Political skill,organizational justice,and career success in mainland China

Abstract

Organizational justice is a topic popularized for Western bureaucracies but there is less known about its influence in Eastern cultures. This research tests how organizational justice moderates the relationship between political skill and career success in the Chinese public sector. Analysis reveals that four dimensions of political skill (networking ability, apparent sincerity, social astuteness, and interpersonal influence) correlate positively with career success (measured as perceived internal marketability and perceived career success). Although hypothesized that organizational justice would lessen the influence of political skill on career success as a result of the implementation of formal merit-based pay rules, findings show that political skill is only partially moderated. While lessening the value of social astuteness, a positive relationship between interpersonal influence and internal marketability remains.

Points for practitioners

Profound changes in China’s salary system challenge traditional workplace customs. The implementation of merit-based pay requires a fair procedure for determining salary raises. In China, personalism remains a driving force because of the importance of guanxi. This affects how formal merit-based pay systems function in the East. Chinese culture tempers Western notions of organizational justice with its persistent reliance on political skill. This blend of worker behavior and career success, moderated by a conceptualization of organizational justice that embraces political skill, complicates the application of Western management systems in the East.

Keywords

administrative organization and structures administrative science administrative theory civil service human resources management personnel policies public administration public management

Introduction

Organizations are political arenas where people use interpersonal skills to control their work environment and career advancement. Studies have addressed relationships between political skill and its consequences in the Western context, including job performance (Andrews et al., 2009; Blickle et al., 2011a; Ferris et al., 2005a; Liu et al., 2007), team performance (Kathleen et al., 2004), job satisfaction (Kolodinsky et al., 2004), career success (Todd et al., 2009; Wei et al., 2010), turnover intention (Harris et al., 2009), and occupational choice (Kaplan, 2008). The purpose of this study is to contribute evidence from mainland China to this body of research.

In China, there are currently 40 million government employees, including retirees (Meng and Wu, 2015). From the perspective of classical Weberian theory, the bureaucratic structure is purposely impersonal, and career advancement depends on technical qualifications that are judged by the organization and not by individuals (Sager and Rosser, 2009). However, in traditional Chinese organizations, personalism remains a driving force. Guanxi – the direct and particular ties between an individual and other individuals (Tsui and Farh, 1997) – and networking are inevitable in organizational processes (Liu, 2008; Wei et al., 2012). When implemented, Anglosphere models adapt to fit the cultural ethos (Pollitt, 2015). How to negotiate these competing forces and achieve career satisfaction is a concern for workers and for scholars interested in the comparative study of bureaucratic behavior.

Political skill is a construct derived from Western research that acts as a predictor of performance and career-related outcomes (Bing et al., 2011; Blickle et al., 2011a; Pfeffer, 1992; Todd et al., 2009). Individuals differ in their political prowess (Ferris et al., 2007) and the work context also influences the degree to which such skill is used (Andrews et al., 2009). What is its impact in the East, where guanxi is important?

We examine the relationship among organizational justice, political skill, and career outcomes for China’s public servants and extend previous research in four ways. First, evidence from mainland China adds a cultural application of political skill as a construct after the work of Lvina et al. (2012) demonstrated its cross-cultural generalizability. As Cheung (2012) states, the public administration experience in Asia should be studied for its own sake to ensure that constructs developed in Western bureaucracy are equally applicable in the Eastern context. Second, it investigates worker behavior after implementation of pay-for-performance. This new pay system is in contrast to the traditional model where pay was determined by position, age, education, and relations with the authorities, rather than on meritorious performance. The new merit-based pay system, which allocates 30% of each worker’s salary to performance, was instituted in 2006 to encourage productivity (Meng and Wu, 2015). Just as in the West, pay-for-performance requires a formal, objective procedure for rating performance in order for merit allocations to be judged as fair.

Third, the relationship between political skill and career success in China is scrutinized. According to Eby et al. (2003), career success results when an individual remains marketable across a sequence of job tasks and retains a feeling of success. Although many studies have investigated the consequences of political skill, most treat it as a composite rather than deconstructing it into its four dimensions: social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking ability, and apparent sincerity (Brouer et al., 2009; Ferris et al., 2008; Harris et al., 2007; Jawahar et al., 2008). Focusing on its dimensions as they relate to career-related outcomes for Chinese bureaucrats contributes a more nuanced understanding, as encouraged by Ferris et al. (2012).

