The Mediating Role of Forgiveness in the Effect of Organizational Gossip on Organizational Revenge

Öz

The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between organizational gossip perceptions and revenge intentions of employees working in the health sector and to determine the mediating role of forgiveness in this relationship. In addition, it was investigated whether the variables of organizational gossip, revenge and forgiveness differed significantly according to demographic characteristics. The study was structured according to the quantitative research design, and the data were collected through a questionnaire. Within the scope of the research, the data obtained from 385 health workers working in a public hospital in Kayseri province were analyzed. The findings show that work-related/non-work-related gossip has a positive and significant effect on revenge intention. In particular, non-work-related gossip has been found to have a stronger effect. The "forgiveness of others" dimension of forgiveness had a negative and significant effect on the intention of revenge; it has been determined that it plays an intermediary role in the relationship between gossip and revenge. The research also revealed that as the level of education and seniority increased, the tendency to forgive increased, and the intention to get revenge decreased. It is also a noteworthy finding that the tendency to get revenge is lower in female employees. The study examines the relationships between these concepts in the context of the health sector with a holistic approach by considering the variables of organizational gossip, forgiveness, and revenge together, and makes original contributions to the literature.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Organizational Gossip
• Organizational Revenge
• Forgiveness
• Organizational Behavior

Örgütsel Dedikodunun Örgütsel İntikam Üzerindeki Etkisinde Affediciliğin Aracı Rolü

Öz

Bu araştırmanın amacı, sağlık sektöründe görev yapan çalışanların örgütsel dedikodu algıları ile intikam niyetleri arasındaki ilişkiyi incelemek ve bu ilişkide affediciliğin aracılık rolünü belirlemektir. Ayrıca örgütsel dedikodu, intikam ve affedicilik değişkenlerinin demografik özelliklere göre anlamlı farklılık gösterip göstermediği de araştırılmıştır. Çalışma, nicel araştırma desenine göre yapılandırılmış ve veriler anket yoluyla toplanmıştır. Araştırma kapsamında, Kayseri ilinde bir kamu hastanesinde görev yapan 385 sağlık çalışanından elde edilen veriler analiz edilmiştir. Elde edilen bulgular işle ilgili olan/olmayan dedikodunun intikam niyeti üzerinde pozitif ve anlamlı bir etkiye sahip olduğunu göstermektedir. Özellikle işle ilgili olmayan dedikodunun daha güçlü bir etkisi olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Affediciliğin “başkalarını affetme” boyutu ise intikam niyeti üzerinde negatif ve anlamlı bir etki göstermiş; dedikodu ile intikam arasındaki ilişkide aracı rol üstlendiği belirlenmiştir. Araştırma ayrıca, eğitim düzeyi ile kıdem süresi arttıkça affetme eğiliminin yükseldiğini ve intikam niyetinin azaldığını ortaya koymuştur. Kadın çalışanlarda intikam eğiliminin daha düşük olduğu da dikkate değer bir bulgudur. Çalışma, örgütsel dedikodu, affetme ve intikam değişkenlerini bir arada ele alarak bu kavramlar arasındaki ilişkileri sağlık sektörü bağlamında bütüncül bir yaklaşımla incelemekte ve literatüre özgün katkılar sunmaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Örgütsel Dedikodu
• Örgütsel İntikam
• Affedicilik
• Örgütsel Davranış

Kaynakça

1. Abdelghani, A. A., Ahmed, H. A., Zamil, A. M., Elsawy, O., Fayyad, S., & Elshaer, I. A. (2025). Gossip gone toxic: The dual role of self-esteem and emotional contagion in counterproductive workplace behavior. Administrative Sciences, 15(9), 359. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci15090359
2. Akduru, H. E., & Semeraciöz, F. (2017). Kamu kurumlarında örgütsel dedikodu ve işyeri yalnızlığına dair bir araştırma. Uluslararası Yönetim İktisat ve İşletme Dergisi, 13(13), 106-119.
3. Akın, M., Özdevecioğlu, M., & Ünlü, O. (2012). Örgütlerde intikam niyeti ve affetme eğiliminin çalışanların ruh sağlıkları ile ilişkisi. Amme İdaresi Dergisi, 45(1), 77-97.
4. Amrhein, V., Greenland, S., & McShane, B. (2019). Scientists rise up against statistical significance. Nature, 567(7748), 305-307. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-00857-9
5. Aquino, K., Tripp, T. M., & Bies, R. J. (2006). Getting even or moving on? Power, procedural justice, and types of offense as predictors of revenge, forgiveness, reconciliation, and avoidance in organizations. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(3), 653. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.3.653
6. Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(6), 1173. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.51.6.1173
7. Bies, R. J., Tripp, T. M., Kramer, R. M., & Tyler, T. R. (1996). Beyond distrust. Trust in organizations, 246-260. https://doi.org/10.2307/259288
8. Boonyarit, I., Chuawanlee, W., Macaskill, A., & Supparerkchaisakul, N. (2013). A psychometric analysis of the workplace forgiveness scale. Europe’s Journal of Psychology, 9(2), 319-338. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v9i2.551

