Office Politics: The Reduction of Employees’ Need for Power
Zulkiflee Daud, Dr. Mohd Faizal Mohd Isa, Dr. Wan Shakizah Wan Mohd Nor, Dr. Zairani Zainol

Abstract
This study examined the relationship between need for power and personal attributes with the perception on office politics. It involved 130 government officers who are in grade 41 to 44 and serve in government agencies in Northern Region of Peninsular Malaysia. They are selected by using disproportionate stratified random sampling method. In measuring perception of office politics, this study has adopted Kachmar and Carlson’s (1997) perception of politics measurement. In addition, personal attribute was measured by adopting Personal Attributes Questionnaire developed by Spence and Helmreich (in Ward, Thorn, Clements, Dixon and Sanford, 2006) and the researcher has utilized Needs Assessment Questionnaire (NAQ) constructed by Heckert, Cuneio, Hannah, Adams, Droste, Mueller, Wallis, Griffin and Roberts (1999) to measure need for power. Correlation and regression analyses results have exhibited that both factors of need for power, namely need for dominating and need for authority, have a significant negative relationships and effect on perceptions of politics. This result has carried evidence that when employees feel that politics become a dirty game in an office, they tend to reduce their need for dominating and need for authority in implementing their job. A dirty political game will reduce employees’ motivation. Hence, they will just follow the instruction ordered by their superior without showing their creativity.

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