Fourth, because of the importance of fairness in merit pay systems, this study hypothesizes a moderating role for organizational justice on the relationship between political skill and career success. Political skill is a competence that helps individuals influence others; contextual factors permit and reinforce the forms, intensity, and effectiveness of such influences (Ferris et al., 2002b). This investigation of organizational justice, then, provides a more holistic understanding of how political skill influences career outcomes in pay-for-performance systems. Figure 1 displays the hypothesized relationship between career success, the four dimensions of political skill, and the moderating role of organizational justice.

Political skill, internal marketability, and career success

Political skill is the ability to effectively understand others at work and to use that knowledge to enhance one’s own objectives (Ferris et al., 2005b). Ferris et al. (2007) categorize political skill into four dimensions: (1) social astuteness; (2) interpersonal influence; (3) networking ability; and (4) apparent sincerity. Those who are socially astute understand social interactions and interpret behaviors accurately. Politically astute workers execute strategies that ensure desired outcomes and their networking ability enables them to develop numerous links with people from whom valuable resources can be obtained (Ferris et al., 2007). Their apparent sincerity makes these political behaviors acceptable because they are perceived to possess no ulterior motives.

In this study, two indicators for career success are used: perceived internal marketability and perceived career success. The former refers to competence, a characteristic valued by employers and co-workers; the latter reflects workers’ own level of satisfaction with their career. We hypothesize that political skill has an effect on perceived internal marketability for several reasons. First, socially astute individuals understand management’s priorities and adapt their behavior accordingly (Ferris et al., 2005a). Second, social influence theory holds that interpersonal influence is characterized by cognitive processing, perceived intentionality, relative social status, and direction of change (Levy et al., 1998). Employees skilled in interpersonal influence develop rapport with others easily, including their managers who make salary and promotion decisions. According to Eby et al. (2003), employees with high internal marketability are value-added assets to the organization. A politically skilled person has the ability to develop a diverse network from which s/he can gain social capital. Through the lens of the conservation of resources (Hobfoll, 2002), social capital is a personal resource and facilitates the acquisition of valued resources (Ferris et al., 2007). Thus, a person with a broad network has an advantage. Furthermore, apparent sincerity presents the appearance of genuineness and masks coercive tactics (Harris et al., 2007), making sincere individuals more trustworthy.

Perceived career success is operationalized by individuals’ subjective judgments regarding their career attainments. Research shows a significant relationship between political skill and career success: a longitudinal study that collected two waves of data over a one-year time frame discovered that political skill in wave 1 predicted reputation in wave 2. This influenced career success one year later (Blickle et al., 2011b), demonstrating that political skill is linked to career advancement. Further evidence is provided by Ng et al. (2005), who performed a meta-analysis and concluded that political skill was positively related to objective as well as subjective career success.

Predictors of career success include human capital, organizational sponsorship, and stable individual differences. Social capital – the quantity and/or quality of accumulated contacts – is an indicator of human capital (Ng et al., 2005). Greater networking ability and interpersonal influence leads to individuals being ‘wired’ into a diverse network, resulting in higher satisfaction with their careers. Forret and Dougherty (2004), for example, showed that networking ability is an important predictor of career success. Stable individual differences are also predictors of career success. Ferris et al. (2000) found that political skill inheres in a person such that socially astute individuals have greater ability to discern and obtain what they want (Ferris et al., 2005a), causing them to feel content in their jobs. Additionally, a sincere and honest person is more easily liked by others and this results in positive self-perceptions (Van den Bos, 2003). Drawing upon these arguments, we offer Hypotheses 1 and 2 (shown in Table 1).

Table 1.

Hypotheses tested.

