.1 The Definition and Dimensions of Political Skill. 19
2.2.2 Politics and Other social effectiveness notions are separate. 21
2.2.3 The Nature of Political Skill. 25
2.3 Dimensions of Political Skills. 27
2.3.4 Emotional Intelligence. 30
2.4 Organizational Politics. 31
2.4.1 Characterization of Political Skill. 32
2.4.2 Definition and Construct Specification. 33
2.4.3 Dimensionality of Political Skill. 33
2.4.4 Construct Validity of Political Skill. 34
2.4.5 Dispositional and Developmental Influences on Political Skill. 37
2.4.6 Organizational Politics Climate. 44
2.5 Organizational Engagement. 45
2.5.1 Employee Disengagement. 46
2.6.1 Structural Approach to Felt Responsibility for Change. 50
2.6.2 Position in the Organizational Hierarchy. 52
2.7 Political Skill and Organizational Engagement. 56
2.7.1 Political Skill in Organizations. 59
2.8 Political Skills and Constructive Behavior. 61
2.10 Theoretical Development. 76
2.11 Social Exchange Theory. 77
2.11.1 Social Behavior as Exchange. 79
2.12 The Attribution Theory. 83
2.12.2 Organizational based self-esteem.. 85
2.12.3 Interpersonal trust. 85
2.13 Theoretical Framework. 85
3.7 Population and Sampling. 92
3.10 Data Collection Instrument. 93
3.11 PRELIMINARY DATA ANALYSIS. 94
3.12.2 Karl’s Pearson Correlation Coefficient Test. 96
3.13.1 Validation Measures. 98
CHAPTER 4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION.. 100
4.3 Descriptive Statistics. 103
4.3 Karl’s Pearson Correlation Coefficient Test. 105
4.4 4.5 Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). 106
4.5 4.6 Measurement Model. 106
4.6 Discriminant Validity. 109
5.1 Limitations and Future Implications for Research. 120
5.2 Future Implications for Research. 120
5.3 Theoretical Contribution. 122
5.4 Practical Implications. 123
Table 4.11: Pearson Correlation Coefficient Test 106
Table 4.12: Construct Reliability and Validity. 107
Table 4.13: Outer Loadings. 108
Table 4.14: Discriminant Validity (Fornell– Larcker criterion) 109
Table 4.15: Regression Analysis. 110
Table 4.16: Results of Path Analysis. 111
Table 4.17: Mediation Analysis. 112
Table 4.18: Moderation Analysis. 113
Figure 2‑7 Illustration of Political skill Source: Waggoner (2020) 83
The present chapter outlines the introduction to the title and constructs of the study. It further describes the research’s background, objectives, and problem statement. The chapter also discusses the significance of the research being conducted.
Political behavior, POPs, and political skill have historically been the three primary categories that organizational politics research has been divided into (Ferris & Treadway 2012b). Although these categories are a useful tool for organizing the politics literature, they nevertheless seen as potentially restrictive. Therefore, the analysis is structured around an elaboration and articulation of the linked nature of these categories in an attempt to stimulate further research on organizational politics, and it is proposed that these categories ought to represent agentic traits, behaviours, and results. In light of this, it is proposed that POPs, political behaviour, and political skill, respectively, are representative constructs of political traits, political acts, and political outcomes. By broadening the scope of organizational politics study, more effective constructs can be placed in the literature. For instance, talking about political features makes it possible to include political ability, political will, and other dimensions (such as personality traits) that affect how people behave politically and perceive political outcomes (Mintzberg, 1983, Treadway, 2012). In a similar vein, research on general political behaviour, influence strategies, impression management, and concepts like voice that are intended to affect the management of common meaning in organizations are all captured by applying the more inclusive category label of political acts. Lastly, the incorporation of other social influence outcomes, such as reputation, is made possible by designating POPs as one of multiple potential political outcomes.
“Political arenas” as defined by Mintzberg (1985) are a harsh reality for organizations that seek long-term and short-term self-interest optimization (Nawaz et al., 2019). As a result of its poor reputation among employees, it is seen as a danger to the effectiveness and efficiency of businesses. Politics in the workplace has been shown to hurt a variety of work outcomes in previous studies (Mena et al., 2010).
In recent years, the tendency has changed, and numerous studies have addressed its good features, such as justice restoration, conflict resolution, effective persuasion, and more. Managers need to learn how to adapt to change, transform perceived threats and limitations into opportunities, and use their deficiencies as strengths. Managers should be aware of the politics of their organizations and try to improve their ability to influence to meet their own and their organization’s goals (Sharma & Singh, 2018).
Political savvy matters since it is linked to a variety of work-related attitudes, stress markers, and behaviors. More precisely, according to several studies (Chen et al., 2021; Munyon et al., 2015; Summers et al., 2020), political skill is moderately correlated with task performance, organizational citizenship behaviors, burnout, job satisfaction, and overall career success. There is proof that some of these associations have a stronger presence in jobs with more social demands (Bing et al., 2011; Chen et al., 2021), which indicates a higher likelihood of utility in child welfare roles, from frontline staff through upper management, even though the majority of the research has not been conducive to thoroughly testing the question.
So far, meta-analytic research on political skill has not addressed techniques to enhance political ability but rather factors that are only associated with it. However, political skill can also be intentionally acquired by methods including role-playing, mentoring, simulations, drama-based training, video feedback, behavior modelling, and coaching, according to researchers, even though it is partially dispositional (Ferris et al., 2002). Research is required to evaluate the efficacy of these suggestions for political skill in particular, even though the general success of many of these techniques has been demonstrated.
Researchers are particularly interested in political skill, which refers to a person’s capacity to affect or influence circumstances. According to Douglas (2002), the capacity to develop, manage and govern relationships successfully is referred to as “social effectiveness.” Recent years have seen an increase in the prominence of social effectiveness dimensions, particularly political skill, among organizational psychology experts and academics (Kapoutsis et al., 2011).
The possibility for meaningful work-related interactions between employees, and specifically between colleagues, does not happen automatically, rather there is a certain social effectiveness necessary to make it happen. Constructs of social effectiveness also affect the behavioral and emotional reactions within a workplace. Such personality features which are oriented towards the ability of one person to effectively deal with another person belong to a category of individuals called interpersonal personality variables. Within the past twenty-five years there have been significant developments in the conceptualization and practice of social effectiveness ideas. Recently, the quantitative literature related to organizational sciences has highlighted the focus of political skills (Hussain et al., 2018).
Politics skills are described as “the capacity to successfully comprehend people in the workplace and to utilize such information to encourage other individuals or groups to behave in a manner that enhances one’s personal and/or organizational goals. Contrary to popular belief, it is not a clone of concepts such as social intelligence, social competence, or self-monitoring. As a complex construct, political skill focuses on a person’s capacity to comprehend people for their advantage, which may be used in the workplace. The other components of social effectiveness, on the other hand, are more generic in nature and emphasize the development of interpersonal relationships (Fuller et al., 2006).
The ability to navigate the political terrain of an organization requires some level of political acumen. Political activity is typical practice in contemporary enterprises because of uncertainty, risk, restricted resources, and a variety of requirements and interests. Political competence is becoming more necessary in dealing with the current organizational changes, such as cross-functional teams, a flat organizational structure, and the execution of strategy (Gotsis & Kortezi, 2011).
Organizational politics at work have two components. Two factors have a good impact on an organization: the first is social in nature, and the second is self-centred, primarily serving one’s interests and self-advantage, which affects the organization’s goal (Mintzberg, 1985; Gotsis & Kortezi, 2010: 498). Organizational politics are consequently viewed as a dual-aspect concept that can be either functional or dysfunctional for the workers and the organization, as stated by Allen et al. in 1979. Similarly, Othman (2008) argues that many scholars explore organizational politics in both positive and negative ways. This study also provides a thorough understanding of organizational politics by reviewing a large body of literature over a long period. Politics “is an epidemic phenomenon in organizations and that it deserves more attention and empirical examination,” according to studies by Gandz & Murray, 1980; Mayes & Allen, 1977; Mintzberg, 1983; Pfeffer, 1981, 1992, and others. Whether organizational politics (OP) has a positive or negative effect is entirely dependent on the causes and effects.
Political will, according to Vinnicombe (2013), is the driving force behind the capacity to effectively manage the political environment and workplace behavior. In addition to political ability and political will, Mintzberg (2010) noted that political management of events and behaviours needs . Interpersonal and cognitive components of political skills have been examined in several research. According to Zellars et al. (), it is a relational style construct that combines social awareness with self-regulated conduct in a wide range of contexts; that seems honest, builds trust, and influences people successfully. It is also considered a pattern that includes social competencies that explain emotional, cognitive, and behaviour displays and has an influence on people and others in organizations (De Clercq & Belausteguigoitia, 2017; Gotsis & Kortezi, 2011).
According to Ferris et al. (2017), political competence is a talent that can be taught to people by providing them with training, mentorship, and socialization opportunities. Additionally, it’s thought to be a result of a person’s unique set of traits and experiences. Individuals with political aptitude might be placed in positions that need greater social contact by organizations. A person’s ability to navigate the political system gives them an advantage and makes them more valuable to the organizations they serve and the people they work with. Past research shows that the majority of studies in this area focused on the connections between political skills and consequences like job satisfaction, organizational commitment, confidence in one’s abilities, success in one’s professional career, devotion to one’s employer’s mission, and productivity at work (Ng et al., 2021).
There is a consensus that to adapt to the changing business contexts of today, organizations should actively promote their employees’ innovative work behaviour (IWB) (Getz & Robinson, 2003; Unsworth & Parker, 2003; Van de Ven, Polley, Garud, & Venkataraman, 2008). For public sector organizations, who are likewise under tremendous pressure to innovate, this is equally vital. The growing number of national and international policy documents (Audit Commission, 2007; Australian National Audit Office [ANAO], 2009; Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD], 2012) attests to the gravity with which this goal is pursued. A growing corpus of empirical research on public sector innovation has coincided with this explosion of policy documentation (Bason, 2010; Borins, 2001; De Vries, Bekkers, & Tummers, 2016). This acknowledges that the environments in which private and public sector organizations operate have varying effects on an organization’s ability to innovate. A significant body of research indicates that the public sector faces more obstacles to IWB due to the very diverse governance concerns that impact public sector organizations and their organizational design (Damanpour & Schneider, 2009; Fernandez & Moldogaziev, 2012). Several factors contribute to this, such as the absence of incentives or rewards for staff members who innovate, the expenses of failure (especially media exposure) if something goes wrong, the absence of competitive pressure to innovate, and stringent agency regulations (Borins, 2001; Bysted & Jespersen, 2014). In a case study of IWB in the Dutch fire services, Bos-Nehles, Bondarouk, and Nijenhuis (2017) emphasized how stringent agency control along with robust formalisation to ensure quality in public services hindered IWBs.
Further research has examined the influence of political competence as a moderator on a variety of factors. For example, Gazdag et al., (2017) looked at the link between racial dissimilarity with perceptions about political influence compatibility and found that political competence had a reducing impact. Research by Williams et al., (2017) examined its role as a mediator between follower leadership and workplace spirituality. In addition, Mishra (2016) explored the impact of political skill on the link between subordinates’ readiness to communicate and their propensity to share their opinions. Political competence was shown to have a moderating influence on employees’ mistrust of management and their perceptions of career mobility, according to Harris (2016). However, there are still gaps in the understanding of political talent (Singh & Modassir, 2007).
Engagement is viewed as general impacts and charges towards organizational success and tasks done by the workers. If engagement is successfully managed, employees’ commitment towards their organization will be strengthened with the help of an engaging environment. Moreover, it can inspire the employees to go in-depth to provide work-related outcomes. For achieving competitiveness and innovation and gaining organizational effectiveness, employee engagement is considered a crucial factor. Employee engagement refers to an individual’s satisfaction with, involvement with and enthusiasm for their task and job (Chandani et al., 2016). Engaged employees are the major factors that assist the organization in achieving overall organizational goals. Whereas on the other hand, disengaged employees refer to trenching the company financially by responding towards others with blame, resistance, and distrust and indicating a low level of commitment (Chandani et al., 2016; Mishra & Kodwani, 2019). It has been identified that comparatively little research has been done on political skills organizational engagement and constructive behaviour. Considering the organization-centric approach, the study investigates organizational engagement and constructive behaviour with the opportunity to induce and encourage political skills in the organization. According to the study of McCoy, Cummings and Davies (2009), it has been investigated that the interest in constructive behaviour has increased with the increase of interest in the procedures and techniques during the past years, which emphasise the development of dynamics and positive qualities that directly lead to extraordinary organizational and individual performance. Constructive behaviour is the one that helps reduce tension, assists in resolving conflict to a great extent, and supports the organization in goal achievement. It has been claimed by Soriano (2008), that organizations are considered as a “political arena”. However, nearby politics is a harsh certainty of the organizations aiming to maximise self-interest in the short- and long-term. As per Ferris et al. (2007), political skills refer to the capability to understand another individual at the workplace efficiently and to utilise such knowledge to inspire and impact others to act in such a way that enhances the objective of an individual and organization(Arrowsmith & Parker, 2013; Kidron & Peretz, 2018).
People and groups with varied beliefs aims, and interests form an organization. Conflicts over the distribution of scarce resources might arise due to this situation. As a result, not all of the needs of the organization’s members can be addressed, leading to fierce rivalry among them for the organization’s limited resources. There is legal power when a few individuals form a group. People are always looking for ways to expand their sphere of influence, as well as to further their interests and aspirations. Members of the organization will be viewed as being active in politics if they put their authority into action. A significant component of the existence of an organization is political activity. It is important to note that political conduct in a company does not necessarily have to be part of an employee’s job description. However, it may still impact the distribution of profits and losses (Arrowsmith & Parker, 2013).
The research of political organization may be divided into three ways, according to Thanos (2016). When it comes to organizational politics, this research focuses on how both private and public organizations’ perspectives of organizational politics interact. Studies have demonstrated that people’s negative reactions may lower productivity, job satisfaction, and dedication, as well as contribute to an increase in employee turnover, negligence, absence, and overall stress at work. As a second part of this investigation, the research focuses on the influence of political players in influencing the result of the work. Political conduct, how it manifests and how it affects both the process and consequence of decision-making, has been the subject of this study. Third, assess the motivations that organizational members need to have a personal motivation to survive in the demanding political climate, such as desire to participate in politics, abilities including political skills, emotional maturity, and qualities such as personality.
Not surprisingly, political behaviour has long been seen unfavourably by the majority of decision-making scholars. According to Fedor and Maslyn (2002), organizations would be better off if they could avoid political behaviour so that everything would be “above board” and that “back-room manoeuvring” would not prevail. This viewpoint is consistent with the widely held belief that organizational politics are destructive or dysfunctional. However, Ferris et al. (2002) point out that there has been a weakness in the research since it has relied too much on negative definitions of political behaviour, given that people in organizations engage in both “good” and “bad” politics at the same time. Furthermore, viewing political behaviour as a bad thing implies that those in positions of power only have their interests in mind, never considering those of other people, groups, organizations, or society at large—an assumption that is not necessarily accurate (Pfeffer, 2010). For instance, several academics have acknowledged that political behaviour has both positive and negative aspects, and is therefore seen as neutral or unbiased. (Ferris & Treadway, 2012; Hochwarter, 2012). In a similar vein, Fedor and Maslyn (2002) pointed out that political behaviour might be viewed as productive when it’s the only option to complete a task or address concerns that other methods deem unsuitable at a given moment. While engaging in such political activity may not be permitted and may be done so at least in part for personal gain, the results may be advantageous to the organization, the team, or the decision-makers (Fedor et al., 2008). To give an example, productive political behaviour in decision-making could occur if someone participates in a strategic alliance and goes outside the chain of command to think about a crucial problem about the alliance and its success.
Researchers in management have made an effort to pinpoint the most crucial characteristics and abilities of people who hold leadership positions in the company. Political skill has been characterized as being separate from other traditionally important management abilities and stated as a remarkable and obvious part of a manager’s conduct that leads to success and good behaviours in the early literature on managing skills (Haider et al., 2020).
It is widely accepted that a manager’s political acumen may have a significant influence on a range of organizational outcomes. Even though some data suggests a relationship between political ability and organizational citizenship, positive behaviours such as helpful behaviour and compassion remain untapped and encourage additional research (DuBrin, 2013).
While political talent may help managers better understand and influence people, there is no evidence that political skill has an impact on knowledge. As a result, they can comprehend and appreciate the needs and values of others as well as share their thoughts and ideas with others. Additionally, a manager’s political expertise helps tie them to their position via the fit and link mechanisms. Managers are better able to build networks and work connections as a result of this, and it seems that managers are more closely linked to the tasks they do (Robbins, 2010).
Even though direct links between political skills as well as positive behaviours like helping, compassion, knowledge sharing, and job embedding have been studied, more research is needed to examine specific mediating variables. These include organizational self-esteem, relationship quality, and personal reputation. By fostering a feeling of purpose at work and preserving favourable personal credibility in the eyes of employees, political competence is thought to promote interpersonal trust and boost managers’ self-esteem. This suggests that assessing how political skill helps managers see how they may contribute to their company and find meaning in their jobs in the presence of certain mediators would be a smart option. Further research into self-esteem, trust among friends and family and personal reputation as mediating factors is thus required (Konakli, 2016).
Mintzberg (2019) and Doldor et al. (2013) believed “political will” to be a crucial part of political conduct, and they were right. This link between political talent and outcomes can only be better understood if the function of political intention as a moderator is studied. Kimura (2015) made this point in his research on the relationship between public skill and outcomes.
There is a dearth of studies on the growing implications of political skill, particularly in emerging countries like Pakistan, even though it is an essential concept and empirical evidence is accessible. Research on political talent is scarce in Pakistan, where the concept is in its infancy. For example, Muzzafar (2011) looked at how political skill mediated the link between perceived organizational justice and work stress, desire to leave and emotional commitment and contextual effectiveness on employees in the public and private sectors. It was shown that self-monitoring and three political skills, such as social savvy, network capacity and interpersonal influence, mediated the relationship between proactive personality traits and employee performance. No study on the association between positive behaviours and work embeddedness and political competence in Pakistan has been conducted.
Based on Munyoun et al. (2015) recommendations for further research into the role of political skill on prosocial behaviour, compassion, knowledge sharing, and job involvement in the presence of stipulated mediators and moderators, the current study will fill in the knowledge gaps and provide recommendations for bank managers (Konakli, 2016).
Political skills are considered for the self-interest rather than the interest of the overall organization and employees. Therefore, the main aim of the research is “to evaluate the role of political skills in the organizational engagement and constructive behaviour of employee”. Depending upon the nature of the study, and problem statement following objectives are formulated:
To achieve the aim of the research, the study will include the following objectives:
Focusing on the aim of the research, the study will answer the following questions:
Organizational politics has become an inevitable and major part of the whole organization generally influences every worker in the organization up to some extent (Jain & Ansari, 2018). It has been experienced that generally negative behaviour has been developed in the organization and towards their job when employees feel victimized by the organizational politics. This negative behaviour harms the job performance of the employees. Various responses to similar situations are demonstrated by the employees due to having different personality dimensions (Khodabandeh & Sattari Ardabili, 2015). The current study aims to evaluate what is the major part and character played by the employee’s political skills in the organization and how it influences the organizational engagement and constructive behaviour of the employee. Organizational politics is considered a threat to the efficiency and effectiveness of the organization due to its negative impression on the mind of the individual who is working in the organization. In the past, it has been examined by many researchers that organizational politics harm the different outcomes of the job. However, now the trends have changed to a greater extent, as positive aspects of organizational politics have been addressed by many of the studies such as effective persuasion, conflict resolution, justice restoration etc. In today’s world, managers must be effective in the organization; however, to survive in the political environment at the workplace, managers must develop their skills accordingly to cope with the challenges and changes that occur in the organization. These skill sets will also help managers to turn weaknesses into strengths and threats into opportunities (Konakli, 2016).
Research on political skill has mostly focused on the nomological web that surrounds it, emphasizing its causes and consequences, so that it acts as a mediating factor between political skill and important organizational outcomes like stress, tenure, and work performance. Overall findings indicate that political acumen positively impacts these predictor variables, especially task performance (Michaelis, Rogbeer, Schweizer, & Özleblebici, 2021). Because of the variety of evidence about the relationship between political ability and performance, a meta-analysis on political skill is required. Two factors may limit political skill’s capacity to predict work performance accurately: the type of performance being evaluated and the social setting in which employees carry out their duties (Naveel et al., 2022; Yeboah-Ofori & Islam, 2019). No one trait or skill defines political acumen. Rather, it is a combination of skills and abilities that are internally coherent, mutually reinforcing, and compatible, representing a synergistic social dynamic that defies precise description (Gallagher et al., 2019). Because a style-type component aligns with the definition of “political skills,” that is the term being used. A technique or mode of expressing oneself through language; a way of putting thoughts into words; or (2) “a specific and distinctive way of presenting, executing, constructing, or designing in the art, period, work, or occupation of any kind.” Furthermore, it is believed that political aptitude can be developed or learned, but it is also believed that it is, to some extent, innate (Templer, 2018). By mentioning this, the writers could come across as hedging or trying to have it both ways. The mix of dispositional and situational perspectives on behaviour suggests a more modern understanding, even though trait-versus-situation approaches to behaviour were once thought to be mutually exclusive. Thus, it is contended that while political intelligence may be innate, it may never reach its full potential if the right conditions are not met (Bentley, Treadway, Williams, Gazdag, & Yang, 2017; Munyon et al., 2021; Templer, 2018). Political talent needs to be able to modify their behaviour to fit the specifics and environmental requirements of a given situation to be truly successful. Political skill enhances behavioural flexibility, which is essential in today’s shifting corporate environments, much like general mental capacity or intelligence (Bentley et al., 2017). It is considered that both types of flexibility are essential to effectiveness, even though cognitive flexibility responds better to training. The focus is on the development of political skills as a potential new area of interest when it comes to management development programs, hiring and promotion decisions, and other related decisions (Karatepe et al., 2019; Williams et al., 2017).
The view that politics are everywhere and useful to very few individuals, teams, and organizations, has been the mainstream perspective in the management literature for at least three decades (Ferris & Treadway, 2012; Chang, Rosen, & Levy, 2009; Miller, Rutherford, & Kolodinsky, 2008; Eisenhardt & Bourgeois, 1988; Thanos et al., 2017). Such negative opinion regards politics as a zero-sum game where one works for own interest regardless of others leading to sub deals, dirty words and back biting. This has caused both scholars and managers to either do, or pretend to do, and make them the reason for blame when the results are negative. While working in organizations definitely has negative consequences (Child et al., 2010; Ferris et al., 2002; Vigoda, 2001), some positive effects have been found in the literature, and need further research, such as, improved productivity, marching up the career ladder, enhanced innovativeness, and meeting of minds to make decisions (Landells & Albrecht, 2013; Hochwarter, 2012; Gotsis & Kortezi, 2010; Fedor et al., 2008; Kurchner-Hawkins & Miller, 2006).
