The relationship between intensity of social media use activity and counterproductive workplace behaviors

Abstract

The present paper brings to attention the dysfunctional behavior in organisations in relation to the intensity of activity on social networks The present research aimed to identify the influences of the use of social networks on the occurrence of counterproductive behaviors in the workplace. It was based on 2 hypotheses: (1) it was assumed that there is a correlation between the use of the entertainment function in social networks and the occurrence of counterproductive behaviors at work and (2) the intensity of use of the social function of social networks correlates positively with the occurrence of counterproductive behaviors at work. The online questionnaire consisting of the Social Networking Activity Intensity Scale and the Counterproductive Behaviors Questionnaire (CWB-C) was completed by 30 people from Constanta County, aged 20-56 years. The results showed that the use of social networks within the limits of social function does not influence the development of counterproductive behaviors, while related to the intensity of social network use for entertainment purposes there is a positive correlation with the occurrence of certain counterproductive behaviors, such as sabotage and production-related deviance. The study did not find any correlations between the intensity of entertainment social network use and other dysfunctional behaviors such as theft and abuse. There were also no positive correlations between the age of respondents and the existence of dysfunctional behavior in the workplace. In the future, it would be useful to use a larger sample size and to introduce variables such as the type of work performed.