Research Paper on:
Office Politics And Power Plays

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
the two together and called them political maneuvering, which "refers the interpersonal arm wrestling, horse-trading, and power plays that exist in most work organizations" (Osborn, 1998). Some of the actions  that are lumped under the title of office politics are using covert tactics to advance, intimidation, communicating indirectly, being cautious about telling the truth, hiding vulnerability, playing for favors or  currying favor and controlling other people through psychological manipulation (Osborn, 1998; Toupin, 2001). An example would be an employee trying to always look good. Ambition is one of the  drivers for this play, the employee does everything for the effect of looking good. A supervisor, for example, may tell employees that he will take only positive messages to his  boss and further, everyone is mandated never to say a negative thing about him, the manager or the boss or they will be fired (Osborn, 1998). This is a  political play and also a misuse of power. People lose their jobs and get passed over for promotion all because of office politics and the individuals inability to deal effectively  with them. They exist because business itself is a competitive game that incorporates everything from friendly tests of skill to warlike combat (Osborn, 1998). The need to survive is  one of the catalysts for office politics and the expanding global market is another reason office politics emerge (Osborn, 1998). The corporation is always involved in trying to outdo  the competition and managers and employees are in constant competition for recognition and rewards (Osborn, 1998). Toupin suggests that "may of the political situations that occur within a corporation are  a result of this growth and change" (2001). Fighting the politics will only have adverse effects, each person needs to learn how to handle them so as not to be