15/07-11   -   Press releases

Male flirts less happy at work

Men who flirt at work tend to be less satisfied with their job.

This is the finding of business psychologists Chadi Moussa and Adrian Banks, from the University of Surrey who will present his finding at the British Psychological Society’s Psychology of Women annual conference today (Wednesday 13 July).

Chadi said: “Claims that flirting at work can enhance career prospects, bring success and improve job satisfaction are common, but largely un-founded with no supporting evidence. Our research aimed to test these beliefs."

Two hundred and one participants (men and women) completed a questionnaire measuring flirting behaviours at work, job satisfaction, self-reported job performance, and personality. Participants (aged 21-68) were from a variety of employment sectors.

The main finding showed that flirting at work was negatively related to job satisfaction for men. There was no significant relationship between flirting and job satisfaction for women.

Chadi explained: “Previous research has shown that people flirt for various reasons, which include increasing their self-esteem, fun and romance. If men are feeling unsatisfied in their roles, then they may resort to flirting to keep them entertained and this would partially explain the negative relationship. While flirting can have benefits, excessive flirting at work may be a sign that you’re unsatisfied with your job or simple bored. These findings contradict popular notions that flirting at work can make employees mores satisfied or perform better."