This research is structured into five chapters as follows:
Chapter 1 introduces the topic and provides an overview of the research problem, followed by the research questions. The latter, hence drives the objective(s) of the research. Furthermore, the chapter highlights the contribution(s) and limitations of the study, ending by providing the structure of the research.
Chapter 2 is the literature review; the main aim of the chapter is to explore relevant literature on important aspects of the study. The same not only reviews and reports on the current body of scholarly works, but it does also so with the aims of finding knowledge and contributory gaps in the relevant literature. The chapter is divided into two halves, the first half covers the whole notion of political skills and organizational engagement and all its premier facets, inclusive of its historical backgrounds. The second half of the chapter is dedicated to establishing the significance of the political system within an organization for better understanding and managing political and constructive behaviour.
Chapter 3 provides the research methodology used to achieve the research objectives. This chapter presents the research design, research strategy, data collection, sampling and freshly created research questionnaire based on political skills, constructive behaviour and organizational engagement of the employees. Moreover, relevant testing techniques are also provided to prove scientific and statistical robustness alongside the testing equations.
Chapter 4 provides survey results and compressive results and discussion. After the data was collected, it was evaluated and tested through different tests to check if the hypothesis was proved right or wrong. The demographics of respondents were evaluated. Mediation and moderation analysis were also performed.
Chapter 5 describes the summary of the results obtained after study. The results and their relevancy to past literature was conducted. It is also important to mention how this study contributes to literature and industry. Recommendations are also given for the researchers to study in the future.
The chapter presents the constructs of the study and the already published literature on the constructs. It also discusses the theoretical underpinnings of the study and relates the current research problem and constructs with the selected theories for the study. A conceptual model for the study is formulated in the present section of the study which is being explained and graphically represented in the below sections of this chapter.
Upwards two decades ago, the concept of “political skill” was established as an essential attribute to have to be successful in the workplace (Ng et al., 2021; Sun et al., 2021). Employees require political talent, according to Pfeffer (2018), who’s one of the first scholars to use the word in academic literature. Organizations, according to Mintzberg (2019), are political arenas, necessitating the use of political acumen if they are to thrive. “The capacity to successfully comprehend people at work and to utilize such information to influence others in ways that advance one’s personal and/or organizational goals” was described by Ferris et al. (2007) as a political skill (Jordan et al., 2021). They also identified four crucial qualities of political skill: social savvy, relationship quality, networking ability, and the appearance of sincerity as the four most important characteristics (Jordan et al., 2021).
Individuals who have a high level of social astuteness can perceive and interpret social interactions effectively. Pfeffer (2018) refers to this trait as being responsive to others, and he proved that the capacity to recognize others is crucial to achieving one’s objectives. Interpersonal influence is a way for people to get the reactions they want from others by changing their conduct in response to various conditions (Haider et al., 2020). Pfeffer (2018) defined “flexibility” in the context of interpersonal influence as the ability to adjust one’s conduct to various targets of persuasion in different contexts to attain one’s own goals. Politically savvy persons are competent at locating and cultivating a wide range of relationships and networks (Sun et al., 2021). Opportunities may be created and taken advantage of by someone who has a good network. Sincerity is a quality that implies honesty and forthrightness in the person. The structure of political talent has held up well over time, both conceptually and empirically (Rupar et al., 2020).
To put it another way, organizations in Asian countries may be considered as a game arena of power, whereby people confront a limited supply of resources to pursue their interests in a variety of ways (Fong et al., 2021). When it comes to becoming a successful employee and dealing with the political reality of businesses, political competence is considered crucial. Because the intent is finding out how political talent affects a person’s behavioral proclivities, the topic under study is how political skill influences employee voice ((Fong et al., 2021; Jordan et al., 2021; Srivastava & Madan, 2020).
For even more than three decades, management literature has held that politics are pervasive but detrimental to most people, teams, and organizations (Islam et al., 2020).
There are three main areas of research into organizational politics. Personal and organizational results may be influenced by how people perceive political activity in the workplace. There is a strong correlation between negative reactions and decreased performance and job satisfaction, as well as increased absenteeism and job stress in the workplace based on previous research. Secondly, the effect of the political activity has on these outcomes is considered, namely whether it is proactive or reactive. These studies have looked at how political conduct appears., as well as its influence on strategic decision-making processes and results. For the third stream of research, it is analyzed what workers need to have to succeed in a challenging political context. Influence efforts, impression management, voice and assisting actions may also be used to obtain good results and thrive at work.
Many crucial problems remain unsolved and need extensive theoretical and empirical attention, even while researchers have supplied some explanations to how politics are seen, enacted, and accountable for detrimental impacts such as with little debate on their beneficial influences. In other words, how do managers’ differing views on politics in the workplace influence their political activity, and what personal, social, and situational aspects decide whether politics has a good or bad impact on teams or organizations? From a theoretical and practical multi-disciplinary perspective, the goal of this special issue is to stimulate a healthy conversation about the good and bad consequences of politics in the workplace.
Studies on political skill have mostly concentrated on the nomological net that surrounds it, with an emphasis on its antecedents and effects, such that it serves as a mediator between political skill and significant organizational outcomes, such as work performance, tenure, and stress. In general, the results show that political skill has a beneficial influence on this predictor variable, particularly on task performance (Michaelis et al., 2021). Because of this, a meta-analysis on political skill is needed given the wide range of data on the link between performance and political ability. Political skill’s ability to accurately predict work performance may be constrained by two factors: the kind of performance being assessed as well as the social context in which employees conduct their duties (Yeboah-Ofori & Islam, 2019).
For Mintzberg (2016), successful personal participation in organizations requires political expertise (Baier & Schmitz, 2020). Despite Mintzberg’s definition of political skill, newer researchers have defined it as a capacity to be successful in informal contacts. Political skill is defined in recent studies, including Koutsopoulos (2018), as the capability to operate in a work environment and have opponents make relevant decisions with one or more goals in mind, either development or personal benefit.
The intellectual and interpersonal dimensions of political competence have recently been addressed in recent research in this regard. According to Zellars et al. (2018), an interpersonal style that combines socioeconomic astuteness with the ability to adapt one’s behavior to various situational demands in a way that appears sincere, inspires trust, and outcomes in an effective influence over others, is an example of an interpersonal style. To Ferris et al. (2018), political skill is a multifaceted set of social competencies that includes aspects of cognition, emotion, and behavior. It has an impact on one’s well-being as well as that of others (Sheng, 2017).
It is widely accepted that the four characteristics of political competence are: social savvy, interpersonal influence, networking ability, and seeming sincerity. To be socially astute, one must be able to effectively comprehend and interpret social interactions, as well as their own and others’ behavior, and be acutely aware of a variety of social settings. Interpersonal influence refers to the capacity to influence others subtly and persuasively and to adjust and calibrate one’s behavior to each scenario to elicit certain reactions from other people (Pronk, 2018). Personal and professional success depends on the capacity to build and use a wide variety of networks to safeguard the assets that are so important. Finally, the capacity to look sincere, honest, sincere, and genuine to others is what is meant by the term “apparent sincerity” (Rojo et al., 2018).
On this scale, Ferris et al. initially established the concept (2018). An 18-item measure known as the Political Skill Assessment was developed by the authors later. PSI’s concept validity, criterion-related validity, and cross-cultural generalizability were validated by subsequent empirical investigations. Since the scale of seeming sincerity comprises just three elements (Ferris et al., 2018), its reliability and validity may be questioned. According to the authors, seeming sincerity may not constitute an independent dimension of political competence, but rather a result (Pitelis & Wagner, 2019).
One of the social effectiveness constructs is political competence. However, it may be conceptually distinct from other concepts that share its scope. Politics and social intelligence seem to have a lot in common; nevertheless, political skill is different from social intelligence since it focuses on interactions (Tosun & Lang, 2017) work, whereas social intelligence focuses on more general social relationships (Benavides, 2019).
When it comes to emotional intelligence, it means being able to discern between your feelings and those of others and using this knowledge as a compass to direct your thoughts and actions. (2007) Ferris et al. said, “Emotional intelligence has significant associations with political competence” since it includes certain interpersonal behavior. Empirical research shows a strong link between political competence and a person’s emotional intelligence (Booth, 2018).
While there is considerable overlap between these concepts, researchers also found that they are conceptually unique. In contrast to emotional intelligence, which focuses on the emotional elements of interpersonal connections, political skill is seen as an amalgamation of knowledge and talent that extends beyond emotions (Reike et al., 2018). People’s overall inclination to act in an emotionally intelligent manner is referred to as emotional intelligence, whereas political skill is defined as the ability to achieve a specific objective. Emotional intelligence, is believed to be more universal and fundamental, and it is essential for the successful application of political skill. While political competence is a more proximal indicator, it may be an indirect predictor of beneficial results. Politics mediates the link between emotional maturity and work happiness (Reike et al., 2018), according to Meisler (2010). Emotional intelligence may be improved by political skill since it involves the capacity to recognize subtle social signs. Emotional recognition improves more in politically adept individuals than in those who are less talented in this area, according to Momm et al. (2013).
“Judgments of how successfully one can perform courses of action necessary to cope with potential events” is a social effectiveness concept known as “self-efficacy.” Those who are politically savvy believe that they have the power to influence the results of interpersonal relationships. Politically savvy people have a deep awareness of the workplace because of their social savvy and networking prowess. Knowledge of this kind might help you feel more in control and command of others. Experiments reveal that self-reported political competence and self-efficacy are linked, while other-rated political skill is not (Jackson, 2019).
Jawahar et al. (2018) found that self-efficacy is more strongly linked to task performance than to contextual performance, whereas political skill is more strongly linked to contextual performance. There is some overlap between political skill and self-efficacy, but this overlap is limited since political skill is a more extensive pattern of social competencies. It is clear from these arguments that identity and political skill have certain similarities, but they are fundamentally distinct. There may be a link between self-efficacy and increased self-confidence if one is aware of one’s ability to use political knowledge (Nightingale et al., 2020).
In the context of impression management, self-monitoring refers to the evaluation of one’s expressive behaviors and the control of self-presentation for desirable public appearances. At the same time, they have a strong sense of what is proper and what isn’t in any particular scenario, so they can adjust their behavior accordingly. According to the findings of empirical investigations, high self-monitors are competent at controlling impressions, and researchers have linked self-monitoring to the frequent use of impression management (Nightingale et al., 2020)..
Effectiveness in politics relies on the capacity to keep an eye on one’s behavior. A person’s ability to discern appropriateness in each context is linked to their ability to control their self-presentation. As a result of their social awareness, politically savvy people can adapt their behavior to various conditions. Their ability to comprehend individuals and utilize this information to influence others is exceptional. Their ability to look genuine to others is also enhanced. While self-monitoring emphasizes an individual’s efforts to act in a socially acceptable manner, political skill is frequently employed to influence desired changes in behavior. As a result, self-monitoring and political skills may have some overlap, but they are fundamentally different. There are no statistically significant relationships between them, according to empirical investigations (Nambisan et al., 2019).
Social intelligence, a term first used in 1920, refers to one’s capacity to comprehend and manage others. The concept of social intelligence is alive and thriving in theory despite several decades of failure to establish an acceptable means to test it (Triki et al., 2020), especially in light of attempts to broaden the notions of intelligence beyond I.Q. This idea may have been the first to suggest that intelligence may be measured in more than one manner, i.e. in terms of IQ and that social intelligence might help students succeed in areas outside of the classroom. To the knowledge, political competence relies heavily on general social intelligence. In the workplace, political competence is primarily focused on identifying and analyzing people in the workplace (Boucherie et al., 2019).
As a result, political talent is perceived as a combination of both the actions to be taken and the style used to make those actions persuasive and successful (Boyatzis et al., 2017; Lepore & Kliewer, 2019; McDonald & Pearson, 2019; Zainudin & Istiyono, 2019).
As recently as a few years ago, there was a lot of interest in the notion of emotional intelligence, which is commonly defined as the capacity to recognize and respond to one’s own and others’ moods and emotions. Emotional intelligence may be defined as the capacity to manage one’s feelings, control one’s impulses, and tolerate empathizing with others. Dynamic control and regulation an essential element of social skills, but political skills also include other characteristics, such as creating and exploiting social capital (O’Connor et al., 2019).
A third social skill is self-efficacy, which relates to belief in one’s capacity to succeed in social situations and environments. People with high levels of social self-efficacy feel that they can influence the results of social encounters. People who score low on this concept think that they cannot master social relationships (Al-Mohsin, 2017), regardless of actual social competence or awareness of what is considered socially acceptable. Because social self-efficacy is the belief or confidence in one’s capacity to influence social settings, it leads to an optimistic attitude and a cheerful demeanour, which both contribute to social effectiveness. As with social self-efficacy, political skill focuses on organizational environments and relationships and the ability to influence organizational change (Datu et al., 2021; Falcão et al., 2021; Salavera et al., 2017).
Individuals with high levels of self-monitoring are adept at determining what is socially acceptable in different contexts. Emotional control is shown, and they can successfully use these talents to produce desired impressions (Ennis et al., 2018; Gulliford et al., 2019; Wu et al., 2021). This sort of social skill focuses on the successful exhibition of social conduct suited for the occasion, but it also shows the unique ability to read, analyze, and comprehend social situations, which is represented by self-monitoring. A strong self-social style strives to portray the right person in every setting. Interpersonal signals and context appropriateness are key indicators for those who have this orientation. In contrast to self-monitoring (Wu et al., 2021), which depicts people’s efforts to act in a socially acceptable way, political skill is employed to bring about desired change. Intuition and practical wisdom (Wu et al., 2021). To put it another way, tacit knowledge is actionable information that helps individuals realize their objectives—learning without the assistance of others, in other words learning on your own. It’s procedural in nature, and it’s closely linked to the achievement of a specific objective. Tacit knowledge, or common sense, is based on the unwritten workplace norms and is closely linked to practical intelligence or common sense. “Savvy” is a synonym for this, as well. Political acumen is intimately linked to tacit understanding and skills intelligence (Twomey & O’Reilly, 2018; Zhu & Bonk, 2019).
Political competence may be shown more easily if one has this information. Thus, one’s tacit education and intelligence skills play a significant role in one’s ability to master political skills. Political skill is a different form of social talent, according to the definition. According to the research, other sorts of social skills were shown to have an impact on political competence. As per understanding of political skill and other social intelligence ideas, political skill is a unique notion that deserves consideration in organizations, even though numerous social skills are connected to and may impact political skill (Twomey & O’Reilly, 2018).
There is a widespread perception that organizations are essentially political battlefields where conflicting interest groups and limited resources are fought over, coalitions are formed, and power is exerted (Grosser et al., 2018). Those who want to flourish and be productive in such organizations seem to need a sense of intuition about how to behave in certain circumstances. Indeed, the shelves of bookstores are stocked with books on how to become a more successful office player via the use of political influence methods and behaviors. Furthermore, a large body of research shows that employee selection, assessment, and promotion is a highly politicized process (Lawong et al., 2019; Treadway et al., 2017).
What is absent is an awareness of how these political influence tactics are carried out in an interpersonal manner, which is vitally important to the success of these operations. The authors would witness less organizational derailment and better supervisor-employee interactions if they understood the behaviors or methods to use. What the authors describe as political competence is the style or execution of influencing behaviors in companies, and this is a vital missing aspect (Cullen et al., 2018; Maher et al., 2018).
It is defined as a combination of social savvy and the ability to interact successfully, as well as the capacity to display situationally appropriate conduct in a captivating and engaging way that inspires trust, trust, honesty and authenticity. According to the research, those who have a high level of political skill know precisely what to do in various social circumstances at work, and they know precisely when to do it in a true way that conceals any potentially manipulative motivation and makes the influence effort effective, as well. Unlike other social skills, political competence is focused only on interactions that lead to organizational success. Even though these encounters may take place outside the workplace setting, such as at a wedding reception, the aim is still to influence and succeed in the business (De Clercq et al., 2019).
Political skills may be used in a variety of contexts, not only in “face-to-face” discussions. Several communication forms, like electronic mail or voice mail, have been bolstered by technological advancements (Gallagher et al., 2019). Communication through technological methods, such as speech and tone of voice, and textual communication, may be conveyed convincingly by those with high levels of political ability. We’re not only talking about the capacity to exhibit certain behaviors that are thought to be helpful in interpersonal relationships here. Political talent, on the other hand, enables individuals to generate synergy between discrete actions that surpass the mere sum of the parts to actualize a set of relationship communication and successful execution which results in success in the workplace (Gallagher et al., 2019).
As a result of its successful mix of social acumen about what to do and the capacity to perform it appropriately, political talent is considered to have a direct impact on other people’s responses and assessments Furthermore, political ability may be demonstrated to have a significant impact in the successful implementation of a wide range of interpersonal actions. The “BASF of interpersonal connections” is a good way to describe political competence in this context. Like the major chemical company’s commercial (Sibunruang & Kawai, 2021; Williams et al., 2017).
Since the 1980s, the phrase “political talent” has been employed in academic literature. In its early beginnings, political talent was supposed to include a wide range of characteristics, such as social astuteness, savvy, and positional awareness (Rizvi & Azam, 2020). Political skill is described as “the capacity to successfully comprehend people at work and to utilize such understanding to persuade others to behave in ways that promote one’s personal and/or organizational aims” by the American Psychological Association (APA). In other words, a politically savvy individual can understand and influence their coworkers to achieve their personal and/or company effectiveness (Demirbağ et al., 2020; Hill & Jochim, 2018; Khalid & Dastgeer, 2019; Rizvi & Azam, 2020; Wang & Hall, 2019).
There are four sub-dimensions to the political skill construct, which are: social astuteness (being shrewd in social situations), interpersonal influence (enforcing action or changing behavior to achieve goals), networking ability (creating boundaries that elevate employee status among others), and apparent sincerity. Four elements of political skill, in addition, are a part of the larger political skill construct (Wang & Hall, 2019). A person with a high degree of political skill is anticipated to display actions that demonstrate a high level of self-awareness about the social context. That is, they’ll adjust their conduct to meet the circumstances. To attain what they want, they will use a forceful yet flexible influence approach (Demirbağ et al., 2020). Individuals who have a high degree of political skill will indeed be able to hide their ulterior objectives and increase the sense of legitimacy, authenticity, and sincerity in their actions. People with high levels of political skill should be familiar with the social rules of the company and be able to devise strategies for enhancing their performance within that setting (Hill & Jochim, 2018; Khalid & Dastgeer, 2019). A person with a high degree of political skill is likely to be more content with their employment and to have a lower level of turnover intentions because of these findings (Khalid & Dastgeer, 2019; Smith & Webster, 2017).
Good-natured and willing to assist others, someone with an above-average degree of agreeableness might be classified as sympathetic (Priyadarshi & Premchandran, 2019; Snowdon, 2021; Templer, 2018). A person’s goals for maintaining pleasant relationships with others are said to be influenced by their agreeableness, which helps them to reduce the negative impacts of interpersonal conflict and work well in groups. An individual’s willingness to be around others might be defined as agreeableness, according to research (Snowdon, 2021).
According to previous studies, agreeableness is linked to crucial organizational outcomes. For example, according to Judge, Blair, Ilies, and Gerhart (2017), agreeableness is a significant predictor of leadership performance. Individuals with a high degree of agreeableness pay attention to the needs of others on an interpersonal level, which is linked to leadership considerate practices (Chaturvedi et al., 2018). This means that someone who is more pleasant should pay attention to the ideas and emotions of others, seek to reduce the negative impacts of interpersonal conflict and get along with other people in groups. A person with a high degree of agreeableness is considered to be happier at work and less likely to quit, as a consequence of this (Wang & Hall, 2019).
One of the most important trait-based non-cognitive notions in the organizational sciences is conscientiousness (Dubey & Pandey, 2017; Frink et al., 2018; Kamal Kumar & Kumar Mishra, 2017; Ohlsson et al., 2017). According to Mount et al., (2016), conscientiousness is the most significant personality component in predicting job success in their landmark meta-analysis. Conscientious people are organized, diligent, determined, self-disciplined, and goal-oriented. Conscientiousness-related constructs, such as task performance and accomplishment seeking, have been described as non-social, task-oriented, and similar to the urge to rise through the ranks in an organization (Kamal Kumar & Kumar Mishra, 2017).
Conscientiousness is also a factor in social relationships in companies, according to a previous study. A study published in 2017 by Holland et al., indicated that industriousness was more closely linked to interpersonal relations than to career advancement, for example. Those who are very conscientious are expected to care about their responsibilities and adhere to societal standards, according to their viewpoint (Kamal Kumar & Kumar Mishra, 2017; Ohlsson et al., 2017). Conscientiousness is necessary for task performance at work, but it is also significant for conduct that should be associated with favorable attitudes about work. A very conscientious person must thus be aware of their social surroundings and keep a loyal front with their employer while encouraging good attitudes and attempting to resolve interpersonal disputes. Conscientious workers are more likely to be content at work and less likely to plan on quitting, according to a study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology (Ohlsson et al., 2017).
Social intelligence affects job attitudes, in part, because of the needed cognitive capacity to assess the situation and the capacity to take the appropriate action. As a result, people must be able to collect and analyze social information, and they must be able to adapt to the situation in a flexible manner (Ohlsson et al., 2017). A person who is “capable of developing acceptable conduct to accomplish desired social objectives” is a socially intelligent one. Being socially intelligent is being able to understand and anticipate the thoughts and emotions of others, as well as the behaviors and actions that will result from such interactions. High levels of social intelligence are accompanied by the capacity to adapt to a variety of different social contexts, which is assessed by examining the ability to enter new social situations (Russell et al., 2018). In addition, highly intelligent people have a propensity to be aware of or less prone to be shocked by happenings in social contexts. When it comes to processing social information and responding appropriately, a person with high social intelligence ought to be capable. It is also important for them to grasp the social norms of the company and to identify strategies to perform better in the social environment. A person who has a high degree of social intelligence is predicted to be more content with their employment and less likely to quit (Amsalem et al., 2020; Lvina et al., 2018).
According to Mayer (2018), emotional intelligence is a collection of talents that refers to how successfully individuals manage their own and other people’s feelings. There are several talents associated with emotional intelligence, such as the capacity to manage impulses, defer pleasure, regulate emotions and empathize (De Clercq et al., 2020). A person’s capacity to comprehend the emotions of others is predicted to have a favorable impact on their work happiness. The capacity to empathize with and comprehend one’s own and others’ emotions is essential for building trust and productive working relationships. Emotional intelligence is a valuable asset in the workplace, as it may help an employee maintain a more stable and fulfilling work environment and prevent them from quitting because of their emotions. An emotional intelligence expert should be sensitive to others’ feelings while maintaining their composure (Grosser et al., 2018; Williams et al., 2017). As a bonus, their capacity to control their negative emotions may assist resolve interpersonal conflicts. A person who has a high degree of emotional intelligence should be more content with their employment and less likely to quit (Lvina et al., 2018).