Hypothesis 1: There will be a positive relationship between perceived internal marketability and:
(a) social astuteness	Supported
(b) interpersonal influence	Supported
(c) networking ability	Supported
(d) apparent sincerity	Supported
Hypothesis 2: There will be a positive relationship between perceived career success and:
(a) social astuteness	Supported
(b) interpersonal influence	Supported
(c) networking ability	Supported
(d) apparent sincerity	Supported
Hypothesis 3: Organizational justice moderates the relationship between the four dimensions of political skill and perceived internal marketability such that the relationship will be stronger when organizational justice is low and weaker when organizational justice is high:
(a) social astuteness	Supported
(b) interpersonal influence	Not Supported
(c) networking ability	Not Supported
(d) apparent sincerity	Not supported
Hypothesis 4: Organizational justice moderates the relationship between the four dimensions of political skill and perceived career success such that the relationship will be stronger when organizational justice is low and weaker when organizational justice is high:
(a) social astuteness	Not supported
(b) interpersonal influence	Not supported
(c) networking ability	Not supported
(d) apparent sincerity	Not supported

Organizational justice vis-a-vis political skill and career success

As political skill is contextual (Ferris et al., 2000), situational variables are essential to effectiveness. Ambiguous work environments where workers play multiple roles are characterized by tasks that place a premium on verbal facility to persuade others (Blickle et al., 2010). These enterprising job demands moderate the relationship between political skill and job performance ratings. When enterprising job demands are high, increases in political skill are associated with increases in performance ratings. Similar evidence is provided by Bing et al. (2011), who conclude that interpersonal and social requirements moderate the relationship between political skill and task performance. In addition to the objective characteristics of job requirements, subjective perceptions also moderate the link between political skill and job performance (Kapoutis et al., 2011). As political skill is shaped by the environment (Blickle et al., 2012; Ferris and Judge, 1991), situational cues prompt or constrain individuals from engaging in political behavior. This necessitates a more precise exploration of the moderators between political skill and outcomes (Ferris et al., 2002a).

Organizational justice is a pivotal feature in this research because fairness is the primary standard to judge work experience (Barsky et al., 2011; Cropanzano and Schminke, 2001; Tessema et al., 2014). Colquitt (2001) empirically verified that organizational justice is a four-factor structure including distributive, procedural, interpersonal, and informational aspects. Distributive justice is the perception of fairness of the allocation of outcomes, whereas fairness of the procedures used to determine those allocations is termed procedural justice. There are two types of interactional justice. The first is interpersonal justice and reflects the degree to which people are treated with politeness, dignity and respect. The second, informational justice, focuses on explanations for why procedures were used in a certain way (see Colquitt et al., 2013).

We hypothesize that organizational justice moderates the relationship between political skill and career success. This is consistent with Van den Bos and Lind (2002), who assert that fairness is a key element for workers as they cope with uncertainty. If the workplace is deemed just – meaning that procedures and interactions are fair and consistent across persons and time – then employees will not worry about their interests when following the policies of the organization. With fair procedures and interactions, they are confident that they can develop their careers and obtain just outcomes. Conversely, if perceived organizational justice is low – meaning that allocations are determined by privilege instead of fairness – then employees have little confidence that an authority will act impartially in assessing subordinates. Thus, individuals will rely on their political skill to confront obstacles in their path. When perceived organizational justice is low, positive relationships between the four dimensions of political skill and career success will become stronger. In other words, employees will engage in more political behavior when they perceive lower fairness. This gives rise to Hypotheses 3 and 4 (see Table 1).

Sample and procedure

The sample included 250 employees from public sector organizations in the People’s Republic of China. They were enrolled part-time in a Master of Public Administration program at a university in Eastern China. Survey questionnaires were distributed and those with missing data were deleted, leading to 220 valid responses. Most respondents worked in the government; the next most common respondents were from the public utilities sector; the remainder worked in public enterprises (see Table 2).

Table 2.

Descriptive statistics for the sample.

Variables		N	%
Gender	Male	89	40.5%
Gender	Female	131	59.5%
Tenure (yrs)	<5	142	64.5%
	6–10	60	27.3%
	>10	18	8.2%
Position	Clerk	112	50.9%
	Section Chief	105	47.7%
	Director of Division	3	1.4%

Note: N = 220.

