Drawing on both social exchange theory and impression management theory, this study sought to explain how perception of organizational politics (POP) influences organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) through two contrary psychological processes. We proposed that through the mediation of job satisfaction, POP has an inhibiting effect on OCB; through the mediation of careerism, POP has a nourishing effect on OCB. Data were obtained from 393 police officers and their colleagues from a city police department in northern Taiwan. Results from structural equation modelling (SEM) revealed that the relationship between POP and OCB was negatively mediated by job satisfaction and positively mediated by careerism. Such antithetical psychological processes imply that employees may experience psychological dilemmas over the performance of OCB when they perceive their organization as political. Implications for theory and future research are discussed.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of supervisor gossip in the workplace. This paper proposes a hypothetical model in which supervisor gossip has an effect on leader-member exchange (LMX), in turn resulting in perceived supervisor ostracism among subordinates. Design/methodology/approach A dyadic research design was applied to collect data from Taiwanese employees. Supervisors participated in a survey containing measures of supervisor gossip and control variables, whereas subordinates responded to a questionnaire on LMX, perceived supervisor ostracism, and control variables. Findings The results indicated that positive supervisor gossip significantly affected LMX. Furthermore, healthy LMX reduced subordinates’ perceptions of supervisor ostracism. Research limitations/implications All participants were recruited in Taiwan, which is a limitation for generalising the research findings. Future studies should investigate multiple societies of various cultural profiles. Practical implications To improve the quality of the supervisor-subordinate relationship, supervisors should adopt a positive informal communication style, and organisations should provide supervisors with information regarding the implications of workplace gossip, illustrating the substantial benefits of positive gossip and the potential drawbacks of negative gossip. Originality/value The present study highlighted the role of supervisor workplace gossip in the field of leadership and empirically investigated the impact of supervisor gossip on subordinates’ reactions.

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Building on the research in positive psychology, the current study examines the impact of employee savouring on building perceived job performance and tested the extent to which an individual positive affectivity moderated the relationship of savouring and job performance. Using survey responses from 357 salespeople in six Taiwanese insurance companies, the results of hierarchical regression analyses show that savouring is positively related to perceived job performance. In addition, the relationship between savouring and perceived job performance was moderated by employees' positive affectivity. The implications of these results and the limitations of the research are discussed.

Although researchers have confirmed the relationship between positive leadership styles and work-family enrichment, benevolent leadership has received little attention. Drawing from the concept of mood contagion, this study explores the underlying mechanism between benevolent leadership and work-family enrichment. Using a survey of 459 employees, across 36 supervisors and their work groups, and multilevel structural equation modelling, this study revealed that benevolent leadership is positively associated with work-family enrichment via cross-level paths. The results indicated that benevolent leadership is associated with positive group affective tone, which further predicts subordinates' work-family enrichment. Moreover, work engagement mediates the relationship between positive group affective tone and work-family enrichment. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.