When it comes to organizational politics, the term “self-serving, contrary to organizational goals, and planned to hurt people, groups or entities” has typically been used. Individuals engage in organizational politics “to pursue their self-interests without concern for the well of others rather than their organization,” according to Kacmar et al., (2017). Organizational politics has five dimensions: (a) creating and leveraging connections, (b) building name and reputation, (c) managing choices and resources, or (d) influencing decision-making (Templer, 2018). Measures previously validated for organizational politics overlap with and expand these dimensions. As an example, Kacmar and Ferris (2017) Perceptions of Organization Politics Scale items on “generic political conduct” and “get along to get ahead” are comparable to Hochwarter et al. (2013) unidimensional measure items on “connection” and “reputation” (Templer, 2018). Since neither the POPS nor Hochwarter and colleagues’ measures expressly focus on providing motivation or gossip, the addition of dimensions focused on “controlling decisions and resources,” “influencing decision-making,” and “the use of communication channels” broadens the scope of existing measures. The Albrecht et al., (2016) measure is consistent with most current measures of corporate politics by focusing on employees’ views of the political atmosphere rather than their own experiences of politicians (Lvina et al., 2017).
For decades, researchers have been interested in the study of organizational politics. Despite this, little is known the about skills needed to be successful in the job when it comes to politics. Political views on organizations were promoted by Pfeffer (2017) and both claimed that to be successful in political situations, people are required to have political skills. A measure and study plan for political skill were recently established by Ferris and his colleagues, despite calls from academics for additional work in this field (Schlegel & Mortillaro, 2019).
The view of many academics is that organizations are essentially political. When it comes to success in the workplace, many people believe that although intellect and hard effort play a significant role in determining job performance and effectiveness, there are other elements to consider as well (Schlegel & Mortillaro, 2019). Pfeffer (2017) became one of the first academics to utilize the phrase “political skill” to describe an organization’s political perspective. To be effective in organizations, he said, one must have good political skills, and he urged for deeper study into the subject. A similar definition of political skill was provided by Mintzberg (2017), who defined it as the ability to exert influence via persuasion, persuasion, and negotiation (Zahid et al., 2019).
Many studies have explored organizational politics, but there has been a fundamental gap in evaluating the influencer’s ability to persuade. This leaves us in the dark about why influence attempts succeed or fail. A lot of studies have believed that only displaying an influence effort is enough to prove its efficacy. The “what” of influence is it may not be studied by focusing on specific influence strategies or political conduct. It is also required to study the political skill of the communicator to comprehend the “how” of influence, which focuses on the selection of the most suitable influence methods and their effective implementation in the given scenario (Treadway et al., 2017; Zahid et al., 2019).
The definition of political skill is “the ability to successfully understand others at work and to use such understanding to influence others to behave in ways that enhance one’s personal and/or organizational objectives” in an attempt to capture the essential nature of something like the construct as mentioned by Ferris et al. (2018), Mintzberg (2017) and others. The ability to adapt one’s conduct to changing circumstances while maintaining an air of sincerity, trustworthiness, and control over the reactions of others is a hallmark of those with political savvy (Treadway et al., 2017). Therefore, political skill is defined as the capacity to use one’s knowledge and skills in real-world settings that reflect one’s dispositions as well as the diversity of the circumstances in which one finds oneself. Training, training, and experience may influence the variation attributed to conditions, while the variance caused by dispositions is more constant. That’s why experiences that foster political skill development are beneficial to everyone regardless of their starting point (Treadway et al., 2017).
A careful review of the literature on organizational policy and political skill reveals some significant characteristics that should be incorporated into any conception of the political acumen construct. In this study, four essential elements of political skill were found: social savvy, interpersonal influence, networking capacity, and the appearance of sincerity This articulation of political talent has been bolstered by following conceptual and empirical developments (Erkutlu & Chafra, 2018; Treadway et al., 2017).
Being socially aware, politically savvy people have a keen ability to watch others. They have a good grasp of social relations and can appropriately assess their own and others’ behaviors. They have a great degree of self-awareness and can adapt to a wide range of social situations. In his recent work, Pfeffer (2017) argues that the capacity to identify with others is essential for accomplishing one’s own goals and that this trait is known as “sensitivity to others” in psychology. In interacting with others, socially savvy people are typically seen as bright or even brilliant (McAllister et al., 2018).
Influence from other people. Politicians have an unpretentious and persuasive personal style that influences people around them. Adapting and calibrating one’s conduct to diverse contexts is made easier through interpersonal influence. “Flexibility” is a term used by Pfeffer (2017) to describe the ability to adjust one’s behavior to diverse influencers and contexts to attain one’s objectives (Blickle et al., 2018).
It seems to be sincere. In the eyes of others, those who are adept in politics look to be honest, sincere, and true. Honest and direct, or at least that’s what they seem to be. Because this component of political skill focuses on the apparent intentions of the action demonstrated, it is vital for influence efforts to succeed. Behavioral actions are interpreted and labelled differently depending on their perceived goals or reasons. In the words of Jones (2016), when performers are believed to have no hidden intentions, they may exert influence. Because their activities aren’t seen as manipulative or forceful, folks who seem sincere inspire confidence and trust in others.
Four characteristics of political talent, including social savvy, interpersonal influence, interpersonal abilities, and seeming honesty, are thought to be interrelated. Despite their perceived correlation, the dimensions remain independent concepts.
One of the most significant psychometric properties of a measure is its ability to distinguish between comparable constructs and those from which it should be distinct. This is known as construct validity (Schwab, 1980). This section provides information, debate, and findings on the constructs toward which skills to complement should be connected and the amount of construct overlap predicted and discovered (Ferris et al., 2008).
Other interpersonal skills. Researchers believe that political skills naturally intersect with several other social abilities. According to Douglas (2012), interpersonal acumen, sociocultural intelligence, operational flexibility, social awareness, and personal intelligence all have something in common with political competence. Political talent may preserve its individuality as a construct that is substantially different from others even though such overlap is not anticipated to indicate more than modest-sized linkages, as stated by these writers (Ferris et al., 2005).
Political savvy has been explored about political competence because of their apparent closeness. To be politically astute, one must have a good grasp of how politics works on an intuitive level inside an institution. According to the findings of Kelly et al. (2016), there is a political component to socialization in the workplace. A closer look at this dimension’s item content indicates that it is assessing political awareness or comprehension. There was a strong emphasis on studying how the company works, identifying the most powerful individuals in the business, and developing a clear grasp of the reasons for the actions taken by the people who work there (Liu et al., 2007).
While some political savvy may be driven by information or understanding, concepts of political savvy are intimately associated with the social astuteness component. According to Ferris, Treadway et al. (2015), there is evidence to back up these claims. Social astuteness was shown to be the most strongly linked to political savvy, while the political savvy composite score was linked to it to a lesser degree (Liu et al., 2007).
Richman, Treadway, et al. (2015) found that emotional intelligence is an important social ability to separate from political skill. The concept of emotional intelligence has, for the last 10 years, received great interest from the scientific community as well as the general public. There is a lot of attraction on the popular business press as a result of Goleman’s (2016) bestselling and other books which focus on emotional intelligence and interpersonal relations. This means that both are interrelated.
Emotional intelligence (EI) is often associated with the affective aspects of interpersonal effectiveness, influence and control. On the contrary, political competence can be described as a combination of empirical and technical ability that is devoid of emotions. It is necessary to articulate the conceptual distinction between the two terms because Goleman has tended to suggest that emotional intelligence is everything but IQ. As expected, some relationships among concepts do exist, as evidenced by a low but significant correlation. For instance, a recent investigation demonstrated that the social skill composite index reported by Treadway et al. (2019) was related to emotional intelligence, but at a low level. Different frameworks of emotional intelligence have been reported to depose a high degree of association with political competence (Perrewé et al., 2005).
According to a study featured in The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, politically capable individuals have more access to social relations in the workplace and thereby have greater assurance and confidence in their abilities. Furthermore, high political skill individuals are also likely to view and understand the forces present within the organizational setting in a different manner with lesser strain or stress over the tasks. Perrewé et al. (2021) explained the phenomenon of perceiving danger in a challenging environment as ‘consistent individual differences in anxious-proneness’ which is best understood as a pattern of several instances of the individual’s response to such challenging stimulus as an elevation of the frequency of their state anxiety (S-Anxiety)’ Even though role conflict has negative performance effects, according to the current study, political competence acts as a behavioral and physio-psychologic strain predictor. Along with this, Perrewé et al. (2016) found political competence had a similar antidote effect but with a role overload–strain reaction.
Many people think that political skills may be learned and improved via training and socialization, but it is also thought to be influenced by one’s traits. As interpersonal style contributes to interpersonal success, the personality antecedents considered are those that position individuals to exert personal influence and behave correctly in social circumstances at work (Douglas & Ammeter, 2004).
There has not been an educated knowledge of the personality field because of an approach adopted by researchers who introduced certain viewpoints but never sought to integrate across such views, a method that Mayer (2017) referred to as the “perspective-by-perspective method.” Mayer came up with a different perspective in response to this. Personality was refocused on its original aim decades ago, which was to improve the individual’s whole psychological functioning. According to Mayer, personality is divided into four primary subsystems: the energy lattice, information works, social actors and conscious executives.
The social actor subsystem, according to Mayer (2017), “represents the manifestation of personality inside a socially appropriate manner” in connection to political competence. Social skills, role expertise, and preferred emotional displays” are all included. Extraversion and self-monitoring were the most important attributes in the subsystem of social actors. It’s easy to see how extraversion and self-monitoring might be linked to a theme of friendliness or sociability. An initial input to antecedents of social actor-oriented political skill dimensions is provided by the social actor subsystem. For this control-oriented dispositional theme to be further enhanced, the political skills construct would need to be more defined and described (Meisler, 2014).
Dispositional constructions and political skills are shown in the conception, which shows the commonalities and differences between them. The authors think that political skill dimensions are influenced by the following dispositional themes: perceptiveness, management, affability, and active influence. Each of these topics has instances of particular constructions.
Perceptiveness
In the perceptiveness theme, people’s abilities to self-monitor and self-regulate are reflected. For social astuteness, conscientiousness and self-monitoring should be the most closely associated with this theme of perceptiveness. The concept of self-monitoring seems to be best described by the term “social astuteness.” While high self-monitors tend to “monitor or control” their social interactions to a significant degree, low self-monitors are less worried about their surroundings, and their conduct is more likely to convey how they feel. Social astuteness, on the other hand, is characterized by a strong awareness of one’s surroundings and others, as well as an accurate comprehension of one’s conduct in social circumstances and the context in which they occur. Thus, in two research studies by Ferris et al. (2016), self-monitoring and interpersonal astuteness were shown to have the strongest connections with either of the political skill characteristics that self-monitoring might provide (Ferris et al., 2008).
The “almost clinical interest inside the observation of conduct,” as Pfeffer (2017) put it, suggests that social astuteness is closely linked to conscientiousness. Self-confident but not self-obsessed, politically savvy people prefer to keep their emphasis on others and the surroundings rather than themselves. As a result, such people can retain a healthy sense of perspective and equilibrium when it comes to their responsibilities to others and themselves. Treadway, et al. (2017) observed substantial connections between agreeableness and social perceptiveness, and this was the greatest link conscientiousness displayed with either of the political skill components. This shows that politically talented persons are conscientious (Ferris et al., 2008).
Control
The management dispositional theme is focused on the degree to which people believe they have control over themselves and/or their circumstances. Locus of self-management and self-represent this topic. Assumptions regarding control over rewards or punishments are based on a broad belief that either the person has control or that the reward or punishment is controlled by someone else or destiny. A feeling of maximum control over one’s surroundings is referred to as self-efficacy, which is the belief that one can plan and carry out certain actions to achieve desired results (Ferris et al., 2008; Perrewé et al., 2005).
The control attitudinal theme should have the greatest ties to interpersonal influence and connecting abilities in the context of these reflections. Confidence in one’s ability to manage one’s surroundings and the people in it should be linked to one’s ability to influence others. Politically savvy people display a calm self-confidence that stems from the belief that they will be able to influence others in a positive way, which is likely based on their prior successes. Individuals who have a high degree of self-confidence are more likely to engage in influence activities, and their manner conveys this confidence to others. Efforts to influence people, positioning and networking, and building social capital should all be linked to a sense of self-assurance stemming from a sense of personal control (Gentry et al., 2013).
Affability
Extraversion, life satisfaction, and positive affectivity are examples of the affability dispositional theme, which displays an outgoing, likeable, and interpersonally pleasurable orientation. Political competence is anticipated to have a significant connection to interpersonal influence, networking abilities, and the appearance of honesty. Two studies have shown strong relationships between good affectivity and political acumen. There are also considerable relationships between extraversion and political skill, with extraversion relating most strongly to components of political skill that focus on interpersonal influence and networking abilities, such as the political skill composite (Liu et al., 2007).
Active influence
Using a dispositional approach, it is possible to identify certain constructions that are very action oriented. How much someone is willing to take action to change their surroundings is a sign of a person’s proactive nature. That’s what Crant (2018) said, “proactive personalities perceive opportunities and act on them; they exhibit initiative, take action, and continue until they bring about substantial change.” Political skill should be most closely connected with the interpersonal influence and networking ability elements of a proactive personality, as individuals who take the initiative to achieve goal-oriented action and achievement Research has shown that those with a proactive personality are more likely to create a network. Liu et al. (2018) found a strong correlation between a person’s proactive personality and his or her ability to influence others. Political skills and a proactive attitude were shown to have the greatest connections with interpersonal influence and connecting abilities (Kimura, 2015).
Individual variations in the capacity to manage actions and cognitions to carry out deliberate acts are referred to as action-state orientation. “An action-oriented person can self-regulate the behaviors, cognitive distortions, and emotions relevant to the achievement of volitional acts.” As a result, action-oriented people can efficiently block out any thoughts or impulses that aren’t directly related to their goals. Thus, a high focus on action-state orientation is likely to relate to the interpersonal impact and networking elements of political competence. People who have an action-state orientation would use influence tactics and methods in the pursuit of goal attainment, as well as effectively network and position themselves in order to achieve their goals (Phipps & Prieto, 2011).
Developmental experiences
There are a lot of factors that contribute to a person’s political acumen that have been investigated in this research. It is also possible to learn how to be a good political player by practising it. Political skill development approaches must provide participants feedback on their social interactions, particularly their degree of social awareness, how well they grasp social circumstances, and the many behavioral response options available to them in such contexts. Mentoring and role modelling may help students improve their political skills in all four areas (Blickle et al., 2014).
Behavioral modelling, based on Bandura’s (2018) social cognitive theory, is typically incorporated in overall leadership training, and its usefulness for learning outcomes has been thoroughly documented. In behavioral leading by example, professionals explain how to use a specific talent, such as political competence, in a manner that is consistent with the best practices. Repeated practice of the new skill by participants is often required for efficient transfer of training, generalization, and maintenance. An influential person should practice their newly learned skill in social situations when an influence scenario happens, according to recent research (Jawahar & Liu, 2016).
Another strategy to improve one’s political acumen is to work with knowledgeable mentors. Professionals are seen in real-life work scenarios as they use political skills and persuasion in meetings among their subordinates and colleagues (Ferris et al., 2002; Jawahar & Liu, 2016). Observers will pick up on how politically savvy mentors communicate via their body language, facial emotions, posture, and gestures (Wihler et al., 2017). The most important thing is to make sure that people are working with highly experienced and politically savvy mentors who have a lot of social influence contacts and are given lots of opportunities to discuss different social influence interactions encountered. This is why it is so important for successful mentors to participate in politically competent influence activities so that protégés may learn by observation but also spend time talking about different social encounters so that protégés can fully comprehend how and why mentors do so (Zaman et al., 2019). Individual learning is linked to mentor-mentee relationships and strong mentors have been proven to boost this individual learning, which pertains to both job content and interpersonal competition (Kalkman, 2020). “Tegés.” While informal learning and development of what to do, when, and with whom are important, mentoring also includes establishing personal and group effectiveness abilities to complete the definition of political effectiveness. political scepticism is a result of a person’s dispositional qualities and personal talents that are formed, according to this viewpoint and the research that supports it. A person’s political talent is in part based on his or her natural general dispositions and on acquired personal skills and abilities (Ferris, Bhawuk, et al., 2018).
As per the study of Block (2016), it has been evaluated political skills are referred to as a noteworthy part of the workplace. It is a multifaceted concept that is considered appropriate to assess the relationships and interactions in the organization and emphasise an individual’s ability to understand and support others for self-benefit (Nurhayatia et al., 2017). As per the study by Ferris et al. (2007), it has been assessed that political skills have always been perceived as a negative factor in the organization (Haider et al., 2020). However, there is little study that has been previously done regarding the positive impact of political skills in the organization. Therefore, the current study will focus on the positive factors of political skills in the organization. The role of political skills in the constructive behavior of the employee will be taken into consideration. Moreover, further investigation will be taken regarding the role of political skills on organizational engagement (Butt et al., 2017).In addition, it is possible that the early scholars who discouraged political behavior were mistaken. To operationalize political behavior, for instance, Elbanna and some of his colleagues have used six assertions and among them only one reflects the self-serving kind of political behavior with regard to the organization. Dayan et al. (2012), Elbanna et al. (2014) Respondents may use the remaining five as political means to achieve ‘personal goals’ or ‘organizational ones’. So political behavior in this research does not repudiate the statement, even though there are some basic theories in these studies which are very pessimistic, as some authors did (e.g. Dean and Sharfman, 1996, Thanos et al., 2017). If we summarize what has been mentioned before this study goes along with relatively newest and emerging ones (Cheng et al., 2010; Ferris and Treadway, 2012) which argue that such a behavior cannot be overall regarded as conspiratorial but rather there are some instances that call for political cognitive presence. For example, Buchanan (2008) is talking of the political behavior functional roles in a study of 250 Managers, Britain.
Landells and Albrecht (2017) ascertained that organizational politics has its share of both advantages and disadvantages in a more recent qualitative study of three Australian organizations. Similarly, Dayan et al. (2012) encourage investigators to be more attentive to both sides of political behavior. Another factor that influenced this research was the fact that individuals from various departments, representing a range of functional areas, demographic characteristics, and competencies, typically make strategic decisions (Keller, 2001). Prior research (Olson et al., 2007; Shepherd, 2014; Simons et al., 1999), with a few exceptions, did not, however, use models that take variability in political behavior into account. As antecedents of constructive politics in the conceptual model of this research, various types of diversification were included in order to close this research gap. In light of the above, this study seeks to make four contributions to the development of constructive politics scholarship. To develop a model of constructive politics in decision-making, a wealth of theoretical and empirical knowledge on a number of relevant areas, including strategic decision-making, human resources, project management, and organizational behavior, was synthesized. Three of the theoretical pillars of this research are positive organizational behavior, broaden-and-build theory, and upper echelons theory. Since the application of constructive politics to strategic decision making has not been researched extensively in the past, such efforts towards integration are most necessary.
Organizational politics has long been the subject of academic research. It’s just a fact of life that organizations are rife with politics. To put it another way, organizational politics is seen as a kind of self-interested activity by workers at the cost of others and, at times, detrimental to the overall company or work unit’s interests (Ferris, Harris, et al., 2018).
People’s reactions to the world are based on their interpretations of reality, not reality itself, according to Lewin (2018). As Porter (2020) said, perceptions are crucial to examine and comprehend even if they are misinterpretations of real-world occurrences. Also in organizations, politics is defined by what people believe rather than by its true meaning. Studies have shown that the political environment in the workplace is influenced by views of organizational politics or fairness and justice. Having a political work environment affects an employee’s attitude and conduct, and these views are influenced by their perceptions of organizational politics (Wihler et al., 2017).
An employee’s emotional, cognitive, and physical energy is invested in their job when they are engaged in their employment. When employees think they can express their preferred self and psychologically connect with the task, they are more likely to be engaged in their jobs. The psychological qualities of meaningfulness, accessibility, and safety lead to employee engagement. Workers who have a sense of belonging and purpose at work are happier and more productive. The term “psychological availability” refers to workers’ assumption that they have what resources necessary to finish their tasks and are free of non-work-related distractions. Finally, workers feel comfortable at their work when they think their actions won’t hurt their position or career. Those who meet one or both of these psychological criteria may participate in their professional roles. Involved workers have a positive impact on businesses in a variety of ways. They are dedicated to their jobs and to the company, which makes them productive. They also exhibit behaviors associated with good corporate citizenship (Landells & Albrecht, 2017).
A lack of involvement has been linked to an organization’s politics, although other studies demonstrate that political perceptions may also be linked to high levels of engagement. There is an interesting correlation between the levels of engagement of workers in highly politicized contexts compared to the level of engagement of employees in less politicized environments. There seems to be a strong correlation between the amount of employee involvement and the level of political turbulence inside a firm.
There is no empirical evidence to support the theory that organizational politics may lead to favorable results. Workers’ degrees of commitment might vary widely depending on the kind of workplace politics and support they experience (Landells & Albrecht, 2017; Malik et al., 2019).
An alignment of the challenge-stressor paradigm with the organizational support theory suggests that individuals in highly political and supportive companies may see their work environment as demanding. Because of the high degree of organizational politics, employees in these organizations will feel obligated to repay the organization for the assistance they get. Employees who work in low-politics and high-support situations are more likely to be engaged, but they will not be challenged by politics or inhibited by the workplace. The more people feel supported, the more likely they are to participate. As a result, they will have a lower level of involvement compared to those in deeply politicized and supportive situations, but a greater level of engagement compared to those in deeply politicized and unsupportive environments (Malik et al., 2019.
The act of withdrawing and protecting one’s preferred self from the work environment is a hallmark of disengaged workers. Disengagement occurs when the workplace environment undermines the employee’s chosen self and/or breaches one or both psychological criteria outlined as prerequisites to engagement significance, availability, and security. Disengagement isn’t just a lack of engagement; it’s an intentional choice that goes beyond that. It’s not as bad as burnout, and it’s not the same as a lack of motivation. However, disengaged personnel, unlike burnout victims, continue to complete their duties, but with a lack of enthusiasm or attentiveness. Disengaged individuals may get quickly discouraged when their job demands them to put in more effort, or they may even choose to remain away from work to escape these challenging circumstances. Low involvement has been linked to absenteeism and lack of commitment, according to studies (Foulk et al., 2020; Kim et al., 2019).
Low POS and low politicking settings don’t inherently discourage workers from working hard, but they also don’t have a duty to do so since they haven’t received any support from the company. Employees in these circumstances may not be disengaged, but they may instead choose to limit their involvement to deal with the lack of support (Basit, 2020).
Corporations are not only putting more pressure on their workers to work more, but they are also encouraging them to take greater individual responsibility in addressing problems and identifying chances for growth. Indeed, many suggest that personal ambition and proactive conduct are becoming more important for both competitiveness and economic success. To put it another way, under the “new job relationship,” positive change-oriented conduct has evolved as an obligation. Seiling (2001), for example, asserts that ‘putting the responsibility for change on each person’ is the first step in dealing with crises in companies. As a result, allocating accountability does not always guarantee that employees will take responsibility for their actions or that they will feel accountable. In other words, a person’s attitude that he or she is “personally bound” to bring about positive change is likely to lead to constructive change-oriented conduct (Fong et al., 2021; Wihler et al., 2017).
