Redefining Organizational Politics: Implications for Organizational Climate and Work-Role Innovation in Family-Owned SMEs
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24310/ejfb.16.1.2026.21465Keywords:
Perception of organizational politics, Organizational climate, Work-role innovation, Family SMEs, Socioemotional wealthAbstract
This study examines how perceived organizational politics influence work-role innovation in family-owned small and medium-sized enterprises, with organizational climate as a mediating variable. Drawing on the socioemotional wealth perspective, we argue that these political perceptions in family firms are interpreted through relational, affective, and trust-based logics that shape employees' shared understanding of the work environment. Using survey data from 421 employees across 134 Mexican family-owned firms, we tested a mediation model linking organizational politics, organizational climate, and work-role innovation through regression-based mediation analysis and structural equation modeling. The results indicate that perceived organizational politics are positively associated with organizational climate, which in turn has a strong positive effect on work-role innovation. The direct relationship between organizational politics and innovation was not statistically significant, whereas the indirect effect through organizational climate was positive and significant, indicating a full mediation pattern. These findings challenge the dominant view of organizational politics as inherently dysfunctional by demonstrating their context-dependent effects in family firms. By identifying organizational climate as the central mechanism linking political perceptions and innovation, this study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of informal influence and innovation processes in family-owned firms.
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The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author (E.R.S.) upon reasonable request.
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