Testing the Mediating Role of Group Stress and Group Conflict in Group Politics and Group Performance: Evidences from Public Sector

Abstract

The prevalence of groups and teams at the workplace makes it imperative to understand their effects on group members and their performance. In fact, the growing use of work groups has impelled scholars & management theorists to analyse the various factors that determine or hinder group performance and effectiveness. This paper focuses on the mediation effects of group conflict and group stress on group politics and group performance relationship. The study is confined to the groups working in head offices of J&K public corporations of Jammu city. Census method is followed in contacting 1189 employees (group members) working in the head offices of all the eighteen J&K public corporations, out of which 888 employees responded effectively. Baron and Kennys (1986) procedure is applied to check mediating role of group conflict and group stress in group politics- group performance relationship. Results revealed that group stress fully mediates the group politics - group performance relationship whereas group conflict partially mediates this relationship. The study suggests that the managers of public sector corporations must take necessary steps to reduce favouritism in their respective corporations by applying pay and promotion policies ethically, rewarding the hardworking people, equal interaction with all the members, giving chance to every employee to complete the assigned task, educating the staff regarding various policies and creating an environment of trust. Moreover, public sector employees must be encouraged to make use of RTI so that they could keep a check on their corporations activities and ensure transparency in the system. This study is restricted to the public sector groups only and future studies could be conducted on the professional groups and private sector groups.

Keywords: Group Politics, Group Stress, Group Conflict, Group Performance, Public Sector

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