Job characteristics theory, the most often used theoretical framework for understanding felt responsibility inside the workplace, is unlikely to adequately explain a proactively psychological state like felt responsibility for positive change. ‘ For one, it’s all about “working harder,” rather than encouraging people to participate in a more proactive approach to their work. Since today’s businesses need more flexibility and change, the job characteristics model has been criticized for being too narrowly focused. The basic argument of work design, according to Parker (2020), needs to encompass a wider variety of job qualities, new circumstances that may impact the efficacy of these job features, a wider range of outcomes, and additional mechanisms that connect all these aspects. If theories of job characteristics are to be relevant in today’s businesses, experts propose that theories must contain proactive personality, proactive motivation, and proactive action. Specifically, the Proactive work design models that Parker (2020) has presented require more theoretical development and testing before they can be used in the workplace. It was built on Parker and colleagues’ revised models by emphasizing the perceived responsibility for positive change and moving toward a theory that better guides the design of work in modern organizations (Butt et al., 2017; Wihler et al., 2017).
Job characteristics theory is largely regarded as the best framework for discussing perceived responsibility. When it comes to work, “the person experiences personal responsibility and is accountable for the consequences of the job they accomplish,” according to the Job Characteristics Model (JCT), “felt responsibility is a fundamental psychological condition.” As a result of this notion, workers are more likely to be intrinsically motivated, satisfied with their jobs and concerned about their work quality if they feel more accountable for their output. Increased emotions of personal accountability for work performance may be achieved by a structural approach based on the Job Characteristics Theory, which holds that job autonomy is an essential feature of good job design (De Clercq et al., 2019; Maher et al., 2018).
Both looking back and foreseeing the future might lead to sentiments of responsibility, according to a theoretical perspective. ‘Retrospective’ and ‘Prospective’ reflectivity are two different ways of looking at the same situation. Another way to put it is that the distinction is between “after-the-fact responsibility” and “before-the-fact mindfulness,” according to Culbert (2012). Graham (2013) defines ‘assumed responsibility’ and ‘assigned responsibility’ in terms of pre- and post-fact awareness. People’s ability to assign blame to themselves, others, or the institution is the subject of research on post-fact responsibility. “After-the-fact” responsibilities are “post-mortem.” Organizations may hold employees responsible for their previous behavior, but they cannot compel an employee to accept responsibility. This difference is significant, according to Wynn (2019). That is, the person must take responsibility for his or her actions. Consequently, workers are less likely to feel like they failed if no outcomes are produced when they don’t take responsibility. However, when people embrace accountability, they’re effectively taking responsibility for their actions. When people adopt responsibility, they take full accountability for their acts, both now and in the future. In this way, acknowledged duty is deliberate and extends to ‘proactive engagement in future success’ beyond the current task (Kapoutsis et al., 2019).
It was Morrison and Phelps (1999) that defined ‘before-the-fact awareness’ rather than ‘after-the-fact accountability’ as the sole published research to explore sentiments of responsibility towards constructive change. Morrison and Phelps’s (1999) research on MBA students found that students who felt a sense of responsibility for positive change were more likely to act in a way that would improve organizational function. To put it another way, the term “FRCC” refers to a duty or readiness to be held responsible for future actions and outcomes (Riaz et al., 2018).
FCC is distinct from emotions of responsibility for work results, but it is linked to other variables like job participation production ownership and self-efficacy in a wide range of roles (RBSE). Both FRCC and job participation may be affected by the features of the workplace and the amount of time spent brainstorming methods to enhance task performance. However, unlike work participation, which is based on a connection between a person’s self-concept and their employment, “felt responsibility” for positive transformation is independent of this relationship. Work involvement, on the other hand, is a mental connection to the particular duties that make up a job, whereas FRCC is a proactive mentality that may push a person to adjust or even remove some job tasks in the pursuit of organizationally functional change. RBSE is a measure of one’s capacity to participate in a certain set of proactively, integrative, and interpersonal activities, whereas felt responsibility for continuous improvement and RBSE are also both proactive motivation-related constructs. Both broad problem-solving and improvement-related tasks, as well as being held responsible for these actions, are a part of FRCC’s mandate. Felt responsibility for constructive change, on the other hand, varies from RBSE since it examines an individual’s conscious acceptance of a duty to participate in proactive conduct rather than assessing an individual’s perceived capabilities. For example, both FRCC and product ownership are responsibility-based frameworks that focus on proactive issue resolution and personal initiative. There are fundamental differences between the two concepts, even if they have certain similarities. The FRCC, on the other hand, does not have a specific emphasis on the setting in which it operates. While production ownership analyzes “worry” for different production-related issues through “concern,” the FRCC measures responsibility directly. It is also important to note that, although production stewardship is concerned with issue solutions, it emphasizes the breadth of problems and objectives that a person “owns” rather than challenging the status quo as does felt accountability for constructive change (Thompson et al., 2017; Varela et al., 2019).
In the current model, two institutional antecedents were incorporated a sense of responsibility for positive change job autonomy and organizational hierarchy. Hackman and Oldham (2017) claim that when job autonomy develops, employees think their work output is the result of their own choices and effort, which leads to a greater sense of personal accountability for their work results. It’s not uncommon for people to feel a certain amount of responsibility again for the work of others when they support their work (i.e., begin task interaction/interdependence) (Varela et al., 2019). Thus, according to Kegged (2012), the total amount of perceived responsibility for work output is a consequence of both work engagement and started task interdependency. As a result, job autonomy increases one’s sense of personal accountability for one’s work, but task interdependence increases one’s sense of collective accountability for the work of others. Because a person’s position in the company’s hierarchy is linked to the number of people to whom they report directly or indirectly, it also serves as a reflection of the degree to which their tasks are interdependent. Work engagement and job level, on the other hand, are likely to contribute to a sense of responsibility for work results. “The higher you progress, the more you become accountable for actions and those of your team,” writes Maxwell (2020). Even though they both refer to a person’s capacity to make decisions about how they carry out their work duties, job autonomy refers to a person’s power to control how others carry out theirs (Erkutlu & Chafra, 2018).
Both work autonomy and one’s place in the organizational structure should be linked to one’s sense of responsibility for positive change, according to the findings of this research. Based on previous research, it seems that a more proactive kind of responsibility, such as FRCC, should be associated with work autonomy. A more proactive role orientation, such as production ownership, was shown to be linked to work autonomy in three different investigations by Parker and colleagues. Employees who have more control over their jobs are more likely to feel a sense of responsibility for issues and objectives outside their immediate responsibilities. RBSE has been linked to work autonomy in separate research by Parker (2017a). Finally, research shows that job autonomy has a good effect on personal initiative and vocal behaviour in the workplace. These findings are based on the notion that wider, more aggressive role orientations can only be achieved when work autonomy is high enough. There is little room for experimentation without a sense of autonomy, which is a critical component of the constructive transformation process (Erkutlu & Chafra, 2018).
As one climbs in an organization’s hierarchy, one is more likely to acquire higher degrees of FRCC owing to what is known as ‘role acceptance’ or ‘role responsibility’. In the words of Anton et al., (2020), a person accepts the particular, predetermined, sometimes stereotyped, and impersonal expectations connected with a given job when they accept it. As a person climbs through the ranks of an organization, he or she is expected to take action in ways that benefit the group. A person’s involvement in leadership tasks increases with their level of seniority within an organization. According to studies on the Implicit Leadership Theory, individuals typically feel that good leadership is engaging in conduct that promotes growth and progress (Huai, 2019; Kang & Busser, 2018). Leadership roles are likely aware of this phenomenon and feel their activities will be compared to stereotypical leadership conduct. So, it is true that leadership is about accepting the responsibility to make change happen, as stated by Posner and colleagues (2019). According to Kotter (2011), leadership ‘is about adapting to change,’ and this is mirrored here. There are likely to be a lot of expectations placed on persons in the upper echelons of the business by their peers and subordinates. As people rise through the ranks of an organization’s management structure, they take on more responsibility for enacting positive change and, as a result, are more inclined to act in ways that align with their self-perceived role as leaders who will be held to a higher standard. Even though it wasn’t a formal premise in their research, Phelps (2018) discovered that among MBA students, a sense of responsibility for positive change is linked to one’s place in the organizational hierarchy (Huai, 2019).
Self-determination is required but not sufficient for promoting a proactive attitude, according to some. Three additional job qualities were identified by the current assessment of the literature as being relevant to the FRCC. Oldham and Hackman (2008) say that to support and manage enriched work, knowledge about the organization’s goals is needed. According to Oldham and Hackman (2008), independent work might be hampered or lead to discontent if resources like equipment and space aren’t available. It is also thought that having a clear sense of one’s function in the organization helps to offer a grasp of organizational priorities that are important for proactively participating in the company’s operations (Huai, 2019). Workers may get paralyzed by the lack of resources, accessibility to strategy-related knowledge, and a sense of job clarity. As a result, it appears probable that workers will want the same resources, knowledge, and job clarity as those required by leaders if they are expected to adopt what amounts to a leadership position. Three socio-structural factors are considered because of this: access to resources, knowledge of strategy and role ambiguity (Williams & Yecalo‐Tecle, 2020).
Organizational politics literature has long held that knowledge of others is important, but it has yet to be explicitly assessed or experimentally evaluated (Ferris & Judge, 1991). Understanding people in the workplace and using that information to influence them is defined as political competence by Ferris et al. (2005) as essentially driven by knowledge. A previous study on politics in companies, which also stressed the importance of information, is where that viewpoint comes from today. The study of Raven et al. (2008) on organizational power emphasizes the importance of technology and professional knowledge. Power may be obtained by having access to non-technical information, according to Mintzberg (2018). In most of the political games Mintzberg refers to, knowledge of other people’s connections, resources and preferences is crucial (Spurk et al., 2020).
However, the present organizational politics literature does not reflect the conceptual importance of knowledge by measuring it. On the other hand, political acumen is most usually judged by the ability to discern ‘the motivations and hidden agendas of others,’ which is the closest item on the scale to the measurement of real knowledge. It was found that Ferris et al. However, political competence seems to be a measure of a network and social graces rather than a measurement of actual understanding. It has been suggested that political savvy may capture this informational aspect of politics, however, the traditional measure of savvy only catches broad knowledge of “how things function” throughout an organization, such as who is influential and how politics work in a corporation. Similar research on retroactive interference, knowledge management, and an experience and understanding perspective of the company similarly does not capture an individual’s knowledge of a specific goal, but rather diffuse, common, or shared information that is shared by the whole organization. To put it another way, there is a significant discrepancy between the theory’s emphasis on knowledge and the literature’s emphasis on how knowledge is explicitly assessed and tested in organizations (Meyers, 2020).
In the knowledge-based paradigm, organizations are structured and value is created by acquiring, transferring, and using knowledge. However, there is a discrepancy between theory and operationalization. Individual political actors may use their knowledge about influential people to further their own goals, and this dynamic can be seen at both the individual and organizational levels of politics. As Pfeffer (2017) points out, the primary focus of this goal-setting process is to absorb and integrate information. The transmission and accumulation of political information may influence how people pursue their objectives in the same way that knowledge transfer and accumulation affect corporations’ pursuit of value creation (Tolstoy, 2019).
The term “political knowledge” refers to the knowledge one has gained about a certain powerful person via their activity. When it comes to political information, it is conceived as strategic since it gives us a better understanding of how the target group interacts with one another, their needs, resources, and preferences. Political information, on the other hand, is seen as possibly sensitive or secretive. Disclosing who one hates working with or how one thinks about certain job duties might be dangerous for a leader to do in front of their followers. As a result, the leader may link transparency with vulnerability and only share information with a limited group of trusted confidants in these situations. Political information may be rare or at the very least unequally dispersed throughout the populace. Social cognition, including perceptions, information-seeking, and remembering among others, provides enough evidence of how people might fail to pay attention to, encode, or retain social information about others (Gil de Zúñiga & Diehl, 2019; Lee & Xenos, 2019; Weaver et al., 2019).
Political knowledge, on the other hand, varies greatly in substance. Depending on the industry, company, or even a single office, you’ll be able to learn about prominent people uniquely. However, certain universal types of political knowledge may be applied to anybody. The first step is to know the influence of a target on others. Connections between an influential target and an influential target, as well as the quality of such relationships, are included in this category. This type of insight is highly political since it explains why persons with less power are typically driven to learn more about the social networks of high-power individuals (Weaver et al., 2019).
Secondly, political knowledge requires an awareness of both the needs of an important target as well as the resources he or she has at his or her disposal Insofar as they influence the influencing target’s decision-making, they may include both official and informal employment requirements and also self-imposed requirements. The target’s performance, career progression, and job security depend on meeting these objectives.
To answer queries about their professional goals, those considering a career in management of human resources would often reply, “I want to interact with employees.” It’s ludicrous to suggest that the only way to interact with people in businesses is to work in human resources. If you think of an organization, you’re looking at a group of individuals working together to accomplish a shared set of goals and objectives (Fasey et al., 2021; Maan et al., 2020).
However, decades ago, it was more typical for individuals to work in positions where they dealt far more with machines or data than with other people. Think about the old-fashioned assembly line in the automotive industry (Arasli et al., 2020). A major shift in workplaces has occurred over the last two decades, as firms have made enormous changes (Arasli et al., 2020; Ng et al., 2021). Organizations have undertaken substantial downsizing and restructuring in an attempt to improve their competitive standing, resulting in inflated, more rectangular organizations with horizontally oriented coordination and control systems. Information technology, teamwork, and cultural norms and regulations have replaced traditional hierarchies in these types of organizations. Instead of the static and tight boundaries that surrounded employment and job descriptions in the past, employees are now expected to operate in a variety of positions that are constantly shifting (Arasli et al., 2020; Vogus et al., 2020).
Another factor that has contributed to a reduction in top-level management’s influence is the collapse of bureaucracy and the development of more adaptive, flexible forms. Consider this case from a writer’s perspective. For the military, an electronics firm produced high-tech radios by switching from a traditional assembly line technique to a team-based strategic approach (Alikaj et al., 2021; Vogus et al., 2020). Workers established product assembly teams instead of working alone at their workstations, assembling the radio components as they went. Each team, they were also responsible for ensuring that their work was of a high enough standard to be accepted by customers. Employees in these various work systems must develop social skills in addition to professional knowledge to operate successfully with and through others (Alikaj et al., 2021). It’s important to note that the supervisor’s role in these situations has evolved from one of direct and immediate control to one of coaching and facilitation. Numerous sectors, from electronics to automotive to steel to healthcare, have had similar problems (Nauman et al., 2020).
A more accessible, “social organization,” where leadership is expected to be in touch with what is going on and employees are demanding more “face time” where they can communicate directly with each other in teams, as well as with those who need decisions and action, is indeed on the rise, according to the authors (Hermans & Prins, 2020; Ouyang et al., 2021; Suyono et al., 2020).” The importance of social and political skills in the workplace is rising as a result of the growing level of interpersonal engagement (Mehralian et al., 2020).
Skills Required for a Successful Political Career To be successful in most positions these days, one must not only demonstrate one’s ability to do the bare minimum set of responsibilities but also demonstrate one’s ability to function in other roles or contexts. The ability to communicate with others has always been critical, but new research emphasizes the importance of communication skills such as facilitation, coaching, influence, and coordination with others as well (Heath & Waymer, 2021; Maan et al., 2020).
Managers in particular need to be able to operate effectively with and through others. It has been shown that a lack of interpersonal skills is a major contributor to “management derailment” in a new study from the Center for Creative Leadership. Today’s executive coaches, tasked with helping managers improve their lack of political and social skills, say they spend the majority of their time doing so (Maan et al., 2020). Social intelligence, emotional maturity, ego resilience, self-monitoring, and procedural fluency are some of the terms that have been used to describe social skills in recent years. They all fall under the umbrella term “social skill,” which refers to an individual’s ability to communicate effectively with others, even though they each claim to measure something distinct from one another. However, none of these types of social competence were specifically established to handle interpersonal interactions in the workplace. Workplaces may learn a lot from people’s ordinary social skill set, but certain special context dynamics imply a different kind of social skill set, one that takes into account the unique political and social realities of the organization. We’ll look at some of these other social skills first before focusing on politics (Budd et al., 2020).
Understanding people in the workplace and using this information to persuade others to behave in ways that benefit one’s personal or organizational goals is characterized as political competence by Ferris, et al. (2005). A person’s capacity to influence others, build relationships, and seem sincere is all part of what is meant if it is said that they have political talent. As defined by Blass, et al. (2007), “socially astute persons” are those who pay close attention to others and are acutely aware of even the tiniest social cues. A person’s ability to influence other individuals is described as their capacity for eliciting desired outcomes in others. Influence is exerted subtly and persuasively by these people. For this definition, “networking” refers to a person’s capacity to get access to social networks. They identify those people who have beneficial resources or connections and form social networks with them. Finally, those who have a high degree of political skill are seen to be honest and trustworthy. Their activities are not regarded as manipulated by others because of their apparent honesty (Ali & Anwar, 2021; Walter et al., 2021; Wu et al., 2020).
Individuals with political savvy should be able to draw people to themselves just by exuding self-assurance and a feeling of security. As a result, they can influence people easily and adjust their conduct quickly to meet the needs of every given setting to attain their desired outcomes (Staegemann et al., 2020). The politically savvy are also more likely to be in a position to use their networks or social capital to generate and seize opportunities for themselves and others they lead. As a result, those with strong political skills are a natural match for executive posts. Politicians are more inclined to see problems as possibilities for success, while less politically savvy CEOs may be frustrated, resort to intimidation tactics, or just ignore them (Rengarajan et al., 2021).
Many academics believe that organizations are essentially political spaces. The assumption is that although intellect and hard effort play a role in performance, effectiveness, and success, other elements such as social savvy, placement, and savvy also play a vital role. When Pfeffer (2017) first used the phrase “political skill,” he was advocating for an organizational approach that was political in nature. Several authors have argued that political competence is necessary for success, and he has urged for more study into the concept. Using persuasion, manipulation and negotiation, Mintzberg (2011) defined political competence as the ability to exert influence (Ferris et al., 2019).
Many studies have explored organizational politics, but there has been a fundamental gap in the evaluation of influencers’ political skills, which has left us unable to explain why influence attempts succeed. Theories have argued that only showing off an influence effort is enough to prove its efficacy. Even if one studies the specific influence strategies or political behaviors that represent the influence, it is not adequate to focus just on this. Political skills must be examined thoroughly to comprehend how influence works, which includes the selection and implementation of acceptable influence methods in different contexts. To fill this gap, Ferris et al. (2001) created a unidimensional six-item scale which has reasonable psychometric properties for the purpose of beginning investigations on political skill measurement.
According to Ferris and colleagues (2015), political skill is “the capacity to successfully comprehend and influence people at work, using such information in a manner that enhances one’s personal and/or organizational goals.” (Paraphrased) Thus, politically savvy persons can adapt their conduct to varied and changing demands in a way that seems honest, inspires support and confidence, as well as successfully influence and control the behaviors of others in a manner that appears sincere (Ferris et al., 2019).
Personal protection and calm self-confidence shown by politically savvy persons entice others and provide them with a sense of security and comfort. When this self-confidence is correctly weighed, this trait may be a good asset rather than a negative one. Those with a high level of political skill, however confident they may be, are not self-absorbed since their attention is directed outward toward others rather than inside. Politically astute individuals are better able to retain a healthy sense of perspective and balance, which goes hand in hand with their natural proclivity for self-awareness (Ferris et al., 2019).
Politically astute individuals not only know exactly what to do in various workplace social circumstances, but they also know how to do it in a way that conceals their true, self-serving reasons. Political skill is distinct from general mental capacity and linked to personality characteristics and other relations – oriented constructs like self-monitoring and interpersonal skills, but not to the degree that indicates construct redundancy. In terms of its origins, inspiration was taken from those who have argued that a dispositional-situational perspective of personality and social performance is more valuable than either alone. There are certain components of political prowess that are felt inherent, but others that may be cultivated or changed via formal and informal educational experiences.
Political skill in organizational contexts has been the subject of excellent research that has highlighted a number of its antecedents and effect (Ferris et al., 2005; Kimura, 2015). Political savvy reduces stress at work and enhances people’s capacity for networking, self-assurance, and social capital (Ferris et al., 2005; Ferris, Treadway, Perrewé, Brouer, Douglas, & Lux, 2007). According to a recent review (Kimura, 2015) and a meta-analysis (Munyon, Summers, Thompson, & Ferris, 2015), political competence influences employees’ extra-role behaviors and task performance in a favorable way.
Voice is a dangerous behavior that might endanger supervisors, and as such, it may not always work as planned, as scholars have long observed (Burris, 2012; Grant, 2013; Morrison and Milliken, 2000). It is suggested that employees’ political skill (i.e., a three-way interaction) determines how effective voice is in moderating the negative impacts of supervisor undermining, drawing on theories of personal agency and social competences (Ewen et al., 2014; Wihler et al., 2017). The capacity to successfully comprehend others at work and utilise that understanding to persuade others to take actions that further one’s own goals or the goals of the organization is known as political skill (Shuhua et al., 2021). A social competency concept unique to professional settings is political skill (Ferris et al., 2007; Munyon et al., 2015). Because it enables workers to successfully identify and seize opportunities for change-oriented agentic behaviors like voice, it can translate people’s agentic motives into successful action (McAllister et al., 2018; Wihler et al., 2017). Therefore, political acumen ought to assist staff members in turning their recommendations into solid policy, increasing the likelihood that voice will act as a buffer.
A fundamental tenet of decision theory is that organizations participating in strategic decision-making act politically in order to advance their conflicting interests and preferences because strategic decisions have significant consequences (Dean & Sharfman, 1996). Outside of the established processes, political behavior takes the shape of, among other things, building coalitions and conducting offline lobbying to affect the current power structure (e.g., Allison 1971; Shepherd et al. 2020). As such, it is critical to examine the behavioral facets of public management and to give public managers’ psychology and interests more consideration. (Grimmelikhuijsen et al., 2017; Simon, 1997). The definition of political behavior that is used, neutrally, is “intentional forms of behavior associated with the use of power and influence in order to serve the own interests of decision-makers or these of the organization,” in accordance with Elbanna (2018). According to Fedor et al. (2008), this definition demonstrates that political behavior can take two forms: productive and destructive, depending on who stands to gain from participating in politics. More recent study has concentrated on the positive parts of political behavior that are pursued to achieve organizational aims, while earlier research (e.g., Dean and Sharfman 1996) highlighted the detrimental aspects of political behavior that favor personal objectives (e.g., Eldor 2017; Shepherd et al. 2020).
It is contended that there are various beneficial ways in which constructive politics can support the effective execution of strategic decisions. For instance, it might question the status quo and the presumptions of the most influential decision-makers, make sure that various viewpoints and facets of the implementation issues are looked at, and harmonize disparate interpretations of the surrounding environment (Fedor et al. 2008). Even when it conflicts with the interests of other decision-makers, constructive politics, which aim to serve organizational interests, is more likely to assist public managers in exploring a wide range of options and advocating for changes that will enable the successful implementation of strategic decisions (Shepherd et al., 2021). Constructive politics may also aid in resolving conflicts and divergent viewpoints, as well as overcoming choice biases like groupthink (Mintzberg, Ahlstrand, and Lampel 2009).
