Customer Reviews

From Hire to Liar: The Role of Deception in the Workplace

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Author David Shulman states that deception is a necessary element of the modern workplace "unless, of course, you think the best thing to do is tell your annoying boss or client what you really think, or to comply with every cumbersome rule or unnecessary piece of paperwork that slows down your performance." Dishonesty is a policy, whether it is gossiping, fibbing to cover up a botched deadline, sweet-talking your boss, underestimating costs to win a bid, or surfing the web on company time.

Shulman's book makes a case study of both official, sanctioned workplaces deception (the work of a private eye, for example) and unofficial deceptive behavior. The author examines the ethics of deception on an everyday level, probing the spectrum from trivial white lies to grave criminal acts. He even forces workers and organizations to confront deception head-on, discovering that workers tend to cite game theory for lying, while organizations tend to decry bad apples among the worker population.

The author deftly combines both aggregate and anecdotal research methods. (The appendix has comprehensive research design notes, and hundreds of works are cited.) Shulman's thesis carries academic weight due to his methodology, but his first person interviews reveal truths that resonate with any modern office worker. One respondent told Shulman, "Rules are elastic - they bend enough to let powerful people slip by and then snap back into shape to prevent less powerful people from doing the same thing." Shulman found that workers are identified as trustworthy if they cover up necessary violations, leading to a key sense of harmony in the office environment.

This slim volume is impeccably organized and to-the-point. One can read the opening and closing chapters to glean the executive summary and then quickly reference the more detailed information in the heart of the book. Includes citations and extensive chapter notes.

I will have to say, I am shocked at lying everywhere. I bought this because I became aware of lying everywhere I go. It is a good read.