9. Brady, D. L., Brown, D. J., & Liang, L. H. (2017). Moving beyond assumptions of deviance: The reconceptualization and measurement of workplace gossip. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(1), 1 https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000164
10. Brady, D. L., Saldanha, M. F., & Barclay, L. J. (2023). Conceptualizing forgiveness: A review and path forward. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 44(2), 261-296. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2632
11. Bright, D. S., Fry, R. E., & Cooperrider, D. L. (2006). Forgiveness from the perspectives of three response modes: Begrudgement, pragmatism, and transcendence. Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion, 3(1-2), 78-103. https://doi.org/10.1080/14766080609518612
12. Chan, S. H. G., Lin, Z. C., Wong, I. A., & So, A. C. Y. (2022). When employees fight back: Investigating how customer incivility and procedural injustice can impel employee retaliation. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 107, 103308. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2022.103308
13. Chopra, F., Haaland, I., Roth, C., & Stegmann, A. (2024). The null result penalty. The Economic Journal, 134(657), 193-219. https://doi.org/10.1093/ej/uead009
14. Coşar, A. M. (2011). İntikam: Öznesi de nesnesi de mağdur bir duygu. Acta Turcica Dergisi, 1(2), 302-309.
15. De Gouveia, C. M., Van Vuuren, L. J., & Crafford, A. (2005). Towards a typology of gossip in the workplace. SA Journal of Human Resource Management, 3(2), 56-68. https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC95806
16. DiFonzo, N., & Bordia, P. (2002). Corporate rumor activity, belief and accuracy. Public Relations Review, 28(1), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0363-8111(02)00107-8
17. DiFonzo, N., Bordia, P., & Rosnow, R. L. (1994). Reining in rumors. Organizational Dynamics, 23(1), 47-62. https://doi.org/10.1016/0090-2616(94)90087-6
18. Dores Cruz, T. D., Beersma, B., Dijkstra, M. T., & Bechtoldt, M. N. (2019). The bright and dark side of gossip for cooperation in groups. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1374. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01374
19. Ellwardt, L., Labianca, G. J., & Wittek, R. (2012). Who are the objects of positive and negative gossip at work? A social network perspective on workplace gossip. Social Networks, 34(2), 193-205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socnet.2011.11.003
20. Fehr, R., Gelfand, M. J., & Nag, M. (2010). The road to forgiveness: A meta-analytic synthesis of its situational and dispositional correlates. Psychological Bulletin, 136(5), 894. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019993
21. Field, A. (2024). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics. Sage publications limited.
22. Gao, C., Shaheen, S., & Bari, M. W. (2024). Workplace gossip erodes proactive work behavior: Anxiety and neuroticism as underlying mechanisms. BMC psychology, 12(1), 464. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-01966-5
23. Georganta, K., Panagopoulou, E., & Montgomery, A. (2014). Talking behind their backs: Negative gossip and burnout in Hospitals. Burnout Research, 1(2), 76-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burn.2014.07.003
24. George, D., & Mallery, P. (2024). IBM SPSS statistics 29 step by step: A simple guide and reference. Routledge.
25. Greenland, S. (2023). Divergence versus decision P‐values: A distinction worth making in theory and keeping in practice: Or, how divergence P‐values measure evidence even when decision P‐values do not. Scandinavian Journal of Statistics, 50(1), 54-88. https://doi.org/10.1111/sjos.12625
26. Grosser, T. J., Lopez-Kidwell, V., Labianca, G., & Ellwardt, L. (2012). Hearing it through the grape vine: Positive and negative workplace gossip. Organizational Dynamics, 41(1), 52-61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.orgdyn.2011.12.007
27. Guerin, B., & Miyazaki, Y. (2006). Analyzing rumors, gossip, and urban legends through their conversational properties. The Psychological Record, 56(1), 23-33. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03395535
28. Güllü, S., & Şahin, S. (2016). Antrenörlerin intikam (öç alma) davranışlarının bazı değişkenler açısından incelenmesi. Journal of International Social Research, 9(47), 863-871. https://doi.org/10.17719/jisr.2016.1432