Eldor (2017) discovered empirically that workers who view their workplace as more political share knowledge and are more innovative, proactive, and adaptable, which could result in more innovative strategic choices.
“An actor’s desire to expend resources in the pursuit of political objectives, and it is considered as a crucial prerequisite to participating in political behavior” is how the idea of political will is defined (Blickle et al., 2018; Treadway et al., 2005). “The motivation to engage in strategic, goal directed behavior that promotes the personal agenda and goals of the individual that necessarily entails the risk of relational or reputational capital” is how (Ferris & Treadway, 2012a) described individual-level political will in organizations.
Furthermore, it has been proposed that the latent political incentives of specific players may be extremely important in organizations (Pfeffer & Lammerding, 1981). These covert political agendas contribute to the unfavorable perception of politics in the workplace (Ferris & Hochwarter, 2010). According to some academics, they are willing to use individuals as leverage to further their own agendas (Mintzberg, 1983). However, the negative assessment of political behavior has overlooked its positive aspects as a lawful form of expression, a source of knowledge, and a means of generating, maintaining, or changing common meaning as well as the ability to advance justice, equity, health, and well-being (Hochwarter, 2012). As a result, an increasing number of academics view political behavior—which might be self-serving, charitable, or humanistic—in a more impartial manner (Ferris & Hochwarter, 2010).
A scale for evaluating political will has just recently been established, and its validation procedure is still in its early stages, despite promises concerning its theoretical and practical significance (Ferris & Treadway, 2012a). A two-dimensional self-report political will scale (PWS) with strong psychometric qualities has been developed by (Kapoutsis et al., 2015) and it fits well into the nomological network of the organizational sciences and psychology. The benign feature of political will was associated with the need for attachment, organizational citizenship behavior, and voice behavior, whereas the self-serving dimension was linked to the individual’s drive for achievement, power, and Machiavellianism. These two political will dimensions are meant to reflect connected motivational attributes that show constancy over time and across contexts, in contrast to psychological states that are situation-specific and subject to rapid change (Donovan, 2013).
In total, more than 900 participants from three countries (the United States, Greece, and the United Kingdom) participated in four validation investigations by Kapoutsis et al. (2015). These studies included six samples. Even while the outcomes give hope for the new scale, more work is still required. First, data on the connection between objective job achievement and political will are now lacking. Secondly, it is necessary to investigate the relationship between altruism and the benevolent aspect of political will. And lastly, self-other agreement still requires consensual validation because it is the foundation of trait validation in psychology (D. T. Campbell & Fiske, 1959). A trait in this kind of multisource validation process represents the variance that raters share (McAbee & Connelly, 2016). In the past, construct validity of measures to evaluate political skill (Ferris et al., 2008) and organizational influence strategies (Blickle, 2003) has been supported by validation through self-other agreement. Therefore, our objective is to bridge the theoretical and empirical divide by offering more details about the validity of both criteria and constructs, by establishing a connection between political will and career success on an individual basis and by investigating the degree of self-other consensus and its relationship to work values next to political will (Blickle et al., 2018).
Self-other knowledge asymmetries may exist in addition to trait information that is shared between the self and others (at work) (McAbee & Connelly, 2016; Vazire, 2010). There may be characteristic information that is known just to the trait owner and not to others, particularly in the case of motivational qualities. This information about hidden traits is a component of an individual’s identity, or self-definition, and it may influence the way an individual selects, pursues, and tracks goal achievement (Blickle, 2000). Furthermore, there might be certain attribute perceptions that an individual is unaware of yet that others find familiar and shared. This kind of communication—which can be based on physical appearance stereotypes, communication from intermediaries rather than direct observation of targets (e.g., gossip), or communication between other-raters—has been dubbed other-shared trait perception reputation by (McAbee & Connelly, 2016). Lastly, there could be trait impressions that are exclusive to a single observer and entirely dependent on the beholder. The Trait-Reputation-Identity (TRI) Model, created by (McAbee & Connelly, 2016), is predicated on these assumptions. It divides self-other trait ratings into four categories: consensus regarding underlying traits (trait), distinct self-perceptions (identity), impressions that others share that differ from self-perceptions (reputation), and unique other-rater perceptions (observer uniqueness).
In this study, the recently created measure of political will in organizations (Kapoutsis et al., 2015) was validated with the use of the TRI Model. The consensus in the validation of traits across various raters is the main focus of the TRI Model. We also evaluated the criterion, convergent, and discriminant validity of this model in relation to specific work values like generosity, leadership, and innovation (Blickle, 2000) that ought to be significant or unimportant for political will, as well as objective career success (Ng et al., 2005).
Political will, as a significant individual variation, may also mitigate the impacts of political competence. Political will is a person’s will to participate in political activities, whereas political skill is the capacity to carry out political behaviors skillfully (Doldor et al. 2013). A person needs both political will and political talent to be an effective political actor (Mintzberg 1983). According to some research, political conduct is necessary for even those with political competence to accomplish desired goals (Shaughnessy et al. 2011; Shi et al. 2013). Political will should be examined in future studies along with political talent. Prior research has employed stable personality traits like the craving for power and achievement to conceptualise and quantify political will (Liu et al. 2010; Treadway et al. 2005). Doldor et al. (2013), however, stress that attitudes towards organizational politics—which are subject to variation based on circumstances and experiences—also play a role in political will. It is proposed that dispositional and attitudinal components make up political will. As a result, future studies should create a tool to gauge political intent that accounts for both of these factors. Furthermore, political acumen is implied to be a predictor of political will. People who become more skilled in politics begin to assume that their actions will be successful, and this may strengthen their political will. Finding out if this differs by gender is crucial. Davey (2008) argues that female workers are unlikely to possess political will because they typically view political activity as unfeminine and as a threat to their values and sense of self.
In order to supplement this line of research, different behavioral factors are considered that hasn’t been studied but may be relevant to understanding the connection between workers’ perceptions of the self-serving actions of their peers and their own intentions to leave the company: the employees’ unwillingness to adjust to the behaviors that their peers exhibit (Griffin & Hesketh, 2003; Gwinner et al., 2005). Employees may be more inclined to quit if they believe that dysfunctional political games are to blame since they are unable to cope with the unpleasant work environment and do not think such political games are acceptable (Wu et al., 2017). Employees’ emotional regulation skills, a personal resource that helps them manage their negative emotions in the face of others’ self-centered behavior, may act as a buffer against this process, reducing the likelihood that they will further alienate themselves from the rest of the company and increasing their likelihood of sticking around. This could have a positive impact on their inclination to stay with the company (De Clercq et al., 2023).
It can contribute in multiple ways through the theorization and testing of these relationships. Initially, forecast and empirical illustration was made for the significance of an important yet disregarded mediator between views of organizational politics and intentions to leave: workers’ reluctance to comprehend or adjust to new members of the organization (Baron & Markman, 2003). Employees’ inclination to quit may be increased if they believe that other members’ actions are self-serving since they won’t give in to or accommodate these members’ preferences. Employees may seek retribution, avoid interacting with these colleagues in the future, and reject any explanations for their egoistic behaviors if they are deeply frustrated by their colleagues’ exploitation of opportunities to advance their own position at the expense of others (Chang et al., 2012; De Clercq & Belausteguigoitia, 2020). Such actions could then intensify into a strong desire to quit the company, leading them to start making formal plans to do so (N. S. Campbell et al., 2013).
Second, the circumstances are described wherein employees’ refusal to engage in socially adaptive behavior may lessen the likelihood that perceived organizational politics will escalate into increased turnover intentions (Deng et al., 2017; Parke et al., 2015). Previous research has elucidated the ways in which employees’ psychological capital (Abbas et al., 2012), resilience (De Clercq & Belausteguigoitia, 2017), locus of control (Agarwal, 2016), or work experience are examples of other personal resources that improve their capacity to deal with dysfunctional organizational politics (Varela-Neira et al., 2018). Additionally, it can contribute to research on how emotion-based competencies can lessen the difficulties associated with other resource-draining work conditions, such as job insecurity , conflict (Hagemeister & Volmer, 2018), or disruptive leadership (Hou et al., 2018), by exploring the buffering role of emotional regulation skills. By using this method, organizations can thus be educated about how to guard against the negative effects of politically motivated decision-making within their ranks: by choosing and keeping workers who handle challenging work situations analytically rather than emotionally, they reduce the likelihood that they will contemplate leaving.
The government of South Africa is responding to the needs of its people in a less favorable way. There is a clear lack of political will to advance a government that is responsive to the demands of the people as seen by the government’s and political office holders’ involvement in numerous dubious circumstances. Protests over service delivery have occurred frequently in South Africa’s public sector, and the government has done nothing to defuse the situation. The population of South Africa suffer as a result of the government’s poor service delivery, lack of consequence management, corruption, biassed rule of law, lack of public accountability, and battles for political power. The purpose of government is to serve the needs of the people; however, it appears that those in charge of the government are more focused on their own wants than those of the people. This assertion is supported by the degree of self-enrichment that public employees exhibit in the workplace (Thusi et al.,2023).
One such example is state capture in South Africa, where those holding political office and entrusted with power were the ones to benefit from it. The financially troubled power company Eskom has been spared from having to disclose sporadic and ineffective spending, which is a bad precedent for the government and shows that there isn’t enough political will to support long-term public service delivery for the good of the people. The provision of essential services is influenced by the broader political environment in every nation. It may be possible to achieve improvements in service delivery outcomes by implementing political transformation and change procedures. Political will must exist if the results are favorable; it must be absent if the results are unfavorable (D. Harris & Wild, 2013). Denial, a lack of political will, and poor policy and programme implementation have been the hallmarks of the South African government’s response to the suffering of its citizens (Karim et al., 2009). When it comes to service delivery, the public has faced numerous obstacles. In response, they have staged protests in public spaces and abstained from voting for the front-runner political party in the 2021 local government election, as the party has lost many of the municipalities it had been leading. According to Ukeje et al. (2019), there has been a revision in service delivery systems and procedures aimed at enhancing productivity and performance within the public sector of Africa. An overabundance of policies that lack political will to be executed is one of the main problems facing public service. This has partly prevented these modifications from reaching their intended objectives. Reddy (2016) claims that the politicisation of local government has made it difficult to assign persons with insufficient training and experience to key posts, which has impeded the provision of services. This is explained by the government’s lack of management and political resolve to act decisively and firmly. Researchers agrees that the ANC government’s lack of political will to apply consequence management when it is required has a detrimental effect on the provision of public services. The results of Oleribe et al. (2019) study indicate that political willingness and other leadership and management problems inside the African government impede the effective execution of crucial initiatives intended to benefit the populace. Supporting this claim, c) hinted that South Africa’s public healthcare delivery system has utterly failed, producing poorer results than those of certain lower-income nations due to inadequate management and leadership, a lack of vision, and a vague philosophy. Protests against the government’s inability to offer essential services have become commonplace in South Africa as a result of the country’s citizens’ stated discontent. The government’s inaction and failure to acknowledge that its role is to serve the people, not the other way around, is the root source of these problems. Because it motivates political office holders to create and carry out policies to address problems and obstacles encountered by citizens, political will is crucial to good administration.
As one way of ensuring that better and improved service is rendered to the general population, encouraging political will is crucial. It is, nevertheless, critical to ensure that political will for this strategy exists, as Masuku and Jili (2019) argue that one of the best ways of eradicating poverty is through service delivery. Many scholars have drawn attention to the negative consequences of poor service delivery on the people. Managa (2012) posits that the apartheid service deliverance legacy prevalent in South Africa is responsible for a multitude of socio-economical issues. This includes unemployment, the gap between the rich and the poor, and the population’s poverty levels. Managa goes further to claim that the inability of service provision encourages crime in the society. In the same vein, Masuku and Jili (2019) inform that unreasonable evictions by the people in the community occur in response to poor service delivery, especially about local governments. People’s growing intolerance towards and violence against the community is well supported by Masiya et al. (2019). According to those authors, South African authorities disregard the community’s demands and this attitude encourages a rising aggressiveness in the community. The other cause of this aggressiveness is the fouled words of political authorities.
With respect to certain variables, it can further be stated that a lack of political will increases the cost of living for the population (Hossain et al., 2021). First of all, to cover the gaps of the financial deficit as well as to ensure that there is adequate financing for the provision of services, sometimes the government has to increase taxes. There are always consequences of tax increases in the form of inflation which affects the entire country but more especially the poor. Secondly, due to the escalation of foreign debts there is a possibility of the government being in a deficit position which will require the foreign lender to be paid back with interest. Since this is the case, it is not very wise because the money raised out of these interests was supposed to be used to fund other aspects of providing services to the public. Finally, even the lack of political will further dwells the chances of growth and development and thus most of these chances are compromised and at times they are only available to people who are near the source (Dorasamy & Fagbadebo, 2020). This means that unlinked people are not off the hook as they are also grappling with hard situations in their life.
The importance of the political will variable also
must be addressed in achieving performance goals
for the organization or at the individual level of the
organization. As evidenced by research conducted
by Harris et al. (2007), where it was concluded that
political will could aect work eciency. When
discussing the success or failure of a government,
it is often discussed about the eect of a lack of
political will (Kapoutsis et al., 2017; Post et al.,
2010; Treadway et al., 2005). Individuals with high
political skills show a positive linear relationship
between increasing work output and political will. On
the other hand, individuals with low political skills
actually show the opposite phenomenon. Individuals
with low political skills show increasingly negative
results as political will increases. These conditions
provide a basis for continuing research on these two
constructs, especially concerning empirical testing
(Harris et al., 2016).
The relationship between servant leadership
and political will can be seen normatively from the
Regional Budget-APBD determination process.
Referring to the Indonesian Ministry of Home Aairs
Letter-Permendagri No. 13 of 2006 Article 104 and
other Article 108, it can be seen how the regional
head leadership has its authority in determining and
designing APBD (Chaidir, 2017). The letter shows
how transformational leadership inuences intrinsic
motivation (Charbonneau et al., 2006). Meanwhile,
intrinsic motivation is a formative indicator of political
will (Mintzberg, 1983, 1985). The lack of supporting
studies to empirically prove political will makes Post
et al. (2010) conclude that the term’s meaning must be
more apparent. According to them, the term “political
will” is generally used as an all-encompassing concept
whose meaning is so vague that it does not greatly
enrich our understanding of political processes and
policies. However, some researchers try to make it a
useful analytical tool, such as Brinkerho (2000) and
Kpundeh (2000), who use political will more and
associate it with anti-corruption.
Post et al. (2010) formulated the sub-concept
of political will and its construct validity successfully
formulated from Kapoutsis et al. (2017). Findings
about political will, political behavior, and
political skills, as well as evidence of political will
oered by Mintzberg (1983), consist of intrinsic
motivation and achievement needs that inuence
political behavior (Treadway et al., 2005). Post et
and commitment among policymakers for a policy
solution related to a particular problem.
After looking at previous studies, it was found
that there needs to be more-supporting research to
empirically prove the issue of servant leadership as
the political will to run non-prot organizations. The
current debate is limited to dening, constructing,
and measuring political will, political behavior and
skills. However, there needs to be more-supporting
research to prove it empirically, including servant
leadership and political will. As for the research
conducted by Rifa’i et al. (2022) found that political
will can mediate the inuence of servant leadership
on managerial and organizational performance.
There is also a direct inuence between servant
leadership on perceptions of political will, so the
three have mutual inuence, namely between servant
leadership, managerial, organizational performance
and political will
The importance of the political will variable also
must be addressed in achieving performance goals
for the organization or at the individual level of the
organization. As evidenced by research conducted
by Harris et al. (2007), where it was concluded that
political will could aect work eciency. When
discussing the success or failure of a government,
it is often discussed about the eect of a lack of
political will (Kapoutsis et al., 2017; Post et al.,
2010; Treadway et al., 2005). Individuals with high
political skills show a positive linear relationship
between increasing work output and political will. On
the other hand, individuals with low political skills
actually show the opposite phenomenon. Individuals
with low political skills show increasingly negative
results as political will increases. These conditions
provide a basis for continuing research on these two
constructs, especially concerning empirical testing
(Harris et al., 2016).
The relationship between servant leadership
and political will can be seen normatively from the
Regional Budget-APBD determination process.
Referring to the Indonesian Ministry of Home Aairs
Letter-Permendagri No. 13 of 2006 Article 104 and
other Article 108, it can be seen how the regional
head leadership has its authority in determining and
designing APBD (Chaidir, 2017). The letter shows
how transformational leadership inuences intrinsic
motivation (Charbonneau et al., 2006). Meanwhile,
intrinsic motivation is a formative indicator of political
will (Mintzberg, 1983, 1985). The lack of supporting
studies to empirically prove political will makes Post
et al. (2010) conclude that the term’s meaning must be
more apparent. According to them, the term “political
will” is generally used as an all-encompassing concept
whose meaning is so vague that it does not greatly
enrich our understanding of political processes and
policies. However, some researchers try to make it a
useful analytical tool, such as Brinkerho (2000) and
Kpundeh (2000), who use political will more and
associate it with anti-corruption.
Post et al. (2010) formulated the sub-concept
of political will and its construct validity successfully
formulated from Kapoutsis et al. (2017). Findings
about political will, political behavior, and
political skills, as well as evidence of political will
oered by Mintzberg (1983), consist of intrinsic
motivation and achievement needs that inuence
political behavior (Treadway et al., 2005). Post et
and commitment among policymakers for a policy
solution related to a particular problem.
After looking at previous studies, it was found
that there needs to be more-supporting research to
empirically prove the issue of servant leadership as
the political will to run non-prot organizations. The
current debate is limited to dening, constructing,
and measuring political will, political behavior and
skills. However, there needs to be more-supporting
research to prove it empirically, including servant
leadership and political will. As for the research
conducted by Rifa’i et al. (2022) found that political
will can mediate the inuence of servant leadership
on managerial and organizational performance.
There is also a direct inuence between servant
leadership on perceptions of political will, so the
three have mutual inuence, namely between servant
leadership, managerial, organizational performance
and political will
Achieving performance objectives for the organization or at the individual level inside the organization requires addressing the significance of the political will variable. This is supported by studies by K. J. Harris et al. (2007), which found that political will may have an impact on productivity. The impact of a lack of political will is frequently brought up when debating whether a government is successful or unsuccessful (Kapoutsis et al., 2015; Post et al., 2010). Political will and increased work output are positively correlated in those with strong political skills. Conversely, those with little political acumen exhibit the exact opposite pattern. The more political will there is, the worse off people who lack political acumen perform. These prerequisites offer a foundation for further investigation into these two concepts, particularly in relation to empirical testing (Harris et al., 2016). The Regional Budget-APBD determination process provides a normative view of the link between political will and servant leadership. The regional head leadership has the authority to determine and create the APBD, as demonstrated by Articles 104 and 108 of the Indonesian Ministry of Home Affairs Letter-Permendagri No. 13 of 2006 (Chaidir, 2017). The letter demonstrates how intrinsic motivation is impacted by transformational leadership (Charbonneau et al., 2001). In the meantime, political will is formed through intrinsic motivation (Mintzberg, 1983, 1985). Post et al. (2010) conclude that the definition of political will needs to be made clearer because there aren’t enough research to back it up with empirical evidence. They claim that the word “political will” is typically employed to refer to an all-encompassing idea whose definition is so nebulous as to not significantly advance our comprehension of political procedures and policies. Nonetheless, other scholars, who employ political will more and link it to anti-corruption, attempt to make it a valuable analytical tool. The sub-concept of political will was effectively developed by Post et al. (2010) based on work by Kapoutsis et al. (2015). According to research on political behavior, political skills, and political will, as well as political will evidence provided by Mintzberg (1983), political behavior is influenced by intrinsic motivation and accomplishment demands (Ferris & Treadway, 2012). According to Post et al. (2010), political will is the degree to which policymakers are committed to and in favor of a certain policy solution. Upon reviewing prior research, it was determined that additional corroborating studies are required to establish experimentally that servant leadership is necessary to govern non-profit organizations with political will. The scope of the current discussion is restricted to the definition, construction, and assessment of political behavior, abilities, and will. In order to demonstrate it experimentally, more studies on political will and servant leadership are required. According to RIFA’I et al. (2022), political will has the ability to moderate the impact of servant leadership on organizational and managerial performance. The three factors—servant leadership, management effectiveness, organizational performance, and political will—have an interdependent relationship because servant leadership has a direct impact on views of political will.
The concept of “political will,” which Ferris and Treadway (2012) defines as “motivation to engage in strategic, goal-directed behavior that advances the personal agenda and objectives of the actor,” has been the subject of the majority of research on political motivation. Early research on political will employed dispositional proxies, such as intrinsic motivation, need for achievement, and need for power, and found strong evidence linking these constructs to political behavior (Liu et al., 2010; Treadway et al., 2005). According to Ferris and Treadway (2012), people’s political will stems from their desire to achieve either relational goals by acting politically to better outcomes for others, or instrumental goals by acting in their own best interests. Following this, Kapoutsis et al. (2015) discovered empirical evidence in favor of political will that includes both self-serving and altruistic dimensions. This implies that while people may act politically to further their own goals, they may also act politically to represent the interests of the larger collective. The Political Will Scale has been demonstrated to predict political behaviors like voice behavior, ingratiation, and impression management; however, there is less data to show how people develop political will and the circumstances in which they might form self-serving or altruistic political motivations. In order to investigate this matter, it is crucial to acknowledge that political will is seen as a type of trait-like intrinsic motivation, as it functions as a comparatively constant desire to satisfy people’s requirements for autonomy, competence, and progress in the workplace (Blickle et al., 2018). It is also believed that political will would change and adapt in response to various experiences and political environments (Maher et al., 2018). For example, (Ferris & Treadway, 2012) proposes that political will involves risk assessment, in which people look for indicators in the organizational environment that govern the kinds of political actions they decide to take. In a similar vein, the idea of political prudence was introduced, arguing that while deciding whether to participate in politics, political actors should consider the situational context, the authority needed, and the costs and repercussions of their actions. Doldor (2017) conducted empirical research which revealed that leaders’ inclination to participate in organizational politics was supported by beliefs that were contextually informed about the political behaviors’ functional outcome, moral implications, and emotional experience. Furthermore, these beliefs were found to develop over the course of the leaders’ careers. All things considered, this line of inquiry suggests that the concept of political will is a component of a larger motivational process that includes other underappreciated cognitive processes involving the interpretation of political situations and occurrences.
Doldor et al. (2013) and Mintzberg (2019) were correct when they said that “political will” was an essential component of political behavior. Only by investigating the role of political intention as a moderator can the relationship between political talent and results be better understood. This point was raised by Kimura (2015) in his investigation of the connection between results and public skill.
