Internal Politics and the Interactive Elaboration of Information in Workgroups: An Exploratory Study
Résumé
This exploratory research is concerned with the elaboration of appropriate information by workgroup members. Our theoretical approach centers on the interactive dimension of appropriateness judgments in work relationships; special attention is given to the way members use internal boundaries in their group in order to formulate these judgments. The study describes and grounds a typology of the processes of elaborating information and examines the link between these processes and the structure of the workgroup. Workgroup structure is defined in terms of authority relationships, taking into account different attitudes toward authority. The methodology is qualitative but builds upon a comparative approach applied in a social service unit and an administrative service unit.