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There is much ado about organizational culture regarding our workplaces. Every organization has a culture whether it is an intentional one or one that evolved from happenstance. Like every person has a personality, so every organization has its culture. The question for many organizations remains, how do we create a positive culture? A high-performing culture?  An authentic culture? The descriptions of various organizational cultures proliferate our literature, our bookshelves, and our social media. With so much attention placed toward this “holy grail” we call culture why are there so many toxic workplaces?

Culture is multifaceted, meaning it is complex and involves a myriad of components which create the sum of that culture, what it is, its personality. In this article we will discuss the nature of workplace culture with attention to Social Psychology and our typical concept of workplace power. Warrack (2017) stated, “Organizational culture can significantly influence the performance and effectiveness of a company; the morale and productivity of its employees; and its ability to attract, motivate and retain talented people” (p. 395). I think most of us believe this statement and most of us aspire for livelihoods marked by great workplace culture. It makes sense, we want to work where we are happy working, and we do not want to work where we are unhappy working. Workplace culture is a strong predictor of job satisfaction, job performance, and long-term employee retention. In other words, culture has value because it has serious positive or negative outcomes. So, what is culture? 

Kassin et al. (2017) state that culture is, “A system of enduring meanings, beliefs, values, assumptions, institutions, and practices shared by a large group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next” (p. G1). 

We focus here on the “practices” of our workplace culture. Using social psychology, we can define those practices of a culture as its social norms. Social norms are ways of behaving which are known by its people as acceptable behaviors, esteemed behaviors, and punished behaviors. Two types of norms are typically used to categorize how social norms exist and operate in the workplace. Formal and Informal. 

Formal norms are the defined-documented procedures, policies, and code of conduct we see in employee handbooks. Informal norms are those which are not visible officially but are still real and known by its people. When thinking of informal norms, think of statements a team member might make similar to this one, “Oh, we don’t do that here”. The “That” which we don’t do can be a way of interacting with others, how we approach authority figures, or broaching certain topics. Ideally, we want our Formal and Informal cultural social norms to mirror each other; both our visible wording about our culture and our behavior line up. When they do not match each other, it results in statements like this, “I know what is said in meetings and to clients/customers but let me tell you how things really work around here”. Now that we have a high-level understanding of social norms in workplace culture, let’s zoom in on social psychology and our concept of workplace power for key takeaways.

Culture is largely a function of social interactions. Social psychology examines the ways in which we interact with one another and the forces at play that influence those interactions and the decisions we make. To think like a social psychologist, think in these three dimensions at play in our workplace cultures: the person, the group, and the situation or environment. Whether we like it, we are all influenced by one another to some degree and often strongly influenced. This influence has been termed Social Contagion. It means the thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and attitudes of a group are impactful upon each of its members, transferable. Negativity and cynicism are infectious and at the same time so are positivity and optimism. Unfortunately, there is ample evidence that negative emotion and negative thinking are more powerful in many situations than positivity (Baumeister et al., 2001). While there is research indicating that negative thinking possesses a set of benefits, I argue that overall, negativity and cynicism in our workplace rapidly destroy culture.  More importantly though, what this research reveals for us is that culture is dynamic versus static. It can and does change. Achieving great culture is not a one and done goal. Like the ocean tide, culture rises and falls. Adding to the reality that our workplace cultures are sensitive to negative social contagion (infectious negativity and cynicism) is our misconception regarding organizational power and culture.

This misperception of power is found in statements such as culture is driven from the “top down”. It is legitimate that leaders hold power inside the organization, leaders control giving resources and rewards and taking them away, it is part of the authority granted by the organization (distributional power and legitimate power). Yet, as Smith (2011) states, “Traditional organizations work with the assumption that power flows one direction—from those in power to those without, and this flow is viewed as not only unidirectional but also as coming from the ‘top’” (ch. 11, How To Be Effective Within An Organization section, para. 24). This misconception regarding organizational power creates teams who are cultural bystanders. However, in reality, social psychology as we have discussed indicates that all people in the organization have influence (power) and that power can impact positively or negatively, no matter the title or role one holds. Disagree? Interview a leader who is trying to be positive but is outnumbered by the negative and cynical majority surrounding them. The leader will tell you this daily interaction takes its toll on their positivity and optimism, and the more so the longer the negativity and cynicism persist. Now you know these powerful and crucial insights regarding workplace culture rooted in evidence-based social psychology and workplace psychology: 


1. Culture is dynamic (it rises… and falls).
2. Culture is more vulnerable to negativity and cynicism than positivity and optimism.
3. Our perception that few hold influential power in the organization is inaccurate.

What do we do about it? How do we apply what research shares with us? Leverage these 3 key takeaways to protect and enhance your positive and optimistic culture.

1. Educate, train, and support the fact that every Team Member is responsible for great culture. It is people (the group) that make culture. Make certain that each team member understands that power is multi-directional and they have it!
2. Promote and substantiate the reality that when Team Members work together to hold each other accountable to high standards of positivity and optimism they are fighting not just for the organization but for each other and themselves. Positive and optimistic culture are everyone’s valued possession, “we” create it, “we” earn it, “we” preserve it!
3. Take ongoing consistent negativity and cynicism seriously and intervene. They are real and powerful threats. Every one of us has a bad day, instances here and there where we are not our best, when we are stressed, afraid, overwhelmed with doubt. We have Team Members that analyze with a more critical mind while showing positivity and optimism. I’m not talking about these; it’s the person or persons who consistently inject contagious negativity and cynicism into others who destroy a great culture.

Are you struggling with your positivity and optimism or are you a leader trying to shift your Team’s culture? We can help with this and many other variables to create a transformative outcome. Contact us and let’s see if you believe we are good solution and fit for your situation, we’d love to be that value-added Team Member for you!

Baumeister, R. F., Bratslavsky, E., Finkenauer, C., & Vohs, K. D. (2001). Bad is Stronger than Good. Review of General Psychology 5(4), 323-370.  (Original work published 2001)

Kassin, S., Fein, S., & Markus, H. R. (2017). Social Psychology (10th ed.). Cengage Learning.  Smith, G. T. (2011). Courage and Calling: Embracing Your God-Given Potential. InterVarsity Press.

Warrick, D. D. (2017). What leaders need to know about organizational culture. Business horizons, 60(3), 395-404.