COUNTERING THE EFFECTS OF DESTRUCTIVE CRITICISM - THE RELATIVE EFFICACY OF 4 INTERVENTIONS

Examined the effectiveness of four interventions in countering the negative impact of destructive criticism. Results of Study 1 (a laboratory simulation) indicated that interventions involving a direct apology from the source of criticism or information attributing the criticism to causes other than the critic's harmful intentions were most effective. In contrast, an intervention involving the opportunity to express irritation toward the critic actually increased negative reactions to destructive criticism. In Study 2, managers and employees in several organizations rated the effectiveness of the same interventions used in Study 1. Results agreed closely with those of the laboratory investigation: an apology and attributional information were rated as most effective by both groups. Both managers and employees viewed destructive criticism as a moderately important cause of conflict in their organizations. However, managers rated the negative impact of criticism on motivation and working relationships as less severe than did employees.