Murder on the Workfloor: A Descriptive Study on the Relationship of Character Assassination and the Job Performance of the Employees in Hospital X

Abstract

Studies have long argued that politics exist in every organization. Theoretical arguments emphasized that politics often obstruct normal organizational processes and damage productivity and performance on individual and organizational level. Some political acts, such as character assassination, are often considered dysfunctional to the organization. This study aimed to find out the relationship between character assassination and the job performance of the employees in Hospital X. Specifically, it aimed to find the types of character assassination prevalent in the organization, the employees job performance, and the relationship of the frequency or intensity of character assassination with job performance. Twenty-one staff members and four supervisors of Hospital X volunteered for the study. It was found that the use of degrading labels is the tactic most prevalent in the organization, and that most employees have commendable job performance ratings. Using the Kendall Tau a strong positive correlation between the frequency (1=0.132) and job performance, and intensity (t=o.O4O) and job performance was found. Future studies to a larger sample or a different organizational nature is suggested. It is also recommended that succeeding studies focus on the coping mechanisms of the victims and relate this with job performance. Gender, as a moderating variable, is also suggested to be further studied on as links between moderating variables and character assassination may be present. Ethnographic longitudinal research is also suggested for future studies as it ensures that the intricacies of character assassination will be discovered without having to subject participants to a possibly unethical study. This will also allow the researcher to learn about the organizational culture and possibly look at the role culture plays on organizational character assassination.