Measurement

The questionnaire included four parts: (1) political skill; (2) organizational justice; (3) career success, as measured by perceived internal marketability and perceived career success; and (4) control variables for gender, tenure, and position. As the scales of political skill, organizational justice, and career success were developed in English, we conducted a ‘translation/back-translation’ procedure following the recommendations of Brislin (1986) in order to avoid misunderstandings in the Chinese translation. All items were measured on five-point Likert-type scales ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

Political skill

Political skill was assessed using the 18-item political skill inventory (PSI) designed by Ferris et al. (2005b). The PSI captures the four dimensions of political skill: networking ability is measured with six items (e.g. ‘I spend much time and effort at work networking with others’). Apparent sincerity is measured by three items (e.g. ‘It is important that people believe I am sincere in what I say and do’). Social astuteness is measured with five items (e.g. ‘I always seem to instinctively know the right thing to say or do to influence others’). Lastly, interpersonal influence is measured with four items (e.g. ‘It is easy for me to develop good rapport with most people’). Higher scores indicate higher levels of political skill. Studies conducted in mainland China (Shi and Chen, 2012) show that the PSI has acceptable construct validity and reliability (Brouer et al., 2009; Treadway et al., 2013). A confirmatory factor analysis shows acceptable validity for the scale (χ²= 239.27, df = 121, TLI = .90, CFI = .91, RMR = .04, RMSEA = .07).

Organizational justice

A 20-item scale developed by Colquitt (2001) was used to measure perceptions of organizational justice. Distributive justice was measured with four items (e.g. ‘Does your outcome reflect the effort you have put into your work?’). Procedural justice was measured with seven items (e.g. ‘Have you been able to express your views and feelings during these procedures?’). Interpersonal justice was measured with four items (e.g. ‘Has the superior treated you in a polite manner?’). Five items were used to measure informational justice (e.g. ‘Has the superior explained the procedures thoroughly?’). Finally, the score for organizational justice was calculated from the sum of the four dimensions. The construct of organizational justice has a satisfactory model fit (χ²= 266.70, df = 90, TLI = .90, CFI = .92, RMR = .11, RMSEA = .09).

Career success

Career success was measured by indices of perceived internal marketability and perceived career success. Internal marketability was measured by three items (Eby et al., 2003), including ‘There are many opportunities available to me in my organization’. Perceived career success was measured using five items from Greenhaus, Parasuraman, and Wormley (1990), such as ‘I am satisfied with the success that I have achieved in my career’. Although perceived external marketability is usually included in measures of career success, we did not consider it a realistic measure for this study because of the low mobility of Chinese public servants across their careers. Once in government, they stay in government. The two-factor construct of career success shows acceptable validity (χ²= 77.83, df = 19, TLI = .90, CFI = .93, RMR = .05, RMSEA = .12).

Results

Prior to hypothesis testing, psychometric properties of the data were examined. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) were conducted to investigate whether political skill, organizational justice, perceived internal marketability, and perceived career success captured distinct constructs. The results of the tests of competing measurement models are shown in Table 3. The four-factor measurement model had the best goodness of fit. Compared with the four-factor model, a three-factor model that combined political skill and organizational justice into one construct did not fit the data well. Neither did the other three alternative models, one of which included organizational justice and perceived internal marketability loaded on a single construct, another merged organizational justice and perceived career success, and the final one merged perceived internal marketability and perceived career success. All these CFAs illustrated that the predicted four-factor model had significant discriminant validity.

Table 3.

Comparison of measurement models.

Measurement models and structure	χ²	df	Δχ²	TLI	CFI	RMR	RMSEA
(1) Hypothesized 4-factor model: PS, OJ, InterM, CS	303.75	134		.90	.92	.04	.08
(2) 3-factor model: PS and OJ merged	560.54	146	256.79***	.78	.81	.06	.11
(3) 3-factor model: OJ and InterM merged	517.66	146	213.91***	.80	.83	.05	.11
(4) 3-factor model: OJ and CS merged	770.58	146	466.83***	.68	.72	.07	.14
(5) 3-factor model: InterM and CS merged	551.35	101	247.60***	.68	.72	.08	.14

Notes: N = 220. PS = political skill; OJ = organizational justice; InterM = perceived internal marketability; CS = perceived career success. The Δχ² is in relation to Model 1. ***p < .001 (two-tailed).