The imprecise word “political will” is frequently employed to allude to the shortcomings of governments, social movements, and politicians (Ferris & Treadway, 2012). Speeches and news reports that downplay the lack of political will to end the food, sickness, starvation, and war problems appear to be little more than a wake-up call to a disengaged society, which admits defeat in and of itself. Even while no one person can fix these grave issues on their own, it is the individual that inspires creativity, disobedience, and change. And maybe what keeps us from bringing about long-lasting change in institutions and society is our incapacity to comprehend where a person’s political will comes from. Political will is still a very underdeveloped concept in the organizational sciences, despite the fact that its usage in everyday speech indicates how important it is to society. Political will is typically conceptualised as a construct that functions at the social or group level when it is discussed in academic research (Post, Raile, & Raile, 2010). Nonetheless, it is hard to overlook the individual actors’ personal commitment and leadership, which support the creation and upkeep of political will at the group level. The purpose of the current multistudy investigation is to develop a more comprehensive understanding of how individuals, employees, and leaders initiate change, gather resources, mobilise support, and ultimately achieve success. To this end, the Political Will Scale (PWS) is developed and conceptually and empirically distinguished from other related constructs. There has been a sharp increase in interest in and research of political talent, which is arguably the construct closest to political will among these. Recent organizational politics research has been driven mostly by breakthroughs in theory and measurement. This has resulted in an almost sole focus on the role of political ability in leadership, stress management, and job performance (Ferris & Treadway, 2012). Political skill is the ability for employees to read and adapt their behavior to the social context of the organization while appearing self-controlled, confident, and genuine. It is defined as “the ability to effectively understand others at work, and to use such knowledge to influence others to act in ways that enhance one’s personal and/or organizational objectives”. These skills enable them to create rich, complex social networks with a wealth of resources. The individual and environmental factors that motivate actors to use political skill to achieve objectives have not been specifically addressed in this field of research, despite the fact that it is crucial to understanding political activity in organizations. According to (Mintzberg, 1984), an employee’s performance in an organization cannot be predicted just by political competence, nor can political activity be predicted by explaining an employee’s formal or informal influence. Mintzberg’s fundamental thesis on power in and around organizations revolved around this framework, stating that “influencers pick and choose their issues, concentrating their efforts on the ones most important to them” (25). Thus, political acumen and power play a crucial role in determining an individual’s success in the workplace, but so does influencers’ political will—a concept coined by Mintzberg—to use their social capital to further their objectives. Few later studies have made an effort to understand how a person’s political will influences their incentive to change behavior. Rather than utilising a single measure of political will from which generalised conclusions about motivation, skill, and capital in the political sphere can be made, studies that have attempted to address individual political will have done so by means of indirect proxies of motivation. In addition to limiting our comprehension of political skill, the absence of a unified framework and consistent methods of measuring political will ultimately leaves academics with a conceptualization of political behavior’s influence on leadership, performance, stress, and other work-related outcomes that is less than fully developed (Treadway, 2012). We aim to address this omission by providing the conceptual clarification and empirical measurement required to advance our knowledge of political dynamics in organizations (Kapoutsis et al., 2015).
Despite being a phrase that is frequently used in many academic fields, political will has varying definitions. Political actors (e.g., elected or appointed leaders, civil society watchdogs, stakeholder organizations, etc.) that have demonstrated a credible purpose to fight perceived causes or effects of corruption at a systemic level are considered to have political will at a macro level. Similarly, according to Post et al. (2010), political will can be defined as “the extent of committed support among key decision-makers for a particular policy solution to a particular problem.” A belief that political will exists in the group and ignores the intentions of individual actors is ingrained in these definitions. This method works well for discussing public policy issues, but it doesn’t explain how individual influence behavior impacts leadership, which shapes group ideas of will. In fact, Mintzberg (1983) referred to these reasons as political will. Treadway defined individual-level political will as “the motivation to engage in strategic, goal directed behavior that advances the personal agenda and objectives of the actor that inherently involves the risk of relational or reputational capital,” pointing out the lack of clarity in collective definitions and the absence of a refined definition at the individual level. Treadway maintained that political will is a multifaceted construct, in contrast to conventional ideas that political action is only dysfunctional for the organization and people within it. These dimensions challenged conventional beliefs that political behavior is exclusively dysfunctional by positioning them as two sets of continuums, each encompassing the poles of self-interest and social interest.
Their Ferris et al. (2017) theory of political or social influence in organizations focuses on the functioning of the political skill construction and how it influences oneself, others, and organizational practices in manners that manage shared meaning. The anticipated action of political skill on the formation of personal resources and personal ambitions was characterized by Ferris and colleagues as an intrapsychic process that shapes one’s sense of self. Persuasion and persuasion strategies and reactions, networking and coalition-building activities, performance assessments, citizenship and helpful behaviors are all included in the concept of influence on others. Group-level processes were also affected by the intervention (Joo & Bennett III, 2018).
The study intended to enhance the Ferris et al. (2017) model to give a more nuanced viewpoint from which to analyze political skill’s functioning and uncover gaps in the understanding. Because of this, the Ferris et al. (2017) model is extrapolated and interpolated to include additional outcomes and hypotheses about these outcomes in the study’s extension of their framework such as considering specific expressions of specific work outcome classifications they mention in their model, like job attitudes).
Overall, we’ve thought about how political skill affects self-assessment, situational evaluation, reaction to situations and responses from others, as well as processes inside groups and organizations. Intrapsychic influences of political competence may be captured by self-assessments and scenario evaluations. Behavioral reactions influenced by political skill are included in the category of situational responses. Finally, multilevel behavioral processes in which the political skill of one person influences others or compositions are often subsumed by group and organizational dynamics (Ferris et al., 2019; Joo & Bennett III, 2018).
Social psychology theory has been heavily influenced by Homans’ exchange theory from his early publications (2016). Utilitarianism, on the one hand, and behaviorism, on the other, is the philosophical and psychological foundations of this theoretical viewpoint. Each of these theoretical roots may still be seen in modern exchange theories. Focusing on the theoretical approaches of exchange theory, this chapter will concentrate on psychological and social phenomena that are critical to understanding micro-level exchange and macrostructures in society (Cortez & Johnston, 2020; Cropanzano et al., 2017).
While early discussions focused on the character of the actor who inhabits the social exchange environment, few of these questions remain relevant today. These differences are not critical to the major endeavor, which is to understand how social structures are created and how actors may exercise influence and power in their daily lives via exchange relations, which have been a major focus of exchange theory in recent decades. If these encounters are seen as reciprocal relationships or negotiated trades, they are crucial to research and pervasive in social life (Yin, 2018).
Research in sociology on social trade has recently placed a strong emphasis on the connections between theories of social exchange and theories of social status and influence as well as social networks and fairness. In the evaluation of recent major contributions to exchange theory, these issues are addressed. The review is broken down into sections based on subject matter. There are several ideas on social trade, and are begin by summarizing them. After that, a few contrasts are made between the various theoretical frameworks. After this activity, the important research questions have been addressed by the most influential sociologists of the last two decades (Tsai & Kang, 2019).
For Homans (1961), the focus was on the interplay between the actions of individuals rather than the group as a whole. His major goal was to provide an in-depth analysis of basic social dynamics (power, compliance, status, leadership, and justice). There is nothing in social groupings that cannot be understood by statements about people as individuals and the fact that they chance to interact. This reductionism was a notable break from Peter Blau’s work (2017), which included the study of “emergent” qualities in a social system in his theory of social interaction and society’s structural design and development (Tsai & Kang, 2019).
“Social exchange” is described by Homans (2016) as the interchange of at least two people’s activities, whether physical or intangible, more or less rewarding or expensive. The actors engaged assessed the cost largely in terms of the time and money they would otherwise have spent on other things. For Homans, the persistence of trade interactions might be explained using ideas of early 1960s behaviorism. Behavior is driven by incentives, which may be found in the natural environment or the company of people. This reinforcer-based psychological foundation for trade was further expanded by Emerson (2015).
He showed how A’s conduct reinforced B’s, and how B’s behavior promoted the behaviors of both A and B as a result of their mutual reinforcement in social interaction. On this explicit foundation, social interaction at a “sub-institutional” level was described in detail. Several historical and structural facts were assumed without question. The actor’s prior history of reinforcement determines the value of a transaction, which is assumed as a given at the start of a new relationship. When it came to Homan’s research, he primarily focused on the social processes of reciprocal reinforcement and the absence of it. Failure to strengthen a relationship might also lead to a breakup (Kang & Lee, 2018).
Many of his theoretical considerations of other crucial sociological concepts, such as fair treatment, balancing, status, leading, authority, power, and solidarity, were built on his primary focus on dyadic interaction. Homans’ work was criticized for two main reasons: it was too vastly oversimplified in that it used psychological principles as the basis for sociological phenomena, and it underplayed the significance of institutional as well as social processes and structures that emerge from social interaction in its analysis of the sub-institutional level. In this way, Homans’ early consideration of the topic of distributive fairness in social exchange interactions has been one of his enduring contributions to social psychology, which is rather ironic. In reality, Homans was less concerned with standards since he focused on the “sub-institutional” level of thinking in his investigation of basic social conduct, which is where the irony comes in. His hostility to the strongly system-oriented and normative ideas of Parsons, which were prevalent at the time he published his treatise on social conduct, contributed significantly to his decision to concentrate on basic behavior. Homans (2016) refers to Parsons’ work on the social structure as the “yellow peril” in his autobiography. More in-depth discussion of Homans’ theory of distributive justice is provided under the section on fairness (Cook et al., 2020; Paraskevaidis & Andriotis, 2017).
Homans’ major assertions defined social behavior research in terms of incentives and punishments. As long as a person’s marginal utility is increasing, they will continue to do what they are doing since it is rewarding. An activity that has favorable outcomes is more likely to be repeated, according to his first claim, known as the success proposition. The stimulus premise, on the other hand, asserts that conduct that’s been rewarded in the past will be done in comparable conditions. For an action to be done, the value proposition states that it will be more valued if the outcome is more useful to the actor (de Souza Meira & Hancer, 2021).
When a person has gotten a reward for an activity a lot lately, the value of an additional reward becomes less important to them. This is known as the deprivation-satiation statement and is a generalization of the stimulation proposition. As a final point, the fifth premise explains how people respond to varied reward scenarios. When people don’t get what they want, they become furious and violent. They might get upset when their expectations are not met, according to Homans (2008), who introduces the normative idea of distributive justice into his argument (Urbonavicius et al., 2021).
Even though Blau, writing about the same time, used incentives and costs as the basis of his micro-exchange theory, he used a far less scientific approach to behavior and instead drew on economic and utilitarian concepts to explain human behavior. Actors might take a forward-looking or backwards-looking approach to determine their next course of action, as Heath (2012) points out. Utilitarianism tends to focus on the future. Actors are considered to behave in terms of anticipated rewards that benefit them, and they prefer to pick the alternative option that maximizes profit and minimizes expense (Porter, 2018).
With actors appreciating what has been rewarding in the past, reinforcing theories look backwards Despite its infancy, Blau’s micro-level exchange theory is one of the earliest efforts to apply utilitarianism drawn from economics to social conduct.
Through his study of group dynamics and interpersonal relationships, Blau came to see the importance of social exchange. Extrinsic advantages and the social structures that were formed as a result of this sort of social contact were his primary emphasis. Social exchange, according to Blau (2017), refers to the voluntary behaviors of individuals that are driven by the rewards they are anticipated to bring and which often do bring from other people in actuality. At first glance, he highlights that when comparing social interaction to commercial transactions, he points out that the form of duties is more likely to remain unclear, at least initially. When one person performs something for another as part of a social exchange, there is no way to know exactly what kind of return that person will get, according to the study (Jani, 2018).
The Social Exchange Theory and the Cognitive Theories, which worked as a basis for the concepts, led the hypotheses and experiments. They add to the fictitious model by using similar ideas and methods. In order to better comprehend the role of social interaction in political activity, two traits were outlined: Any behavior motivated by the hope of receiving a response or a response in return is known as social exchange. One person’s voluntary assistance to another prompts the other to make a matching contribution during social encounters. However, the Attribution Theory aims to clarify people’s beliefs about the causes of events and occurrences, as well as their judgments of others (Wu & Lee, 2017).
Figure 2‑7 Illustration of Political skill Source: Waggoner (2020)
If you want to know why anything happens, the Attribution Theory gives you the rules you need to follow. The Attribution Theory is built on the following three pillars: It is common for people to identify a trigger to major conduct, both their own and that of others. A systematic approach is used to assign a cause-and-effect relationship (Wu & Lee, 2017). According to Buchanan (2020), people’s political views may be influenced by motives other than self-interest, as well as external forces. There are two dependent factors in this research: political abilities, which would be the independent variable, and organizational participation and constructive behavior which are the dependent variables. Organizational-based self-esteem and social trust will be the mediator variables in this study.
For Jones and Davis, Attribution is developed based on the results of actions. Determine the impacts of the Attribution process for each feasible response according to their theory. A lot can be learned about a person’s behavioral inclinations from unexpected events. When it comes to personal attributes, this is a notion that aims to help people recognize when conduct is a reflection of the features they’ve been matched with. A characteristic (feature) may or may not be operating following a person’s long-term preferences, according to this notion. Do you think someone who acts aggressively qualifies as “Beastliest?” Are altruists people who donate money to charitable causes? People make inferences based on three variables to answer such questions (Wu & Lee, 2017).
The first thing to consider is the level of one’s preference. Private Attribution is easier to prove when a person’s actions are their own choice, rather than when they are forced on them. An essay opposing Fidel Castro was written by pupils in Jones and Harris’ experiment. Some participants were informed that he had selected the post, while others were told that his professors had been appointed. Once participants had guessed the students’ conduct and attitudes, they were then asked to estimate the students’ behavior and attitudes again.
Secondly, the pace of predicted behavior is a determinant in people’s interpretation of trends. Much more about a person’s character can be learned by observing their out-of-the-ordinary conduct than it is done by seeing their more typical behavior. How do people assume they know more about the character of a guy who wears punk or rap clothing or evades tax than others who wear standard clothing and pay their taxes on time?
The third aspect that individuals take into account is the influence of one’s actions on one’s assumed orientation. A person’s inner motives may be satisfied by a variety of acts, but behaviors that only provide a particular outcome or return are unacceptable. Consider the case of someone who has interesting work, a good salary, and lives in a beautiful area. A job that provides three decent returns, each of which is adequate to justify this kind of behavior. Conversely, more confidence was seen in the attribution orientation since this work is dull or low-paying (Wu & Lee, 2017).
A “willingness to devote resources to attain political goals” is one definition of political will.
How confident a person is in his or her abilities, relevance, and ability is characterized as organizational self-esteem by Ferris et al. (2009). OBSE is also associated with a decreased risk of symptoms and health concerns. As opposed to basic self-esteem, OBSE served as a more accurate indication of these work-related factors.
One’s willingness to hold another group responsible for their activities, as stated by Evans and Revelle (2008), is based on the belief that others will perform certain acts important to the receiver, regardless of one’s capacity to monitor or influence the other group. A person’s willingness to endure vulnerability or danger because they have faith in the good intentions of the other person is a sign of interpersonal trust.
Political Skills |
Organizational Engagement |
Constructive Behavior |
Political Will |
Organization based Self-esteem |
Interpersonal Trust |
2.10 Hypothesis Development
H1: Political skills have an impact on organizational engagement.
H2: Political Skills have an impact on constructive behavior.
H3: Organizations based self-esteem acts as mediator between political skills and constructive behavior.
H4: Interpersonal trust acts as a mediator between political skills and constructive behavior.
H5: Political Will moderates the relationship between political skills and organizational engagement, such that political will strengthen the relationship between political skills and organizational engagement.
H6: Political Will moderates the relationship between political skills and constructive behavior, such that political will strengthen the relationship between political skills and constructive behavior.
Any issue may be considered a subject for research, which is the methodical gathering and assessment of facts and information (Lin et al., 2017). Research aims to find answers to philosophical and practical concerns using rigorous methodologies. Descriptive analysis aims to obtain data that determines whether or not what occurs, and it includes a variety of approaches and contexts. A theory’s usefulness may be assessed by looking at the evidence that supports it, and then it can be put into practice via the use of applied analysis. This can be done in a variety of contexts, including product design, manufacturing processes, and public policy. Research in fundamental science is done for the sake of curiosity rather than for immediate practical application. Quantitative research necessitates extensive use of tools and methodologies to analyze data based on figures while qualitative research examines variables that can’t be measured and hence can’t be estimated or interpreted quantitatively by the study’s topic.
In this chapter, the recommended approaches and designs for conducting this investigation are explained. This chapter focuses on the study’s demographics, sampling methods, and sample size and also explains how the acquired data was analyzed.
The research technique used in this study was based on Saunders’ research onion. Using the research onion strategy, researchers may follow a series of steps to perform their studies, as well as evaluate their findings. 500 respondents from Pakistan participated in the quantitative study.
To handle research concerns consistently, analysis methods are processes or a way for analyzing a subject. A researcher’s method to research often indicates how the study is carried out in a systematic manner. Scholars often use the notions of positivism and interpretivism in their work. An objective and valid analysis may be supported by empirical and statistical data if positivism is used as a framework. Quantitative analysis is another term for positivism. There are a variety of safe answers that may be found via interpretivism. Using interpretivism, scientists are able to examine various aspects of a given piece of evidence (Denzin and Lincoln, 2008).
According to the natural sciences, quantitative analysis tends to concentrate on the proportions as well as employs many metrics. In order to answer queries like “how many?” or “how much?” quantitative methods are used (Lin et al., 2017). On the other hand, qualitative research which gives answers of questions like “how’s” and “why” etc.
Developing the research, i.e. the research design, has been the most crucial approach after defining the research challenge. Because of this, the research design enables scientists to make decisions on research questions like “what,” “when,” “where,” “how much,” “why”, etc.
There are two sorts of research designs that are typically used: exploratory and explanatory. It is common for exploratory and conclusive research designs to be qualitative and quantitative at the same time. The two basic kinds of conclusive research designs, descriptive and casual, may be further subdivided. In this study, quantitative and qualitative both methods are used.
This study employs a descriptive research strategy. Defining new knowledge about people, events or behaviors, situations, or the occurrence of those events or circumstances is done using descriptive analytic design (Morgan et al., 2000). Descriptive analysis, also known as descriptive research, may be used to describe any study’s findings and characteristics.
The research follows the quantitative method to understand the experiences of the respondents recruited for the research to identify their perception. The paradigm of the research has been selected because quantitative research provides detailed knowledge and preserves the form and content of the experiences shared by participants that help in understanding the knowledge of the study.
According to Melnikovas (2018), a research strategy lays forth the main goals of the investigation. The researcher is guided by an effective research strategy with terms of planning, conducting, and analyzing the study’s results. It also aids researchers in their work by providing particular methodologies and instruments to be used in the process of doing research. Various sorts of research methodologies, such as case studies, grounded theory, research methods, surveys, and ethnography, are used. In the present research survey approach was used because the goals align with quantitative approach.
Quantitative analysis, specified and formal, involves the use of ordered questions and large numbers of participants with pre-determined questionnaire material. If a questionnaire or an interpretation of a dataset uses numerical data, then quantitative analysis is utilized to analyze the results of that dataset (Saunders et al., 2009). Only a little quantity of big data from each subject should be gathered for the estimate. The information that may be gleaned from the collected data is numerical and quantifiable via statistical analysis. The goal of this method of analysis is to develop and execute mathematical models, theories, and hypotheses. In order for researchers to examine their ideas and conduct observational tests, the experimental procedure is one of the most defining aspects. Quantitative research necessitates the use of observational tests to determine the hypothesis/study link, and this was the strategy used for this investigation.
A research philosophy for such study is a set of processes and concepts that offer a particular orientation for the investigation. According to Padilla-research Daz’s onion method, there are pragmatism, positivism, realism, and interpretivism among the numerous research philosophies. The positivist philosophy is used in research to analyze quantitative technique. There is logical proof for doing the investigation provided by positivism, but interpretation specifies human participation in the phenomena. As this study is based on quantitative approach so positivist philosophy has also been conducted by adopting a phenomenological approach as it aims to provide significant live-in experiences of individuals regarding a phenomenon.
The ideas will be verified or validated by collecting data, and this data will be used to answer main research question (Lee & Lings, 2008). Analytical unit methodologies, research topics, and data processing, classification, and statistical analysis are the main components of study architecture. The same style should be used regardless of the paradigm or point of view being applied. As a matter of fact, it is an approach that uses empirical evidence to support its findings and, in the end, its conclusions (Yin, 2006). The nature of the study is concerned with the standards for social research assessments: accuracy, quality, and validity. The design of the research is quantitative.
The research strategy has specified the study’s goals, techniques, and routes. The inductive or deductive methods to study may be separated using the research onion model. The preceding hypotheses for such interpretation of the current study are dealt with in the deductive approach to the research. A new theory is then developed based on current research aims, processes, and plans. This is the inductive approach (Johnston, 2014). Consequently, the current investigation use inductive techniques which will work well with quantitative data.
The inductive method begins with observation, and ideas are then put out in response to these facts (Goddard & Melville, 2004). The progression from observation to theory creation results in the formulation of hypotheses (Bernard, 2011). Since no theories or hypotheses have been used since the beginning of the inquiry, the researcher is free to change the course of the investigation.
A population, as mentioned by Kombo and Tromp (2011), is a combination of people, things, or things from whom samples are gathered to measure. According to Cooper and Schindler (2014), the population is the whole collection of factors from which conclusions should be drawn. The population is referred to as the study’s universe by Kothari (2004). The complete group of subjects of concern from whom the study wants to gather pertinent data for the study is referred to as the target population (Cooper & Schindler, 2014; Kombo & Tromp, 2011; Kothari, 2004). They argue that a study population must have a quality that aligns with the study’s research areas.
The research’s target population consisted of Pakistani bank employees. Employees of public and private banks from major cities made up the sample for this study. They included chief operating officers, assistant managers, principal officers, internal auditors, vice presidents, and associate vice presidents (both male and female). There were 500 surveys distributed in total using a convenient technique (Creswel, 2014; Saunders et al., 2009). A few well-known research studies were used to customise the survey. The target population was separated into strata in order to create a sample that was representative of the entire population.
The complete list of all the data samples from which a specimen might be drawn is involved in the sampling frame. To explain the universe, a sample frame is necessary (population). The frame (data sources) could include a list of businesses, residences, and households with locations, information on the goods they create and consume, their spending patterns, and so forth (Kothari, 2004). Neelankavil (2007) presents a sampling frame that consists of a list of the constituent parts of a community from which a sample is then taken.
A sampling technique is a categorization of the method that is employed to choose the research’s units for utilization Neelankavil (2007). Choosing portions of an aggregate or totality on the basis of which a judgement or conclusion regarding the collective or entirety is drawn is what Kothari (2004) defines as sampling. It is the method of gathering details about a whole population by looking at only a small portion of it. According to Mugenda and Mugenda (1999), Cooper and Schindler (2014), Bougie (2016), Creswell (2017) inferential statistics frequently uses sampling to forecast the behaviour of the population. By adopting sampling methods, a researcher can be sure that the features of the population are closely matched in the sample.
