Dear Readers,

I am pleased to launch a new interactive "series" on this blog: "Credit and Blame at Work".

I'm currently working on a book about credit and blame, and will give due credit to anyone who can post an interesting response or a helpful link in response to the topics that we will be exploring together.

Why credit and blame? Because in my experience as an organizational psychologist, consultant and executive coach, the dynamics of credit and blame are at the heart of every workplace, for better or for worse.

Credit and blame is where "the energy is", and can either be a source of cohesion and commitment or anger and resentment.

We'll be looking at the various ways in which people piss each other off in the workplace by the manner in which they either hog credit or deny blame. We'll explore the individual psychology, relationship dynamics, team dynamics, and organizational culture factors that help determine how credit and blame play out. Although we will often talk about how bosses use and abuse credit and blame, we will also talk about how peers or even subordinates can have a role in playing the blame game.