Testing the model

The means, standard deviations, and correlations are presented in Table 4, and Cronbach’s alphas for each scale variable are shown on the diagonal. Only one of the scales, procedural justice, has an alpha coefficient beneath the desired value of .70 but it is close (0.66). As hypothesized, the results show significant positive correlations between the four dimensions of political skill and perceived internal marketability (r = .33, .30, .45, .43, respectively). This means that individuals with high networking ability, apparent sincerity, social astuteness, and/or interpersonal influence are more likely to be viewed as an asset to the organization. In addition, each dimension of political skill has a significant positive correlation with perceived career success (r = .23, .25, .25, .31, respectively). As hypothesized, those with higher levels of networking ability, apparent sincerity, social astuteness, and/or interpersonal influence are more satisfied with their career. Although the correlation analyses do not reveal the nested nature of the data, they provide initial support for components a–d of Hypotheses 1 and 2.

Table 4.

Descriptive statistics and correlations.

Variable	M	SD	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
1. NA	3.46	.58	(.75)
2. AS	4.28	.50	.23**	(.77)
3. SA	3.34	.55	.35**	.20**	(.77)
4. II	3.73	.54	.35**	.31**	.47**	(.80)
5. PS	3.70	.38	.71**	.60**	.73**	.76**	(.84)
6. DJ	3.28	.68	.18**	.25**	.37**	.33**	.40**	(.77)
7. PJ	3.44	.62	.10	.17**	.12	.19**	.21**	.60**	(.66)
8. InteJ	3.68	.60	.20**	.27**	.20**	.31**	.35**	.50**	.55**	(.88)
9. InfoJ	3.15	.80	.16*	.23**	.32**	.34**	.38**	.57**	.50**	.64**	(.90)
10. OJ	3.39	.55	.20**	.28**	.32**	.36**	.41**	.82**	.79**	.81**	.85**	(.91)
11. InterM	3.33	.71	.33**	.30**	.45**	.43**	.53**	.63**	.46**	.56**	.60**	.69**	(.78)
12. CS	3.22	.77	.23**	.25**	.25**	.31**	.37**	.42**	.45**	.27**	.39**	.49**	.32**	(.88)

Notes: N = 220. NA = networking ability; AS = apparent sincerity; SA = social astuteness; II = interpersonal influence; PS = political skill; DJ = distributive justice; PJ = procedural justice; InteJ = interpersonal justice; InfoJ = informational justice; OJ = organizational justice; InterM = perceived internal marketability; CS = perceived career success. Reliabilities appear in parentheses on the diagonal. *p < .05; **p < .01 (two-tailed).

Hierarchical linear regression analysis was used to test Hypotheses 3 and 4. Separate analyses were conducted on each of the two dependent variables, and each regression analysis consisted of four steps. The control variables were entered in the first step. As the measures were collected from the same source, we employed the mean-centered approaches on all the variables to avoid multicollinearity (Chen et al., 2008). The four centered variables of political skill were entered together in the second step. The centered moderating variable of organizational justice was entered in the third step. In the fourth and final step, the interaction terms that were formed from the centered political skill and centered organizational justice variables were entered.

Table 5 provides results of the hierarchical moderated regression analyses. The second step of the regression analysis revealed that three of the four dimensions of political skill (networking ability, social astuteness, and interpersonal influence) were positively and significantly related to perceived internal marketability (β_NA→InterM = .15, β_SA→InterM = .28, β_II_→InterM = .28). The exception was apparent sincerity, which was not significant. Regarding the second dependent variable, only two dimensions of political skill (apparent sincerity and interpersonal influence) have positive and significant main effects on perceived career success (β_AS→CS = .15, β_II_→CS = .22). These results provide partial support for Hypotheses 1 and 2. In the third step of each analysis, organizational justice is shown to have a significant and positive effect on perceived internal marketability and on perceived career success. In the final step of the regression analysis, we are interested in the moderating role of organizational justice on the relationships between the four dimensions of political skill and career success. As the results show, the SA × OJ (social astuteness × organizational justice) interaction term accounted for a significant increase in the amount of perceived internal marketability criterion variance explained (β = −.16, p < .05; ΔR²= .02). In addition, the interaction term II × OJ (interpersonal influence × organizational justice) was statistically significant (β = .13, p < .05; ΔR²= .02) but not in the hypothesized direction. Model 4 explained an additional 2% of the variance in perceived internal marketability. Therefore, Hypothesis 3 (a–d) was partially supported. Contrary to Hypothesis 4 (a–d), the interaction model of political skill and organizational justice did not present a significant effect on perceived career success (change in F of Model 4 = 2.21, p > .05).

