Political skill, participation in decision-making and organizational commitment
| Date | 05 June 2017 |
| Pages | 740-749 |
| Published date | 05 June 2017 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-10-2015-0268 |
| Author | Geir Thompson,Robert Buch,Bård Kuvaas |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Global HRM |
Political skill, participation in
decision-making and
organizational commitment
Geir Thompson
Department of Leadership and Organizational Behaviour,
BI Norwegian Business School, Oslo, Norway
Robert Buch
Oslo Business School, Oslo, Norway and Akershus University College,
Oslo, Norway, and
Bård Kuvaas
Department of Leadership and Organizational Behaviour,
BI Norwegian Business School, Oslo, Norway
Abstract
Purpose –Research has demonstrated that political skill is associated with leadership effectiveness.
However, the field still lacks understanding of how political skill makes leaders more effective. The purpose of
this paper is to contribute to the political skill literature by investigating a specific mechanism through which
political skill may relate to follower commitment.
Design/methodology/approach –The study population was drawn from 148 supervisors and 988
subordinates from top, middle and operational levels in the business organizations.
Findings –Structural equation model analysis showed that political skill was positively related to
Participation in decision making (PDM) and PDM was positively related to organizational commitment (OC).
Furthermore, political skill indirectly predicted OC via PDM. In addition, the direct relationship between
political skill and OC was not significant, suggesting “full”mediation. Finally, politically skilled leaders’
desire to encourage followers to participate in decision making was amplified by their ability to build strong,
beneficial alliances and coalitions, resulting in increased social capital and even greater influence.
Practical implications –Involving subordinates in decision processes is likely to inspire trust and
confidence, promote credibility, help develop a favorable relationship with the leader and enhance pride of
participation in the organization.
Originality/value –The findings in the present study are of greatimportance for future research on political
skill. It may change the approach for testing the validity of the theory by focusing on influence tactics.
This approach will, in the authors’view, constitute the future research avenue for research on political skill.
Keywords Quantitative, Organizational commitment, Political skill, Participation in decision-making
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
In the early 1980s, Pfeffer (1981) and Mintzberg (1983) argued that organizations are
inherently political arenas, where the acquisition and control of resources is paramount to
the possession of power. Therefore, to be effective in political environments,
organizational members need to possess political skill, defined as the exercise of
influence through persuasion, manipulation and negotiation. After this initial work,
research on the concept of political skill laid dormant until 1999, when Ferris and his
colleagues captured the essential nature of the construct. They defined political skill 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”(Ferris et al., 2005, p. 291). According to Brouer et al. (2013), politically skilled
organizational members combine four skills. First, social astuteness, which refers to the
ability to interpret and understand the behavior of others and appreciate the potential of
Personnel Review
Vol. 46 No. 4, 2017
pp. 740-749
© Emerald PublishingLimited
0048-3486
DOI 10.1108/PR-10-2015-0268
Received 19 October 2015
Revised 17 April 2016
Accepted 7 June 2016
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0048-3486.htm
740
PR
46,4
To continue reading
Request your trial