Can Office Gossip Actually Help You?

I’m pretty sure if you ask anyone in any work environment what the general consensus is in regards to office gossip, they’d tell you that you’re better off without it. Gossiping, or complaining to your coworkers always leads to your boss finding out, in addition to giving you a bad reputation.

I’d be surprised if anyone thought otherwise, and apparently, a new study does in fact prove otherwise. The Journal of Applied Social Psychology has just conducted a study that states that office gossip can in fact motivate people to follow group norms and to work harder in a professional setting.

The study was conducted at the University of Amsterdam. 121 undergraduate students were analyzed to find out what their motives to gossiping were. Results found that office gossiping can be used to warn colleagues about lazy coworkers and influence slackers to start pulling their weight in the office.

Surprising? I’d say so.

Ally | Elite.

Photo Credit: Getty Images