Table 5.

Results of hierarchical regression analysis for moderation tests.

	Perceived internal marketability (InterM)				Perceived career success (CS)
	Model 1	Model 2	Model 3	Model 4	Model 1	Model 2	Model 3	Model 4
Controls
Gender	−0.07	0.08	0.06	0.06	−0.07	0.04	0.03	0.02
Tenure	0.03	0.05	0.01	0.02	0.23**	0.26***	0.24***	0.22***
Position	0.05	0.01	−0.02	0.00	0.08	0.07	0.05	0.07
Independent
NA		0.15*	0.13**	0.14**		0.12	0.11	0.08
AS		0.12	0.02	0.02		0.15*	0.08	0.07
SA		0.28***	0.19***	0.21***		0.05	−0.00	−0.01
II		0.28***	0.09	0.08		0.22**	0.14*	0.13
Moderator
OJ			0.58***	0.56***			0.35***	−0.08
Interaction
NA × OJ				0.02				0.03
AS × OJ				0.03				−0.47*
SA × OJ				−0.16**				0.03
II × OJ				0.13*				0.10
ΔR²	0.01	0.29***	0.27***	0.02*	0.09***	0.14***	0.10***	0.03
Change in F	0.77	21.94***	129.09***	2.87*	7.10***	9.37***	31.04***	2.21

Notes: N = 220. All variables, except gender, tenure, and position, are centered. Standardized regression coefficients are reported. NA = networking ability; AS = apparent sincerity; SA = social astuteness; II = interpersonal influence; OJ = organizational justice; InterM = perceived internal marketability; CS = perceived career success. *p < .05; **p < .01; ***p < .001 (two-tailed).

As recommended by Stone and Hollenbeck (1989), Figures 2 and 3 provide graphic representations of the significant interactions. The relationships between the independent variables (social astuteness and interpersonal influence) and the dependent variable (perceived internal marketability) are depicted at different levels of the moderator variable (i.e. one standard deviation above/below the mean of organizational justice). As hypothesized, Figure 2 shows that the positive relationship between social astuteness and perceived internal marketability grows weaker when organizational justice is higher. Conversely, Figure 3 shows that when organizational justice is higher, greater levels of interpersonal influence yield higher internal marketability. This is opposite the hypothesized direction of the relationship. Thus, only Hypothesis 3a is supported.

Discussion

This study tests Western notions of political skill in an Eastern setting and reveals an interesting contrast. Political skill is associated with increased levels of perceived internal marketability and perceived career success in mainland China despite the presence of merit-based pay and the rules that accompany it. Studies in the West have concentrated on the positive relationship between an integrated concept of political skill and its outcomes. Here, the link between each dimension of political skill and career outcomes is explored in a Confucian culture where guanxi is valued, power distance is high, and collectivist norms prevail. Apparently, these cultural characteristics produce a value for political skill that differs between East and West.

The confirmation of Hypotheses 1 (a–d) and 2 (a–d) substantiates that as the four dimensions of political skill increase, perceived internal marketability and perceived career success increase. Social influence theory and the conservation of resources theory explain these findings. Political skill refers to proficiency in influencing others, particularly in ambiguous work environments. As political skill facilitates the acquisition of resources, employees with high political skill are assets and gain internal marketability (Grandey and Cropanzano, 1999). Furthermore, organizational justice moderates the relationship between political skill and career outcomes in that it lessens the positive influence of social astuteness on perceived internal marketability. However, that is where similarity with Western expectations ends. In China, the link between interpersonal influence and perceived internal marketability strengthens in the presence of organizational justice, and organizational justice fails to moderate the relationship between political skills and career outcomes. Closer examination of the contrast between East and West clarifies this.

