{"id":689553,"date":"2026-03-24T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/?p=689553"},"modified":"2026-03-24T13:22:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T13:22:10","slug":"why-workplace-gossip-can-bring-teams-closer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2026\/03\/24\/why-workplace-gossip-can-bring-teams-closer\/","title":{"rendered":"Why workplace gossip can bring teams closer"},"content":{"rendered":"

\ud83d\udcac The downsides of workplace gossip are broadly <\/strong>acknowledged \u2014 gossiping destroys trust, reduces morale, and can lead to bullying.<\/strong> Though it\u2019s generally discouraged, a study<\/a> by professor Rebecca Greenbaum at Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations highlights how gossiping about your boss can actually strengthen bonds between colleagues\u2026 and increase cooperation. <\/p>\n

\n

The real tea\u2026<\/p>\n

The study surveyed hundreds of participants who reported that they had gossiped about their boss, asking how they acted afterwards.<\/strong> Unsurprisingly, employees reported experiencing feelings of guilt and shame, and were likely to avoid their boss. The twist came when the employees also reported feeling an improved sense of belonging with their colleagues.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: This is not your cue to go and bad-mouth your boss behind their back.<\/strong> The study only provides one explanation for why employees can feel inclined to engage in gossip, Greenbaum said in a conversation with the Philadelphia Inquirer<\/a>. Where it works best is when employees find \u201ca common enemy\u201d in an undiplomatic boss, with gossip helping to foster emotional closeness and a shared sense of survival. At the same time, talking badly about your boss may stir up negative emotions that serve to protect us, but could ultimately harm productivity \u2014 prompting Greenbaum to urge employees to heed these feelings and \u201ccourse correct.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Positive gossip?<\/p>\n

A 2023 <\/strong>study<\/a><\/strong> from the journal Group & Organization Management supports positive gossip<\/strong>, with researchers surveying South Korean nurses and finding that they largely appreciated talking positively about their managers and employers. According to the study, this type of workplace gossip can be empowering for employees and could lower voluntary employee turnover rates while increasing an employer\u2019s effectiveness. <\/p>\n

Verbal or emotional abuse takes the cake as the type of boss behavior most likely to push employees toward gossip as some form of relief.<\/strong> The Rutgers study finds that abusive bosses enhance employees\u2019 willingness to support one another and bond through gossip. While they may harbor negative feelings toward their boss, the upside is that workers are more collaborative as a result, which \u201cincreases team cooperation that could aid in other important tasks.\u201d <\/p>\n

Daniel Boscaljon, co-founder of workplace wellness program the Healthy Relationship Academy, also <\/strong>underscores<\/a><\/strong> the positive role of workplace gossip<\/strong>, noting that in \u201coverly controlling and chilled environments, the presence of any communication can be healthier than none at all.\u201d He further explains that \u201cunofficial or back-channeled communication about employees\u201d can lead people to support a co-worker who is having a difficult time.<\/p>\n

This collaborative spirit carries over into more casual interactions between workers.<\/strong> Called in sick on the day of an important presentation? A coworker is more likely to step in for you. Need a fellow co-worker to bounce creative ideas off? They\u2019ll be more than happy to help. This shared sense of connection and bond helps minimize counterproductive behavior, paving the way for stronger teamwork and more seamless cooperation. One way to get there? Taking a glass-half-full approach to an inevitable workplace behavior \u2014 gossip.<\/p>\n

(** Tap or click the headline above to read this story with all of the links <\/strong>to our background as well as external sources.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Can gossiping about your boss actually yield positive results? It seems so<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":689554,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_primary_brand":0,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7215],"tags":[928,633,638,1120],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"class_list":["post-689553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-for-your-commute","tag-employment","tag-enterprisepm","tag-for-your-commute","tag-office-life","wpautop","entry"],"acf":{"mongo_id":"a1d16073-7ff6-4f69-be6e-102c403cad7a","order":"3","is_powered_by":false,"story_type":"1","photo_url":"https:\/\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/1092.jpg","photo_position":"above","homepage_title":"","full_issue_title":"The unexpected upsides of workplace gossip","related_issue":[689548],"teaser":"Can gossiping about your boss actually yield positive results? 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