29. Gürbüz, S., & Şahin, F. (2018). Sosyal bilimlerde araştırma yöntemleri. Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık.
30. Harlos, K. P., & Pinder, C. C. (2000). 14 emotion and injustice in the workplace. Emotion in Organizations, 255. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446219850.n14
31. Hartig, F., & Barraquand, F. (2022). The evidence contained in the P-value is context dependent. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 37(7), 569-570. https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.tree.2022.02.011
32. Hayes, A. F. (2017). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. Guilford publications.
33. Kniffin, K. M., & Wilson, D. S. (2005). Utilities of gossip across organizational levels: Multilevel selection, free-riders, and teams. Human Nature, 16(3), 278-292. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12110-005-1011-6
34. Koç, O. (2016). İş yerinde intikamcı davranışlar ve Medea Sendromu: Türk kamu yönetimi alanına ilişkin bir vaka analizi. Yönetim Bilimleri Dergisi, 14(28), 587-610.
35. Konan, N., & Nazlı, K. (2018). Okul yöneticilerinin örgütsel affedicilik düzeyleri. Bingöl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 8(16), 127-144.
36. Kuo, C. C., Chang, K., Quinton, S., Lu, C. Y., & Lee, I. (2015). Gossip in the workplace and the implications for HR management: A study of gossip and its relationship to employee cynicism. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 26(18), 2288-2307. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2014.985329
37. Kurland, N. B., & Pelled, L. H. (2000). Passing the word: Toward a model of gossip and power in the workplace. Academy of management review, 25(2), 428-438. https://doi.org/10.2307/259023
38. Lichtenfeld, S., Maier, M. A., Buechner, V. L., & Fernández Capo, M. (2019). The influence of decisional and emotional forgiveness on attributions. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1425. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01425
39. Liu, Y. (2024). Research review of workplace negative gossip. SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 190, p. 02019). EDP Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1051/shsconf/202419002019
40. Madan, P., Kashif, M., & Attiq, S. (2025). “The dark side of workplace chatter”: how gossip breeds revenge, knowledge hiding and silence. International Journal of Conflict Management, 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCMA-05-2025-0139
41. Martinescu, E., Janssen, O., & Nijstad, B. A. (2014). Tell me the gossip: The self-evaluative function of receiving gossip about others. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 40(12), 1668-1680. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167214554916
42. McCullough, M. E., Worthington Jr, E. L., & Rachal, K. C. (1997). Interpersonal forgiving in close relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73(2). https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.73.2.321
43. Nayir, K. F. (2024). Developing organizational revenge scale and examining teachers’ opinions about organizational revenge. International Online Journal of Educational Sciences, 8(3), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.15345/iojes.2016.03.012
44. Noon, M., & Delbridge, R. (1993). News from behind my hand: Gossip in organizations. Organization Studies, 14(1), 23-36. https://doi.org/10.1177/017084069301400103
45. Okimoto, T. G., Low, E. Z., Dawson, N., Zubielevitch, E., Thai, M., & Wenzel, M. (2025). Examining motivational profiles of forgiveness in the workplace: An employee-centered approach. Journal of Business Ethics, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-025-06128-0
46. Şantaş, G., Akbolat, M., & Sağlam, H. (2019). Sağlık çalışanlarında örgütsel affetme, örgütsel dedikodu ve intikam niyeti arasındaki ilişkilerin incelenmesi. Pamukkale Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, (36), 131-148. https://doi.org/10.30794/pausbed.527068
47. Şantaş, G., Uğurluoğlu, Ö., Özer, Ö., & Demir, A. (2018). Do gossip functions effect on organizational revenge and job stress among health personnel?. Journal of Health Management, 20(1), 64-72. https://doi.org/10.1177/0972063417747724
48. Sarah, W., & Peter, S. (2004). A social comparison account of gossip. Review of General Psychology, 8(2), 122-137. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.8.2.122
49. Schumann, K., & Ross, M. (2010). Why women apologize more than men: Gender differences in thresholds for perceiving offensive behavior. Psychological Science, 21(11), 1649-1655. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797610384150
