Article Critique: Malignant Manipulation at Work in Organizations

This report provides a detailed critique of the article "Malignant manipulation at work: a qualitative exploration of strategies and tactics" by Torka and Zagelmeyer (2013). The critique examines the article's discussion of subtle manipulation tactics within business organizations, focusing on how manipulators use these tactics to foster self-interest, irrespective of the organization's impact. The report analyzes the authors' qualitative approach to data analysis, their use of theoretical sampling, and the implementation of questionnaires and interviews while maintaining confidentiality. The critique highlights the article's findings on offensive and non-offensive manipulation tactics, its reliance on existing literature, and its aim to develop policies to address manipulation. The report also assesses the research question, methodology, sample size limitations, and the validity of the conclusions, drawing comparisons with other research. The critique emphasizes the importance of understanding and addressing the detrimental effects of manipulation on workforce conditions and organizational outcomes, as well as the importance of addressing the research questions.

Running head: ATRICLE CRITIQUE
ATRICLE CRITIQUE
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ATRICLE CRITIQUE
Torka and Zagelmeyer (2013) in the article entitled “Malignant manipulation at work: a
qualitative exploration of strategies and tactics” attempt a discussion on the identification of the
several subtle tactics and techniques that are implemented by the several manipulators who have
been malignantly operating at the several hierarchical levels within the given business
organization. The article in discussion attempts to deal with the issues that are related to the
practice of manipulation that might take place within the concerned organization. The concerned
article aims to deal with the malignancy in the manipulation within the given organization. This
might lead to the conditions wherein the concerned manipulator have been having a number of
benefits for the person himself. The implementation of the given tactics helps the concerned
person might help the concerned person to foster the self-interest of he concerned person. This
action according to the authors is irrespective of the positive or the negative influences that the
concerned manipulation has on the given organization.
The authors of the research focus majorly on the identification, the understanding and the
analysis of the issues that are faced by the concerned organization. The authors aim to put forth a
qualitative approach towards the methods that are adopted in order to analyze the collected data.
The authors had implemented the theoretical sampling principles in order to deal with the needed
sampling methods within the given situation. The studies majorly discussed the methods that are
necessary in order to complete the study using the secondary methods of research. The
respondents of the study were also provided with a proper questionnaire that might help with the
interviews that were conducted for the completion of the research. The article implemented the
conditions of confidentiality within the interview respondents that were gathered for the
completion of the study. The findings of the article suggest that the manipulators use both
offensive as well as non-offensive tactics in order to complete the job at hand. The article further

2ATRICLE CRITIQUE
discusses that the composition of the article is hugely based on the discussions as are present
within the existent literature. The study attempts a discussion on the darker side of the working
life that is maintained by the concerned employees who have been working within the given
organization. The article also aims at the development of the policies within the given
organization which might address the issues that are related to the malignancy in the
manipulation that might occur within the given business organization.
The given article in discussion, depicts a proper and clear research question. The research
article aims at answering the research question in a very clear and legible manner. The article in
discussion aims to answer the alternative methods in the proper manner as well. The sample size
that was undertaken for the given research on the article is extremely low therefore leading to the
conditions that bars the generalization of the derived results. This situation can be observed in
the other researches as well wherein the large sample size has helped in the generalization of the
results that were received on the analysis of the data that was collected for the study as is found
in the case of the article by Agervold (2007). The methodology that is implemented is known to
maintain the coherence and the appropriateness within the given article. The authors aim to put
forth a qualitative approach towards the methods that are adopted in order to solve the article.
The authors had implemented the theoretical sampling principles in order to deal with the needed
sampling methods within the given situation. This helped in the deriving of results despite the
low range of the interview responses that were collected for the completion of the study. The
studies majorly discussed the methods that are necessary in order to complete the study using the
secondary methods of research (Einarsen, Aasland & Skogstad, 2016). The respondents of the
study were also provided with a proper questionnaire that might help with the interviews that
were conducted for the completion of the research. The article further depicts the use of the

3ATRICLE CRITIQUE
open-ended survey questionnaire in order to deal with the collection of the required number of
the responses that are implemented within the given organization.
The implementation of the several methods for the collection of the required data tends to
broaden the scope of the research as well. The given article further deal with the issues that are
needed for the implementation of the policies that seem to address the manipulation issue. The
addressal of these issues within the organization might help in the reduction of the detrimental
conditions within the workforce of the company as well as the detrimental effects on the overall
outcomes of the organizational activities within the organization (Karatuna, 2015). The results of
the survey are observed to be in accordance to the research questions that have been presented
within the article. The conclusions of the article are valid as well as in accordance to the
problems that were discussed within the given article (Patterson et al., 2018). The conclusions
that were drawn from the discussions and the survey results were duly concluded from the
article. The conclusions maintained a proper logical flow from the concerned article. The article
sheds the required amount of light on the matters that are related to the malignant manipulation
within the concerned business organization. The given article also aims at the discussion on the
ways to avoid the detrimental effects of the manipulation among the employees of the
organization.
Thus, from the above discussion, it might be derived that the malignancy of the
manipulation within the organization might lead to the conditions wherein the concerned
manipulator have been having a number of benefits for the person himself. The implementation
of the given tactics helps the concerned person might help the concerned person to foster the
self-interest of he concerned person. The article discusses that the composition is hugely based
on the discussions as are present within the existent literature. The study attempts a discussion on

4ATRICLE CRITIQUE
the darker side of the working life that is maintained by the concerned employees who have been
working within the given organization.

5ATRICLE CRITIQUE
References
Agervold, M. (2007). Bullying at work: A discussion of definitions and prevalence, based on an
empirical study. Scandinavian journal of psychology, 48(2), 161-172.
Einarsen, S., Aasland, M. S., & Skogstad, A. (2016). The nature and outcomes of destructive
leadership behavior in organizations. Risky Business: Psychological, Physical and
Financial Costs of High Risk Behavior in Organizations, 323.
Karatuna, I. (2015). Targets’ coping with workplace bullying: a qualitative study. Qualitative
Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal, 10(1), 21-37.
Patterson, E., Branch, S., Barker, M., & Ramsay, S. (2018). Playing with power: Examinations
of types of power used by staff members in workplace bullying–a qualitative interview
study. Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International
Journal, 13(1), 32-52.
Torka, N., & Zagelmeyer, S. (2013). Malignant manipulation at work: a qualitative exploration
of strategies and tactics. Studies of Organisational Management & Sustainability, 1(2),
143-169.