Understanding Organizational Dysfunction: Part 4 – Resetting Workplace Gossip using an Art-based Learning Exercise

Managing organizational dysfunction is already a tough task. And, engaging adult learners can make it even more challenging. As a result, finding innovative solutions to overcome these dysfunctions and set the organization on a positive path can be quite challenging. Incorporating the arts into our conventional training methods can broaden our approach and offer new solutions to overcome these obstacles. Therefore, from the literature review and my personal experiences, I would recommend a group experience containing this type of arts-based teaching methodology to assist in resetting a dysfunctional team when dealing with excessive gossip in the workplace.

Inspired by Ippolito's statement, "to use music-based metaphors and modalities in aid of the ultimate quest for a more collaboratively oriented and peaceful world"[1], I sought an opportunity to challenge my typical response in providing a traditional training solution. As a twenty-first-century leader and dispute resolution practitioner, engaging in the art of problem-solving and practising creatively and collaboratively requires courage to bring artistry to our work.[2]

How do we create an art-based exercise that could help employees understand the effects of negative gossip on others and have them choose to participate in only the positive gossip space? Can we create this experiential training session to be engaging for professional adult learners?

Using 21st-century learning concepts and objectives to create an experience that provides the creative context that allows participants to learn and experiment with the effects of gossip would be a great start. The overall objective of the training session and exercise would be to break from traditional lecture-based and case study analysis and to expand their thinking and behaviours through an art-based activity and experience. In support of Grosser et al. (2012) six fundamental purposes of gossip, the learning objectives for the training session would focus on providing open and transparent communication, building trust and rapport with others, dealing with intergroup disputes, building team dynamics, and establishing group values and norms.

In teaching the effects of gossip on workplaces, we want to shift people from "negative gossip and mistrust" to an atmosphere of support, open communication, effective conflict handling skills, and using their emotional intelligence – such as empathy and self-awareness in how they deal with gossip. As stated by Adler & Hansen (2012), "We need to construct new narratives that "beat out the old, established narratives."[3]. A successful outcome in this new paradigm would be a learner leaving with heightened self-awareness and recognizing their accountability when participating in workplace gossip, specifically negative workplace gossip. The learner would provide an empathic and coaching response towards others to help change the sub-standard behaviours. The use of an art-based exercise is not only to increase the awareness of gossip in the workplace but to demonstrate conflict resolution and emotional intelligence using music, film, and artwork, that promotes learning transfer.

To create a meaningful exercise using art-based methods, we are guided by the Experiential Learning Model (ELM) and the work of Taylor & Ladkin (2009), processes of skills transfer, projective technique, illustration of essence, and making.[4] These methods are defined as follows; "(1) skills transfer—the development of artistic skills that can be applied in another setting; (2) projective technique—using artistic output "to reveal inner thoughts and feeling" not necessarily "accessible through more conventional developmental modes"; (3) illustration of essence—the ability to "apprehend" through art "the 'essence' of a concept, situation, or tacit knowledge […] revealing depths and connection that more propositional and linear developmental orientations cannot"; and (4) making—actual engagement with art-making for a personal reflective experiential purpose."[5] These methods are applied in the following exercise and practice section.

In line with Ippolito (2019), participants would learn to break from traditional reactions and beliefs when dealing with gossip using these new art-based exercises. They would develop and use a new lens to see and hear gossip, unlearn traditional behaviours, and value collaborative approaches to handling gossip.[6]

PRACTICING - "Music or Movie" Exercise

To break out of the usual solution pattern, Sutherland (2013) states, "New learning experiences and modalities, especially arts-based methods, are often regarded by participants and other educators as "unusual, different, 'de-routinized' learning environments."[7]

Welcoming participants by launching with a familiar pattern of an introductory orientation and a facilitated discussion identifying keywords to describe gossip and its effects on individuals and workplaces begins building rapport and trust within the group. Participants then swiftly enter the creative space of music and film, where these works of art are used to express the underpinnings of gossip (and rumour).   Participants are asked to recall "a time when they experienced gossip in the workplace" and jot down a few words to describe how they felt. Then ask them to think of a song or movie scene reflecting their workplace gossip experience. To prime the group's creativity, sharing a list of examples is recommended. These examples could include music examples such as "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" by Marvin Gaye and "Rumor Has It" by Adele. Examples of movies could be video clips from "Othello", "Doubt", "Sopranos", "Goodfellows", and many others.

Once their reflection time and list is completed, they are requested to join one of two groups - one group that focuses on songs about gossip and the other group that focuses on movies that contain gossip. Each participant is invited to present and discuss their list to the group (approximately 5 minutes per person). Once all participants have presented, the group is called upon to reach a consensus on what they would identify as the top 1 or 2 choices that best represent "gossip", including the selection criteria (20-30 minutes). Have them identify a spokesperson from their group to present their decision during a whole group debrief.

Following this large group debrief, ask individuals to reflect on everything they saw and heard and draw out new information they have learned. To further enhance the learning, encourage them to creatively express their new awareness about gossip via writing a short poem, drawing a picture, or any other creative artefact they choose (provide accessibility to a wide range of art supplies). Debrief and share artefacts with the group on a voluntary basis. This exercise focuses on the overarching development of effective communication skills and uses several levels of engagement to practice art-based processes: individual reflection, small group discussion, whole group plenary debrief, and creative reflection.

In conclusion, there is no "quick fix" to combating gossip in the workplace, but there are strategies to reduce negative gossip. Should gossip affect your workplace, using a Workplace Assessment as the diagnostic tool to better understand all the factors and issues at play is recommended. Each organization is unique, especially its culture; thus, actions to mitigate gossip should be customized for each situation or problem.   

Gossip will never go away, but creating a cooperative, team-based ensemble goes a long way toward mitigating its negative effects in the workplace. Making individuals and teams accountable for their mutual problems and collaboratively working in an open, exploratory and creative way to fix them will bring out the positive side of gossip and significantly reduce any adverse effects of gossip in the workplace.

Are you interested in learning about my personal journey, including THREE other arts-based exercises I participated in? Email me directly, and I will share my personal experience. stephanie@workplaceassessments.ca

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[1] Ippolito, L. (2019) Music, Leadership and Conflict, Palgrave MacMillan. p. 205

[2] Ibid. p. 205

[3]   Adler, N. J., & Hansen, H. (2012). Daring to Care: Scholarship that Supports the Courage of Our Convictions. Journal of Management Inquiry, 21(2), 128–139. P. 133.

[4] Taylor, S. & Ladkin, D. (2009). Within Ippolito, L. (2019) Music, Leadership and Conflict, Palgrave MacMillan. p. 81-82

[5] Ibid. P. 81-82.

[6] Adapted from Ippolito, L. (2019) Music, Leadership and Conflict, Palgrave MacMillan. P. 110.

[7] Sutherland, I., 2013. Arts-based methods in leadership development: Affording aesthetic workspaces, reflexivity and memories with momentum. Management Learning, 44(1), pp. 25-43.P. 42.