50. Şener, E. (2014). Örgütsel intikam üzerine nitel bir araştırma. (Doctoral dissertation, Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü).
51. Şener, E., & Çetinkaya, F. F. (2015). Bir liderlik özelliği olarak affetme ve örgütsel düzeyde etkileri üzerine bir inceleme. İşletme Araştırmaları Dergisi, 7(4), 24-42.
52. Şener, E., Cetinkaya, F. F., & Akkoca, Y. (2017). Hidden side of the employee relations: the relationship between impression management and revenge intention. International Journal of Business and Management Invention, 6(7), 73-84.
53. Shantoo, A. H., Islam, S., Chowdhury, S. P., Eni, L. N., Rahman, M. M., & Hossain, M. A. (2025). Forgiveness climate and perceived firm performance: A serial mediation model. Global Business Review, 09721509251318095. https://doi.org/10.1177/09721509251318095
54. Skarlicki, D. P., & Folger, R. (1997). Retaliation in the workplace: The roles of distributive, procedural, and interactional justice. Journal of Applied Psychology, 82(3), 434. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.82.3.434
55. Solove, D. J. (2007). The future of reputation: Gossip, rumor, and privacy on the internet. Yale University Press. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1019177
56. Stewart, P. J. & Strathern, A. (2004). Witchcraft, sorcery, rumors, and gossip. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511616310
57. Stone, M. (2002). Forgiveness in the workplace. Industrial and Commercial Training, 34, 278-286. https://doi.org/10.1108/00197850210447282
58. Stuckless, N., & Goranson, R. (1992). The vengeance scale: Development of a measure of attitudes toward revenge. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 7(1), 25.
59. Sun, T., Schilpzand, P., & Liu, Y. (2023). Workplace gossip: An integrative review of its antecedents, functions, and consequences. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 44(2), 311-334. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2653
60. Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (2019). Using multivariate statistics (7th Еd.).
61. Tatarlar, C. D., & Çangarlı, B. G. (2018). İntikam mı affetme mi? Örgütsel yaşamda çok bilinmeyenli bir denklem. Ege Academic Review, 18(4), 591-603. https://doi.org/10.21121/eab.2018442989
62. Türk Dil Kurumu (2017) Online güncel sözlük erişim adresi: https://sozluk.gov.tr/öç Erişim Tarihi: 06.03.2025.
63. Wade, S.H. (1989). The Development of a Scale to Measure Forgiveness. Fuller Theological Seminary Graduate School of Psychology, California
64. Wang, C., Huang, J., & Zhu, J. (2025). The impact of work connectivity behavior on employee time theft: The role of revenge motive and leader–member exchange. Behavioral Sciences, 15(6), 738. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15060738
65. Wasserstein, R. L., Schirm, A. L., & Lazar, N. A. (2019). Moving to a world beyond “p<0.05”. The American Statistician, 73(sup1), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1080/00031305.2019.1583913
66. Wax, A., Rodriguez, W. A., & Asencio, R. (2022). Spilling tea at the water cooler: A meta-analysis of the literature on workplace gossip. Organizational Psychology Review, 12(4), 453-506. https://doi.org/10.1177/2041386622111238
67. Wittek R., & Wielers, R. (1998). Gossip in organizations. Computational & Mathematical Organization Theory, 4(2), 189-204. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009636325582
68. Worthington Jr, E. L. (2013). Forgiveness and reconciliation: Theory and application. Routledge.
69. Yamhure Thompson, L., Snyder, C. R., & Hoffman, L. (2005). Heartland forgiveness scale. Faculty Publications, Department of Psychology, 452. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.2005.00311.x
70. Yılmaz, Ö. D. (2014). Algılanan mağduriyetin affetme eğilimi ve intikam niyeti üzerindeki etkisi: Konaklama işletmeleri çalışanlarına yönelik bir araştırma. Afyon Kocatepe Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi Dergisi, 16(1), 87-106. http://hdl.handle.net/11630/1560
71. Zhao, H., Ma, Y., & Chen, Y. (2024). The double-edged sword of negative workplace gossip: When and how negative workplace gossip promotes versus inhibits knowledge hiding. Current Psychology: A Journal for Diverse Perspectives on Diverse Psychological Issues, 43(25), 21840–21856. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-05954-1