East versus West

These findings diverge from those of studies conducted in the West. Using a sample of US government workers, for example, Andrews et al. (2009) found that under conditions of high organizational justice, political skill was negatively related to performance. Perhaps that study and this one produced contradictory results due to individualist versus Confucian cultural values. Or, perhaps the interpretation of meaning for items pertaining to political skill differs linguistically. Or, it is possible that different work contexts account for different results (Van Der Wal et al., 2008). First, participants in this study came from government branches, the public utilities sector, and public enterprises in China. As a result of personnel management reforms from 1978 to the most recent 2006 Civil Servant Act, rank and career success are linked. This means that whether workers are valued as assets or whether they have a sense of success is likely to be judged by their rank and speed of promotions. This motivates employees to use their political skills. Second, research shows that people in different cultures use different criteria in implementing rules of justice (Jorgensen and Bozeman, 2007; Skarlicki, 2001). Koreans weigh seniority, education, and family size more heavily than do Americans when making judgments about pay fairness (Hundley and Kim, 1997). By contrast, Chinese respondents are more likely than Americans to consider the relationship that employees have with others (Zhou and Martocchio, 2001). Age, education, guanxi, and competence are four factors in promotion decisions, and guanxi is the most important factor, whereas competence is less important (Zuo, 2001). People with these customs do not abandon their political skills. Additionally, Lam et al. (2002) showed that the relationship between the perception of justice and work outcomes is stronger in low rather than high power distance settings. China has a high power distance culture. As promotions are only slightly based on performance – even in cases of greater organizational justice – workers may be more inclined to engage their political skill, particularly interpersonal influence.

Implications for practice

In China, these findings confirm that political skill acts as a predictor of career outcomes, even in a fair environment with clearly established pay-for-performance standards. Those with better political skill will have a better chance of achieving success in their careers and will have advantages in a guanxi-oriented culture. This finding echoes that of Lai et al (2013), who found that collectivist norms produce different worker behavior than do individualistic norms among Hong Kong workers.

Directions for future research and limitations of this study

These findings extend the research on political skill to workers in the Chinese public sector. Political skill is a concept derived from Western culture and the present study adds to the work of Lvina et al. (2012) by demonstrating its role in the East. The failure of organizational justice to moderate anything other than social astuteness highlights the impact of political skill.

A caveat is that the concept of organizational justice requires more study in comparative settings along with the assurance of measurement invariance. Moreover, self-reported measures are used to assess political skill, organizational justice, and career outcomes, and these may be affected by common source bias. Some researchers contend that self-reports and other-reports of political skill are largely equivalent (Meurs et al., 2010), but the risk of bias cannot be overlooked (Podsakoff et al., 2012). Respondents tend to have their own response style to items and this may be amplified by how questions are ordered or worded. This complicates the interpretation of meaningful relationships. Social desirability unique to each culture further complicates common source bias. Even when statistical corrections are applied, it is wise to treat survey research such as this as more of a windsock revealing the direction of a breeze rather than as a definitive declaration of certainty.

Additionally, the rules and principles of justice vary across cultures (Gelfand et al., 2007). Justice norms used for interpersonal exchange in China are based on face and favor (Hwang, 1987). This differs from Western norms, and more specific indices of organizational justice should be considered as moderators in future research. Finally, any causality implied by this study cannot be firmly established. A longitudinal design that re-examines these findings is advised. Indications are, however, that political influence in the Chinese work setting endures despite the presence of organizational justice.

Footnotes

Funding

This research was supported by the General Project of Humanities and Social Science Research of the Ministry of Education (14YJA630037) and the Humanity and Art Innovation Project of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (13TS06).

Xiaojun Lu is an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Administration, School of International and Public Affairs, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. Her research interests are in the areas of organizational behavior and human resource management, with a special focus on emotional labor, ethical issues of leadership, and organizational justice. Her recent research has appeared in Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal and Public Personnel Management.

Mary E. Guy is Professor of Public Administration at the School of Public Affairs, University of Colorado Denver, USA. She has published numerous books and articles on the subject of public service delivery and the human processes involved. Her recent research focuses on emotional labor and she has lectured internationally on the subject of emotionally intense jobs in public service. She is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and past President of the American Society for Public Administration.

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