In this research, respondents were selected by following convenience sampling; a type of non-probabilistic sampling method based on the researcher’s ease as it gives possibility to reach many individuals without any hurdle and is most useful for exploratory as well as explanatory studies.
To conduct quantitative analysis 500 employees from different public and private banks of Pakistan participated diligently. The sample size is restricted based on data saturation as information started to repeat itself.
Attached to the questionnaire is an introductory letter that explains the rationale behind the study’s conduct. Pre-testing, according to Cooper and Schindler (2014), enables the questionnaire’s design and content to be improved. According to Saunders, Lewis, and Thornhill (2009), a pilot test is essential to ensuring that a questionnaire is thoroughly improved to get rid of any issues that may come up later. To make the data gathering system more accurate, the questionnaire was previously tested.
The process of gathering data was initiated after the questionnaire was completed. The survey approach was used to achieve this. The survey approach is the best, in accordance with Bloch, Ridgway, and Dawson (1994), because it manages and manages vast data included in a range of behaviors; it handles the association of a vast collection of factors. In the selected main cities of Pakistan, there were more than 200 active public and private banks where the information was gathered using questionnaires. Data was gathered by phone, references, and company profiles. The respondents made sure that their replies were pertinent.
Data collection can be used to describe the preparation and collection of data. There should be a proper procedure for gathering data for the reason to guarantee that the information is reliable and authentic, and that conclusions and judgments depending on the data are valid. In this study, primary information was gathered from bank professionals working in both public and private banks in two of Pakistan’s largest cities. In order to produce more precise and genuine data for this study, questionnaire was distributed among the employees of different public and private banks. The list of selected cities along with response rate is attached in the Appendix II.
This research was carried out in Pakistan, a country with a broad range of bank managers and employees, working in both public and private banks in Pakistan’s largest cities provided the information.
Prior to performing the statistical analysis, a preliminary evaluation of the facts was performed. Pre-analysis is done to see if the statistical tests’ underlying assumptions are true (Hair et al., 2010). Prior to conducting the actual data analysis in this work, tests for normality (skewness and kurtosis), outliers, and conformity factor analysis (CFA) were carried out.
Any statistical study must start by checking the normality of the data (Hair et al., 2010). In actuality, all of the constructs’ normality tests were included in the statistical assumption test. Byrne (2013) states that data is regarded to have a normal distribution if the skewness value is -2 Skewness 2 and the kurtosis value is between -7 Kurtosis 7 or below.
To conduct this research, for quantitative analysis, an instrument questionnaire was designed in which participants were requested to record their response of the questions on a 5 points Likert scale.
The five questions to evaluate political skills were taken from Ferris et al. (2021). The three questions to evaluate political will were taken from (Kapoutsis, et al., 2017). The four questions related to organizational engagement were taken from (Saks, 2006). The three questions to evaluate constructive behavior were taken from (DiPaola & Hoy, 2005). The three questions related to organizational based self-esteem were taken from (Pierce et al., 1989). Finally, the four questions regarding interpersonal trust were taken from (Yamagishi et al., 2015).
The questionnaire was designed in English and to collect the responses for quantitative analysis it was distributed through online platforms in Pakistan.
This scale is developed by Rensis Likert and the respondents are asked to indicate their level of agreement and disagreement for each of the following statements: There are five distinct response groups for each scale item.
Data Analysis
The quantitative method is used to interpret the results of the collected data which is primary in nature and is totally comprises of facts and figures by collecting data/sampling, observing, and measuring then analyzing and interpreting accordingly. Descriptive statistics was used to examine the data collected via questionnaires. The quantitative content analysis of the data has been used to conduct the analysis. Descriptive statistics and Karl’s Pearson Correlation Coefficient test using IBM SPSS Statistics 24 were evaluated. To examine the hypothetical model, SmartPLS 4 software is used. Data is analyzed using SEM (Structural Equation Modeling) technique as it helps to evaluate the validity and reliability of the collected facts and figures (Ringle et al., 2005) and this is considered as an accurate technique which gives precise results to analyze CFA.
Descriptive statistics were used to get the mean and standard deviations. The gathered data was examined for their validity and reliability. The goal of a descriptive study was to get a detailed account of the data that had been gathered. When doing statistical experiments, inferential analysis may be used to get a better idea of what the outcomes might be and how they could be applied to general populations. The next chapter provides an in-depth look at the data analysis techniques used in this research.
The connection between the various factors examined in this research, a correlation analysis was carried out in this regard. Because of the assumptions of this study and the creation of the conceptual model, a correlation analysis was carried out.
An additional measure utilized to confirm the validity of a construct is construct dependability. For reliable performance, a CR value of 0.70 or above is considered acceptable. If other measures of a model’s construct validity are strong, a reliability between 0.6 and 0.7 may be considered acceptable. Cronbach’s Alpha, rho_A, and Composite dependability can all be used in SmartPLS to gauge construct dependability. It examines the extent to which all components are measured on a specific (sub) similar concept (Bijttebier et al., 2000; Sun et al., 2007). The coefficient of composite reliability (CR) and Cronbach’s alpha have been in frequent use to estimate the internal consistency reliability of items in marketing research (McCrae et al., 2011; Peterson & Kim, 2013). For present study, CR coefficient was employed in ascertaining the internal consistency reliability of measures because it provides a much less estimation of the reliability bias than coefficient of Cronbach alpha as latter presumes equal contribution from all items to its construct without individual loadings actual contribution being considered (Barclay et al., 1995; Götz et al., 2010). In addition, there is a risk of under or over estimation of reliability scale if Cronbach alpha is taken into account. In this study, internal consistent reliability was assessed employing coefficient of CR following the recommendation given by Barclay et al., 1995; Götz et al., 2010). The coefficient of composite reliability (CR) and Cronbach’s alpha (α) are used to estimate the internal consistency reliability of items. The values of both α and CR coefficient should be at least 0.70 or more (Hair et al., 2011).
During reliability testing, it is possible to determine the degree of test repeatability and the likelihood of receiving consistent results when the test is repeated under identical circumstances.
The capacity of an instrument to deliver consistent measurements from one set of things to another is referred to as reliability (Frankel et al., 2012). According to Field (2013), the dependability is a metric that shows how consistently an instrument measures a given notion as a set across all 24 items in the instrument. When an instrument is administered to the same population under comparable circumstances and get similar results, it is considered to be dependable (Cohen et al., 2013). Reliability in SEM, though, refers to the amount of measurement error in the variables that can assess the correlation between the items and the construct (Pallent, 2013). Cronbach’s Alpha is a reliability coefficient that reveals the degree of positive correlation between the items in a set (Field, 2013). Pallant (2013) asserts that Cronbach’s Alpha should be greater than 0.70. An acknowledged rule of thumb for characterizing internal consistency using Cronbach’s Alpha.
Total 33 respondents were used for the pilot study to see if the questions were appropriate. There is the opportunity to refine the survey’s question structure, making the survey’s questions more relevant and meaningful. Additionally, this has aided in the proper reordering and flow of the questions (Bryman, 2008; Yin, 2009). Total 33 responses collected via the questionnaires were then used in pilot research to assess the scale’s validity and reliability. Participants from the twin cities were selected expressly for the pilot study, and following data collection and analysis over the period of one-week, additional procedures were required. The results of the pilot study indicate that all objects were eligible for further data collection after the necessary adjustments to the descriptions of a select few items.
Researchers utilize reliability and validity as a means of determining the quality of their work. Research uses acceptance processes, such as reliability and validity, as a means to ensure that its findings are accurate. In quantitative research, validity and reliability are the primary concerns. Furthermore, the use of these factors is crucial in quantitative research in order to improve the objectivity of the findings, but they play no significant role in subjective research. It’s important to note that there are four key factors that may be used to determine the quality of subjective research: transferability, believability, dependability, and comparability. A construct’s validity is determined by its ability to be measured by an instrument or technology that agrees with the notion being measured. Convergent and discriminant validity are two subcategories of concept validity measures.
Consensus among answers obtained independently of one another in cases where the measurements are conceptually connected is referred to as convergent validity. To prove convergent validity, it is necessary to demonstrate the actuality of a connection between the measured variables. Discriminant validity refers to the absence of a correlation between two variables that theoretically should not have one in common (Carmines et al., 1979).
Since research relies on ethics to function, the findings provide solid evidence that the study’s ethical standards are upheld. Because of the large number of people who have agreed to take part in this study, researchers have focused their efforts on ensuring that all participants understand the importance of adhering to high ethical standards. As a result, the researchers have made it clear that maintaining high standards is their top priority, and the research data obtained has been ethically sound. For ethical reasons, all participants were given consent form to participate in the study.
The quantitative method is used to interpret the results of the collected data which is primary in nature and is totally comprises of facts and figures by collecting data/sampling, observing, and measuring then analyzing and interpreting accordingly. To examine the hypothetical model, Descriptive statistics, Karl’s Pearson Correlation Coefficient test was performed on IBM SPSS Statistics and CFA and hypothesis testing was analyzed through SmartPLS 4 software. Data is analyzed using SEM (Structural Equation Modeling) technique as it helps to evaluate the validity of the collected facts and figures (Ringle et al., 2005) and this is considered as an accurate technique which gives precise results.
A total of 500 responses were gathered with the help of a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire survey from the employees of banking sector of Pakistan to investigate the impact of political skills on organizational engagement and constructive behavior.
The response rate was 90.91% as out of 550 respondents from different companies 500 participated diligently. A sample size of 50 is considered poor while the criteria for good is 300 (Raza & Hanif, 2013; Comrey & Lee, 2013) so 500 is a suitable sample size to continue the research.
Demographics | Frequency | % |
Male | 333 | 66.6 |
Female | 167 | 33.4 |
Total | 500 | 100 |
As listed in Table 4.1, 333 male responded to the survey (66.6%) and rest of the 167 were female respondents (33.4%).
Demographics | Frequency | % |
18-25 | 31 | 6.2 |
26-34 | 67 | 13.4 |
35-54 | 200 | 40 |
55-64 | 157 | 31.4 |
65 or over | 45 | 9 |
Total | 500 | 100 |
The table 4.2 represents that people having age between 18-25 years of age were 6.2 percent, from 26 to 34 years were 13.4 percent, 35-54 years were 40%, from 55 to 64 years of age were 31.4 percent and above 65 were only 9 percent.
Demographics | Frequency | % |
< PKR10,000 | 98 | 19.6 |
PKR 10,000 – PKR 24,999 | 77 | 15.4 |
PKR 25,000 – PKR 49,999 | 112 | 22.4 |
PKR 50,000 – PKR 74,999 | 135 | 27 |
PKR 75,000 – PKR 99,999 | 78 | 15.6 |
Total | 500 | 100 |
The above table represents the income level of different respondents of the current study. Majority of the respondents were earning $25,000 – $49,999 per year.
Demographics | Frequency | % |
Bachelor’s degree | 257 | 51.4 |
Master’s degree | 135 | 27 |
MS/M.Phil. | 96 | 19.2 |
PhD | 12 | 2.4 |
Total | 500 | 100 |
The table above represents the educational demographics of the respondents of the study. It can be seen that 51.4% of the respondents had bachelor’s degree, 27% were having master’s degree, 19.2% with MS and 2.4% of the respondents were having PhD degrees (only few PhD individuals join banking sector).
To understand the influence of factors influencing organizational engagement and constructive behavior the mean and standard deviation of the variables are measured which are shown in Table 3. The results show an overall average of all the mean values is found to be 4.42 and average of all the standard deviations is 0.690.
Variables | Mean | Std. Deviation | |
Political Skills | PS1 | 4.47 | 0.656 |
PS2 | 4.35 | 0.732 | |
PS3 | 4.49 | 0.715 | |
PS4 | 4.46 | 0.667 | |
PS5 | 4.40 | 0.699 | |
Average of PS | 4.43 | 0.694 | |
Table 4.5 shows the descriptive statistics of all items on data of the variable political skills. The table data shows that minimum and maximum value of all variables is within range 1 to 5 because the data for the items was collected on 5 points Likert scale (1-strongly agree to 5- strongly disagree). Examination of frequencies of all items also indicates that data is normally distributed.
| Variables | Mean | Std. Deviation |
Organizational Engagement | OE1 | 4.28 | 0.663 |
OE2 | 4.44 | 0.686 | |
OE3 | 4.31 | 0.689 | |
OE4 | 4.41 | 0.628 | |
Average of OE | 4.36 | 0.667 |
Table 4.6 shows the mean values of responses. This is respondents’ observation regarding a particular variable. The mean values for all the items of the variable organizational engagement lies between 4.28 to 4.41, which shows that respondents agreed that they are experiencing the organizational engagement.
| Variables | Mean | Std. Deviation |
Constructive Behavior | CB1 | 4.53 | 0.706 |
CB2 | 4.36 | 0.642 | |
CB3 | 4.55 | 0.606 | |
Average of CB | 4.48 | 0.651 |
Table 4.7 shows the mean values of responses. This is respondents’ observation regarding a particular variable. The mean values for all the items of the variable constructive behavior lies between 4.36 to 4.55, which shows that respondent (e.g. Employees) agreed that they are experiencing the constructive behavior.
| Variables | Mean | Std. Deviation |
Political Will | PW1 | 4.36 | 0.735 |
PW2 | 4.35 | 0.733 | |
PW3 | 4.44 | 0.718 | |
Average of PW | 4.38 | 0.729 |
Table 4.8 shows the descriptive statistics of all items on data of the variable political will. The table data shows that minimum and maximum values of all variables are from 4.36 to 4.44, representing that values are within range 1 to 5, because the data for the items was collected on 5 points Likert scale (1-strongly agree to 5- strongly disagree). Examination of frequencies of all items also indicates that data is normally distributed.
| Variables | Mean | Std. Deviation |
Interpersonal Trust | IT1 | 4.38 | 0.754 |
IT2 | 4.47 | 0.637 | |
IT3 | 4.46 | 0.688 | |
IT4 | 4.38 | 0.727 | |
Average of IT | 4.42 | 0.702 |
Table 4.9 shows the descriptive statistics of all items on data of the variable interpersonal trust. The table data shows that minimum and maximum value of all variables is within range 1 to 5 because the data for the items was collected on 5 points Likert scale (1-strongly agree to 5- strongly disagree). Examination of frequencies of all items also indicates that data is normally distributed.
| Variables | Mean | Std. Deviation |
Organizational Based Self-Esteem | OBSE1 | 4.59 | 0.659 |
OBSE2 | 4.34 | 0.706 | |
OBSE3 | 4.39 | 0.724 | |
| Average of OBSE | 4.44 | 0.696 |
Table 4.10 shows the descriptive statistics of all items on data of the variable organizational self-esteem. The table data shows that minimum and maximum value of all variables is within range 1 to 5 because the data for the items was collected on 5 points Likert scale (1-strongly agree to 5- strongly disagree). Examination of frequencies of all items also indicates that data is normally distributed.
To analyze the collected data Karl’s Pearson Correlation Coefficient Test was conducted. This technique is used to determine the association between two variables, and it also measures the direction and strength of that relationship. The r value is considered to interpret the strength of Pearson’s Correlation coefficients (Stephanie, 2015). There is a positive relationship if the value of r is more than zero and if it is less than zero it is more towards negative relationship. Siegle (2009) proposed that there is a significant correlation between the variables if the Sig. (2-tailed) value is less than or equal to 0.05, otherwise the correlation is insignificant.
Table 4.11: Pearson Correlation Coefficient Test
| PS | OE | CB | Med_OBSE | Mod_PW | Med_IT |
PS | 1 | .919** | .816** | .899** | .925** | .969** |
OE | .919** | 1 | .790** | .882** | .880** | .933** |
CB | .816** | .790** | 1 | .809** | .859** | .850** |
Med_OBSE | .899** | .882** | .809** | 1 | .908** | .933** |
Mod_PW | .925** | .880** | .859** | .908** | 1 | .952** |
Med_IT | .969** | .933** | .850** | .933** | .952** | 1 |
From the results of Pearson correlation analysis (Table 4.11), political skill and organizational engagement has very high positive correlation which is also significant (r= 0.919, p-value < 0.001). Hence H1 is supported which means the increase in political skills would lead to higher levels of organizational engagement.
Moreover, political skill and constructive behavior has high positive correlation which is also significant (r= 0.816, p-value < 0.001). Hence H2 is also supported which means the increase in political skills would also increase constructive behavior in employees.
To identify the factor structure CFA has also been performed. CFA is used to check the relationship among and within the constructs of the model.
For the evaluation of the model following tests were assessed.
Table 4.12: Construct Reliability and Validity
| Cronbach’s Alpha | Composite Reliability | Average Variance Extracted (AVE) |
CB | 0.727 | 0.879 | 0.784 |
IT | 0.914 | 0.959 | 0.921 |
OBSE | 0.689 | 0.864 | 0.761 |
OE | 0.881 | 0.918 | 0.738 |
PS | 0.855 | 0.912 | 0.776 |
PW | 0.836 | 0.924 | 0.859 |
The values obtained in Cronbach’s alpha and composite reliability are required to be assessed to evaluate the internal consistency and are attained when the values of reliability more than 0.7, which is the cut-off value (Field, 2009; Hair et al., 2016). Results in Table 4.12 clearly show that all the variables have a relationship with questions as all the scores exhibit values exceeding 0.7, hence meeting the criteria.
Convergent validity shows the correlation of the indicators of same variables with each other (Hair et al., 2016). It is achieved when the value of Average Variance Extracted (AVE) within the variables is equal to or greater than 0.5, which is the threshold value (Hair et al., 2016; Fornell and Larcker, 1981). The results show that AVE values for all variables in the model are exceeding 0.5, hence meeting the criteria, as shown in Table 5.
| CB | IT | OBSE | OE | PS | PW |
CB1 | 0.912 | 0.774 | 0.662 | 0.709 | 0.694 | 0.846 |
CB2 | 0.857 | 0.646 | 0.626 | 0.606 | 0.513 | 0.654 |
Med_IT1 | 0.749 | 0.957 | 0.854 | 0.859 | 0.791 | 0.882 |
Med_IT4 | 0.800 | 0.962 | 0.769 | 0.841 | 0.823 | 0.895 |
Med_OBSE1 | 0.561 | 0.643 | 0.845 | 0.583 | 0.564 | 0.604 |
Med_OBSE3 | 0.698 | 0.817 | 0.899 | 0.830 | 0.674 | 0.811 |
Mod_PW2 | 0.763 | 0.894 | 0.869 | 0.870 | 0.781 | 0.929 |
Mod_PW3 | 0.826 | 0.821 | 0.650 | 0.770 | 0.782 | 0.925 |
OE1 | 0.632 | 0.796 | 0.707 | 0.898 | 0.776 | 0.780 |
OE2 | 0.665 | 0.727 | 0.652 | 0.781 | 0.602 | 0.720 |
OE3 | 0.612 | 0.736 | 0.711 | 0.881 | 0.779 | 0.764 |
OE4 | 0.665 | 0.785 | 0.752 | 0.872 | 0.787 | 0.779 |
PS1 | 0.722 | 0.737 | 0.558 | 0.721 | 0.865 | 0.813 |
PS3 | 0.541 | 0.778 | 0.744 | 0.804 | 0.868 | 0.707 |
PS4 | 0.563 | 0.702 | 0.575 | 0.744 | 0.908 | 0.706 |
Hair et al. 2016 proposed that indicators having more than 0.6 outer loadings are considered to increase composite reliability (Hair et al., 2016). The above outer model testing (see Table 4.13) shows that all the variables have value more than 0.6, which is considered as acceptable as reliability criteria
Table 4.15: Discriminant Validity (Fornell– Larcker criterion)
FLC Method | ||||||
| CB | IT | OBSE | OE | PS | PW |
CB | 0.885 | |||||
IT | 0.808 | 0.960 | ||||
OBSE | 0.728 | 0.845 | 0.872 | |||
OE | 0.747 | 0.886 | 0.822 | 0.859 | ||
PS | 0.691 | 0.842 | 0.714 | 0.861 | 0.881 | |
PW | 0.857 | 0.926 | 0.821 | 0.886 | 0.843 | 0.927 |
To determine how distinct one construct is from other constructs, discriminant validity is employed. Discriminant validity must be greater than AVE for every measure. DV refers to degree to which a specific latent construct varies from other latent constructs (Duarte &Raposo, 2010) and measured using AVE as suggested by Fornell and Larcker, (1981). This was done by contrasting every paired construct’s squared relationship with the AVEs for every construct. Discriminant validity evaluates the levels of distinction of indicators of one variable from the other (Hair et al., 2016). According to the values observed in Table 4.14, the diagonal values of each variable are greater than the other values of variables. It means that all the constructs in this model representing the square roots of AVE achieve the criteria as none of the off-diagonal values exceeds the respective ones.
The structural model has been evaluated by assessing the path analysis. Each path related to the hypothesis developed in the research has been tested.
Table 4.16: Regression Analysis
R-square | R-square adjusted | |
CB | 0.757 | 0.755 |
OE | 0.830 | 0.829 |
A standard multiple linear regression is used to evaluate the strength of the relationship between the independent variables and dependent variables. R-squared is the percentage of the variance in the response variable that can be analyzed by the predictor variables.
Table 4.15 shows that R2 is 75.7% which indicates that the variation in the dependent variable i.e., constructive behavior explained by independent variables is 75.7 whereas the value of R2 0.830 % indicates that the variation in the dependent variable i.e., organizational engagement explained by independent variables is 83% and the model is strongly fit as it can also observed in table 4.15.
Figure 11 PLS-SEM Diagram
The adjusted R2 value is less than R2 which is 75.5% for constructive behavior and 82.9% for organizational engagement, so these values of dependent variables are explained by all independent variables.
Table 4.17: Results of Path Analysis
Hypotheses | Path | Beta | T-Values | P-Values | Remarks |
1 | PS -> OE | 0.404 | 11.898 | 0.000 | Accepted |
2 | PS -> CB | -0.292 | 5.388 | 0.000 | Accepted |
The values in Table 4.16 show the results of the path analysis. All 2 hypotheses have shown a positive and significant relationship and hence are accepted.
The H1 (Political Skills -> Organizational Engagement) shows that political skills have a major impact on organizational engagement and hence affects it positively and significantly (beta = 0.404, p-value = 0.000).
The H2 (Political Skills -> Constructive Behavior) shows that political skills have shown a major impact on constructive behavior and hence affects it negatively and significantly (beta = -0.292, p-value = 0.026).
Table 4.18: Mediation Analysis
Hypothesis | Path | Effect Type | Beta | T-value | P-value | Remarks |
3 | PS -> Med_OBSE -> CB | Indirect | 0.031 | 0.855 | 0.393 | Rejected |
4 | PS -> Med_IT -> CB | Indirect | 0.149 | 2.614 | 0.009 | Accepted |
In Table 4.17, mediation analysis has been shown in which 2 hypotheses are listed which both shows positive and significant relationship which is partial mediation and hence is accepted.
In H3 (PS -> Med_OBSE -> CB) shows that organizational based self-esteem has a significant effect between political skills and constructive behavior and acts as a bridge (beta = 0.031, p-value = 0.393), hence it does not mediates the relationship.
In H4 (PS -> Med_IT -> CB) shows that interpersonal trust has a significant effect between political skills and constructive behavior and acts as a bridge (beta = 0.149, p-value = 0.009), hence it positively mediates the relationship.
The direct relationships between the exogenous and moderator variables, as well as the relationship between the component of interaction and the intrinsic variable, were analyzed to analyze the moderating impacts. Moderating effects in the PLS model were measured using the Chin, Marcolin, and Newstead (1996) product indicator approach. Irrespective of the values of the path coefficient found in the direct relationship, the moderating influence hypothesis is supported if the resulting path coefficient is substantial (Baron and Kenny 1986). In order to prevent computation mistakes by reducing the connection among the product indicators and each of their parts, Smith and Sasaki (1979) advised standardizing indicator values before multiplying. This approach is particularly designed to quantify moderating effects. The two sets of standardized indicators for the predictor and moderator variables are then combined to produce all potential products. The hidden interaction variable is reflected by these product indications. To maximize the explained variance for the indicators and latent variables, the PLS technique is then utilized to calculate the latent variables as an accurate linear blend of its signals.
Table 4.19: Moderation Analysis
Hypothesis | Path | Beta | T-value | P-value | Remarks |
5 | Mod_PW x PS -> CB | -0.126 | 4.844 | 0.000 | Accepted |
6 | Mod_PW x PS -> OE | 0.008 | 0.435 | 0.664 | Rejected |
In Table 4.18, moderation analysis has been shown in which two hypotheses have shown in which one depicts negative but significant relationship while the other one has negative and insignificant relationship, so both the hypotheses are rejected.
In H5 (Mod_PW x PS -> CB) shows that political will has significant but negative effect between political skills and constructive behavior (beta = -0.126, p-value = 0.000), hence it weakens the relationship.
In H6 (Mod_PW x PS -> OE) shows that political will has insignificant and positive effect between political skills and organizational engagement (beta = 0.008, p-value = 0.664), hence it weakens the relationship.
The research is conducted to analyze the impact of political skills on organizational engagement and constructive behaviors of employees. Based on gender differences the causes of politics, trust, commitment and engagement are different in organization. Both the genders have sound understanding about the importance and significance of politics and the role of political behavior as a social process. Though, they have different angles of justifying their political perceptions and behaviors.
The results obtained suggest that each individual has different opinions and judgements for causation of any event, and this aligned with the Attribution Theory. There are two processes that are interrelated with each other i.e. social learning and relationships of social power, which explain the causes of gender differences (House, 1981), in the approach of political behavior and environment in terms of the interrelated context of social learning and societal power relations. To identify the gender differences in political perceptions and behaviors, the positive and negative political approaches also provide aid in this regard (Hochwarter, 2011).
The results and findings reveal that males perceive organizational politics in a positive way and look at the bright side and consequences, such as solving problems, achieving objectives and higher levels of organizational engagement. Conversely, females perceive organizational politics in a negative way and look at the dark side and consequences, such as lack of trust, conflicts, tension, stress, frustration and unprofessional behavior.
Men take this political behavior in their favor as compared to women, which is also explained by the Social Exchange Theory. Women have also started accepting political behavior because these powerful exchange processes are visible to them. The Attribution Theory is concerned, it gives insight that the difference in behavior among both the genders is due to the self-perception process that’s males and females have different views and beliefs about political behavior.
The quantitative analysis was conducted to identify the relationship among constructs which impact the organizational engagement and constructive behavior in the employees of banking sector. The results of descriptive statistics reveal that Constructive behavior (CB) has a mean value of 4.48 which is greater among all constructs that means employees of the organization show a positive behavior and resolve things by discussing the issues. The Organizational based self-esteem (OBSE) has scored a mean value of 4.44 which ranks second among the factors and implies employees having high organizational self-esteem regarded themselves as important, worthy, effective and meaningful for the organization and works in the benefit of it. When employees have a positive attitude and mindset then it enhances their efficiency which eventually results in acquiring workplace goals and positive relationships between employees.
Organizational engagement (OE) has the lowest mean of 4.36 which explains that organization should look at the political matters, provide justice and build positive perception in employees so that they can reciprocate with high organizational engagement. Political skills (PS) rank third and have a mean value of 4.43 which suggest that employees are engaged in politics and political behaviors. Interpersonal trust (IT) ranks fourth and has a mean value of 4.42 which implies the existence of trust among employees under political behaviors. Lastly, Political will (PW) ranks fifth on the list and score a mean value of 4.38 which implies that somehow employees have desire to act politically to engage in organizational activities and to achieve personal goals as well.
The results of the Karl’s Pearson Coefficient Correlation analysis show that higher the levels of political skills in the employees of the organization, higher will be the levels of organizational engagement and constructive behavior of the employees. By adopting politics in a fair way organization can achieve goals and employees can get attached and connected to it in positive way.
CFA was also conducted and the results reveal that the constructs for the current study are reliable and valid, and the model proposed is strongly fit.
After having the literature review, the first relation devised was between political skills and organizational engagement (H1). According to Kahn (1990), employees use political and powerful motives to demonstrate their engagement with organization because they feel secure in their career and status by being politically skilled. So the findings reveal that by engaging in political practices, employees feel empowered and these political skills positively and significantly affect the organizational engagement (see Table 9). According to Ferris et al. (2007), by using political skills employees understand each other in an efficient manner and utilize it in a positive behavior to acquire the personal and organizational goals (Arrowsmith & Parker, 2013; Kidron & Peretz, 2018). So, the political skills positively and significantly affect constructive behavior (H2) as results shown in Table 9.
The role of organizational based self-esteem as a mediator between political skills and constructive behavior (H3) is also supported as shown in Table 10 which indicated that politically skilled employees have control over workplace, and they have trust in their skills which they use to retain a positive and constructive behavior by enhancing OBSE. It is also in support of the research by Kimura, 2015 who mentioned that political competence influences employees’ extra-role behaviors and task performance in a favorable way. The findings have suggested that OBSE shows partial mediation to create constructive behavior in employees. On the other hand, interpersonal trust also acts as a mediator between political skills and constructive behavior (H4) which is also supported as shown in Table 10 and indicates that politically skilled employees have trust in their capabilities, and they build trust among the other employees and even employer which creates a positive and constructive behavior. It is also in accordance with the past research by Kegged (2012). According to the research the total amount of perceived responsibility for work output is a consequence of both work engagement and started task interdependency. The result has suggested that interpersonal trust also shows partial mediation to create constructive behavior in employees.
It was found that political will negatively moderates the relationship between political skills and constructive behavior as shown in Table 11 which rejects H5. The findings are not in accordance with the past study by (De Clercq et al., 2023). The study demonstrated that political will could have a positive impact on their inclination to stay with the company. Similarly, the political will of employees negatively moderates the relationship between political skills and organizational behavior, which also rejects H6. The results are not in accordance with the past research conducted by studies by K. J. Harris et al. (2007), which found that political will may have an impact on productivity. The results suggested that employees should not build a desire to engage in politics to achieve their objectives.
This study suggests that employees should involve in politics and political behaviors in order to achieve organizational goals which will favor the employer and employees as well. As per Attribution theory and Social exchange theory, men and women have different perceptions of the political behaviors which can cause conflict between both genders, so the employees should not intentionally involve in this practice. The politics can only be in favor of organization and employees in order to avoid any conflict and build positive relationships, organizational engagement and constructive behaviors in employees.
This research aims to investigate the impact of political skills on organizational behavior and constructive behavior in employees of banking sector of Pakistan. Organizational bases self-esteem and interpersonal trust were considered as mediators between political skills and constructive behavior. Moreover, political will acts as a moderator between political skills and organizational engagement and political skills and constructive behavior. The study conducted by following a quantitative approach. For collecting data a questionnaire survey was designed, and 550 responses were collected online from employees of banking sector in which 500 were valid and used for analysis. To analyze the data, descriptive statistics and correlation analysis was conducted on IBM SPSS software. The SEM technique has also been used with the help of SmartPLS 4 software. There are a total of 6 hypotheses, of which 2 are direct and show a positive and significant relationship and are hence accepted, while the 3rd and 4th hypotheses analyze the mediation relationship of OBSE and interpersonal trust between political skills and constructive behavior, which also show a highly positive and significant impact. Moreover, to investigate the moderation effect of political will on political skills and organizational engagement and political skills and constructive behavior, a 5th and 6th hypotheses have been analyzed, which shows negative moderation relationships.
The findings show that political skills are noteworthy part of the organizations, which is normally perceived as a negative factor. However, this study assessed that political skills have positive impact on the organization if perceived and practice fairly. The findings reveal that having interpersonal trust in employees builds confidence in them and they behave constructively and reciprocate in a positive way to resolve the conflicts. Also, OBSE creates sense of dignity in employees and hence they work for the betterment of organization by using their political tactics in an efficient manner. On the other hand, the results suggest that employees should not deliberately create a will to engage in political activities or have a negative mindset which will results in stress and frustrations among employees.
The theoretical underpinnings were considered which were required to understand the causes and effects of constructive politics from the literatures of psychology, organizational behavior, and strategy because organizational politics are a cross-disciplinary field. In light of this, it is expected that this study will be regarded as a crucial step towards comprehending constructive politics in decision-making. The results of the study have demonstrated the complexity of the relationship between diversity and constructive politics as well as the potential benefit of constructive politics in forecasting quick and successful decisions. An opinion is that this study is merely a preliminary effort to comprehend the function of constructive politics, and it leaves more questions than it does solutions. More conceptual and empirical research may be motivated by this, which could have a significant practical impact on the understanding of how constructive politics could improve decision-making. It is hoped that this research will fulfil this role.
Since the political viewpoint on organizations has grown in significance, it is necessary for us to be able to accurately describe the attitudes, behaviors, and productivity of people who operate in these kinds of settings. Mintzberg (1983, 1985) proposed that political skill and will were necessary for organizations to survive and function effectively in such environments. According to Pfeffer (1981), there is a best fit between an individual’s political skill and their inclination for political contexts, and expanding the understanding of the political skill construct ought to be the top focus of future research. In an effort to address these earlier arguments, this conceptualization of political skill in organizations reports on recent efforts to clarify this term and offers a model to direct future study in this crucial field.
According to research on the political environment in complex organizations, it’s important to pay attention to what sets off each employee’s unique political behavior at work (Buchanan, 2008; Elbanna et al., 2014; Valle and Perrewée, 2000). The current study of some of the particular antecedents of political behavior in public sector organizations was motivated by the paucity of literature regarding individual responses to the political climate at work (as highlighted in Dipboye and Foster, 2002; Liu et al., 2010). This study investigated some of the ways in which individual engagement in political behavior within local government organizations is influenced by the organizational political environment as a contextual antecedent, as explained in Hypothesis 1. The literature on public management has not included a lot of study on the topic of organizational political climate (Landells and Albrecht, 2013), and survey and interview data are especially scarce.
This study adds to the body of literature by presenting empirical data on the impact that political acumen has on an individual before it has an impact on others. The results of this study support the claim made by Ferris et al. (2007) that political competence initiates the intrapsychic process of developing one’s own personal resources, resulting in favorable self-evaluations that influence attitudes towards one’s work, including engagement with the organization and job. The results demonstrate that political skill and work and organization involvement are significantly mediated by positive self-evaluations, such as OBSE and organizational identification. These results offer empirical evidence in favor of the understanding of political skill and self-evaluations as personal resources, whereby the former is crucial to the acquisition of the latter (Ferris et al., 2007; Hobfoll, 1989). The study reveals that politically skilled individuals exhibit job engagement due to high self-esteem and organizational engagement due to high identification with the organization. These unique mediating roles of OBSE and organizational identification support these findings. This demonstrates that political skill is a potent social competency that can significantly assist workers in developing a more positive internal vision of themselves and in exhibiting participation on several levels. Learning and using political savvy at work can directly support this goal, since studies view employee participation as a critical component of employee well-being (Bakker and Demerouti, 2014).
With an emphasis on self-evaluations as mediating processes, the study aimed to advance the as-yet-unexplored link between political skill and job and organization involvement. The findings demonstrated a positive relationship between political acumen and job and organizational engagement. Moreover, political skill raised organizational engagement through organizational identification and improved job engagement through OBSE. These results showed that political skill, as a personal resource, makes it easier to obtain important resources like organizational identification and OBSE, which adequately meet employees’ psychological requirements and are therefore essential to their work and involvement with the organization.
It is necessary to highlight the limitations of this research. This research has been conducted in Pakistan, which shows that future researchers are invited to conduct this research in other cities or countries. A limited number of sample size was evaluated in this study. Moreover, a panel study was not conducted to examine the impact of political skills in different time intervals and zones. This study is generalized. Lastly, a comparison of private and public sector, was conducted but only in limited geographic boundaries.
As this research was conducted in major cities of Pakistan only, future researchers are invited to conduct this research in other cities or countries. A huge sample size can be used to further evaluate the big picture. Moreover, a panel study should also be conducted to examine the impact of political skills in different time intervals and zones. This study is generalized; it can be conducted by focusing on any specific sector. To further expand the research, the researchers should use the current framework and conduct a study on any specific sector and re-evaluate political will as a moderator, which resulted contrary to the expectations and then determine the difference in results of the moderator. Lastly, a comparison of private and public sector, different geographies and sectors can be conducted to get a wider picture.
Although first studies have yielded reliable results, further study must continue to employ and validate the 18-item PSI (Ferris, Treadway, et al., 2005; Semadar et al., 2006). In addition to self-report, future research must gather measurements of political skill from additional sources. Semadar (2004) discovered a substantial correlation between employee self-reports and supervisor assessments of political skill. Finally, the characteristics of political competence and their projected relationship to organizational phenomena require further refinement.
Its is not only about the issues with the construct validity of political skill, but it is also considered that there are issues with the vast range of social or interpersonal constructs that have developed in the literature throughout time. Ferris et al. (2002) talked about the multiplicity of social constructs and how each one needs to define its own identity and distinctiveness more clearly while also admitting that it may covariate to some extent with other conceptions. Concepts like social intelligence, social skill, emotional intelligence, social competency, self-monitoring, and interpersonal savvy, to mention a few, are all still evolving and naturally overlap one another.
While each measure certainly retains its unique identity, there’s a good chance that they also share some common construct domain space. According to Ferris et al. (2002), numerous of the above items are reflective of a higher-order construct that may be called as social effectiveness because they all have a cognitive understanding or perceptiveness component in addition to a behavioral action element utilized to carry out on the prior knowledge. Similar claims regarding the rise of social constructs were made by Hall and Bernieri (2001), who employed the term interpersonal sensitivity as the categorical or higher-order term.
The important thing to remember is that it is required to investigate some of these constructs’ links empirically. Since social and political skills are occasionally used interchangeably in discussions, it is likely most important to show that political talent is distinct from social skill. According to researchers in this field, political and social skills are actually distinct from one another (Luthans et al., 1988; Peled, 2000).
According to Peled (2000), social skill is defined as “the ease and comfort of communication between leaders and their peers, superiors, clients, and employees”. As an alternative, Peled proposed that political skill is defined as “the manager’s capacity to influence his or her interpersonal relationships with subordinates, supervisors, clients, and employees in order to guarantee the project’s ultimate success”. Future studies should provide empirical support for these assertions and show that social skill and political skill are essentially distinct phenomena, even though they may be somewhat connected.
Measurement tools for social skill have been developed as a result of Riggio and colleagues’ intriguing work on the subject (Riggio, 1986; Riggio & Riggio, 2001). Studies ought to look at the relationship between these metrics and the PSI’s measure of political skill. Moreover, it could be a good idea to concentrate on additional construct differentiation at the level of fundamental measurements, where political skill construct dimensions are distinct from social skill construct aspects.
This work adds some significant theoretical insights to the body of literature. First of all, it clarifies the connection between political acumen and worker participation that previous research overlooked. More specifically, this study offers a more streamlined assessment of the correlation between political ability and employee engagement outcomes by isolating the job from organizational involvement—as Saks (2006) indicated. The results show that those who use their political acumen at work also exhibit higher levels of job satisfaction and organizational involvement. In accordance with employee engagement theories, the association between political skill and work and organization engagement can be understood (Bakker and Demerouti, 2007; Kahn, 1990). According to Kahn (1990), when workplace interactions, interpersonal relationships, and personal traits successfully satisfy the psychological demands of availability, safety, and meaningfulness, they can promote employee engagement. These psychological demands are critical for job and organization engagement, and they are positively met by the combined influence of social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking skill, and apparent sincerity (Kahn, 1990).
In light of Kapoutsis’s (2016) recent research, scholars should take into account the contribution of the comparatively understudied variables of political will and political prudence to decision politics in order to enhance the practice of political behavior and reduce its associated risks. Fifth, while broaden-and-build theory and upper echelons theory are comparatively widely recognized theoretical pillars in the literature on strategic management and psychology, positive organizational behavior and both theories are understudied in the field of political behavior in general and constructive politics in particular. Therefore, in order to provide a fuller knowledge of constructive politics in organizations, more study based on these theories is required.
The findings of this research can be used by the managers to deeply understand the political perceptions, behaviors and practices of the employees. Managers should aware of the motives behind the political behavior and their difference among males and female employees and analyze them to avoid any conflict. Moreover, managers can find better solutions and make efficient rules, regulations and policies which can be properly implemented and political behaviors can contribute to achieve organizational goals. This research highlights the negative perception of politics in women, so the managers need to foster positivity in them so the working environment will remain positive.
Acquiring contextually specialized information through work experience, mentoring connections, and various other growth opportunities is a prerequisite for developing political skills. The kinds of personal learning that Lankau and Scandura (2002) addressed are reflective of this contextually relevant knowledge and are conveyed, they claimed, through mentoring relationships. That is, there are a lot of cues, stimuli, bits of information, and bits of tacit knowledge that can be ingested in any work place. But since people only have so much capacity to digest information, and as not all of this contextual data is equally crucial to an individual’s efficacy, some sort of system is required to help identify and highlight the pertinent information while ignoring the rest.
The advice given by seasoned mentors can pinpoint and highlight particularly significant contextual details and offer the experiential growth necessary for people to strengthen their political talent. Since one would anticipate that political ability would grow with time as a result of experience and contextual information, mentoring and developmental opportunities such as this one should offer helpful means of fostering the growth of political skill.
Managers must comprehend the causes, effects, and variables that clarify how political behavior might be utilized productively in the organizational setting because it is so common in these settings (Liu et al., 2010). Drawing from the current investigation, two things are suggested.
Initially, supervisors require a more profound comprehension of people’s political conduct and attitudes towards political conduct, which can be obtained through micro-level research (Buchanan, 2008; Kacmar and Ferris, 1991; Perrewé et al., 2000). Managers need to understand that political behavior can result from a political climate, which is one facet of a variety of organizational climate types. Management, however, also need to be conscious of the ways in which men and women view political behavior differently and the reasons behind it. The main lesson to be learned from these variations is that managers must read political behavior in light of gender motivations and comprehend how gender variances in organizational commitment and trust relate to politics.
Second, managers will gain from realizing that political behavior is not always bad or harmful and can even help achieve personal goals and objectives (Liu et al., 2010) or organizational goals and objectives (Buchanan, 2008). In keeping with the study’s conclusions, managers ought to support and enhance women’s political acumen. This socialization for political behavior may have a variety of important purposes, such as securing resources, advancing ideas, achieving individual objectives, enhancing one’s or one’s group’s reputation, creating networks, and strengthening relationships. Both male and female managers need to be politically astute in order to control the political atmosphere within their companies and ensure that workers feel positively about their work (Bacharach, 2005).
While the design precludes drawing inferences regarding causality, it would seem logical for organizations to improve self-efficacy beliefs in order to improve task performance, given previous research showing self-efficacy as a predictor of subsequent performance (Stajkovic & Sommer, 2000). Second, improving political acumen could be one way to improve contextual performance. The political skill construct’s proponents have proposed process-focused training methods that include behavior modelling, developmental simulations, and theater-based instruction (Ferris, Treadway, et al., 2005). In summary, the study only allowed to draw conclusions regarding correlations; however, when combined with other data, the results seemed to indicate that both task and contextual performance may be improved by raising political skill and self-efficacy beliefs.
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Questionnaire
APPENDIX 1
This survey is being conducted to The role of political skills on organizational engagement and constructive behavior. This survey is only for the academic purpose and the personal identity will be kept confidential. Thank you for your valuable time and opinion.
Company size | pSmall pMedium p Large | Designation: |
|
Gender | p Male p Female |
| |
Age Group | p 18-25 p 26-35 p 36-50 p Above 50 | Qualification | p Graduation p Master p PhD p Other |
Experience in Organization | p Less than 1Year p 1-5Years p 6-10Years p Above 10 Years | Annual Income | p < PKR10,000 p PKR 10,000 – PKR 24,999 p PKR 25,000 – PKR 49,999 p PKR 50,000 – PKR 74,999 p PKR 75,000 – PKR 99,999 |
Section II
Sr. # |
| Definitely Not | Probably Not | Possibly | Very Probably | Definitely |
1 | Do you think your organization has organizational Politics? | | | | |
|
2 | Are political skills Positive and good for organizational engagement and constructive behavior of employees? | | | | |
|
3 | Are political skills negative and bad for organizational engagement and constructive behavior of employees? | | | | |
|
4 | Is engaging in politics ethical or unethical in organization?
| | | | |
|
5 | Do you believe that things like promotions and bonuses are primarily based on merit or do positive awards go to the person who is most politically savvy?
| | | | |
|
Reference: (Soares, 2018) | ||||||
6 | Do you think political skills impact employee’s organizational engagement?
| | | | |
|
Reference : (Syed & Khan, 2015) | ||||||
7 | Do you think political skills of organization can impact constructive behavior of employees?
| | | | |
|
8 | Do you think political interpersonal trust of organization can affect employee’s organizational engagement? | | | | |
|
Reference: (Ahmad-Mughal et al., 2017) | ||||||
9 | Do you think interpersonal trust of organization can affect constructive behavior of employee? | | | | |
|
Reference: (Ahmad-Mughal et al., 2017; Syed & Khan, 2015) | ||||||
10 | Do you think political will of organization can affect employee’s organizational engagement? | | | | |
|
11 | Do you think political will of organization can affect constructive behavior of employee? | | | | |
|
Reference: (Mishra & Kodwani, 2019) | ||||||
12 | Do you think political skills can affect Organizational based self-esteem of employee? | | | | |
|
13 | Do you think political skills can affect constructive behavior of employees? | | | | |
|
Reference:(Rice & Cotton-Nessler, 2022) | ||||||
14 | Do you think political skills of organization can affect employee loyalty? | | | | |
|
15 | Do you think political skills of organization can affect employee satisfaction? | | | | |
|
Reference: (Hochwarter et al., 2007) | ||||||
APPENDIX II
List of Sample Cities
S.No | City Name |
1 | Karachi |
2 | Lahore |
3 | Islamabad |
4 | Rawalpindi |
5 | Quetta |
6 | Peshawar |
7 | Faisalabad |
8 | Hyderabad |
9 | Wah Cant. |
10 | Sukkur |
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