
Nicknames are abundant in today's workplace, but are they helpful in fostering a healthy work culture?
According to recent research by Ivey Business School's Zhe Zhang and University of New Hampshire's Shuili Du, close to nine out of 10 U.S. adults have either been called by a nickname at work or seen someone else be called by a nickname. The report asks how using nicknames affects staff’s experience at work.
The study was published on Nov. 1 by the Harvard Business Review (HBR). The authors asked over 1,100 U.S.-based adults and conducted a series of experiments to determine the role and impact of nicknames in the office.
In an article in HBR on the study, the researchers said that when it comes to nicknames, they do not refer to shorter names for individuals. The word comes from the Old English “eke name,” which means an added name, typically giving the name a new identity. Examples are “The Oracle of Omaha” for Warren Buffett, “Space Cowboy” for Elon Musk, “Neutron Jack” for Jack Welch and “Kate the Great” for former Washington Post CEO Katherine Graham.
According to the two researchers, studies have shown that utilizing friendly nicknames can be a great way to solidify personal relationships similar to those between friends or romantic couples, which is different from many professional relationships that are commonly hierarchical. However, further research has yet to determine how this power dynamic might influence people’s attitudes about using nicknames in the workplace.
In their study, Zhang and Du asked the participants questions designed to evaluate how psychologically safe, powerful and respected they would feel in this workplace. Zhang and Du found that using nicknames at work can sometimes have positive effects, although not always.
Well-intentioned nicknames are not always good or bad. Specifically, the results indicated that respondents who were told that their boss called an employee by a nickname would feel less psychologically safe, powerful and respected at work than those who were told that their boss called an employee by their formal name. Conversely, participants who were told that employees called their supervisor by the same nickname reported that they would feel more psychologically safe, powerful and more respected compared to those who were told that employees called their boss by their formal name.
Looking further into the data, Zhang and Du found that these effects were driven by differences in participants’ perceptions of how communally oriented the boss seemed. When participants were told that employees called their supervisor by a nickname, they reported feeling that the supervisor seemed more focused on the group's needs and interests. By contrast, when participants learned that their boss called an employee by a nickname, they viewed the boss as less communal, thus causing them to feel that the workplace would be less psychologically safe.
Both also found that an organization’s hierarchical structure has a crucial role in the effects of nicknaming. In a follow-up study, they told half of the respondents that observance of hierarchy is critical in their firm while telling the other half that there is little hierarchy in the company. After this exercise, they asked respondents the same questions regarding how psychologically safe, powerful and respected they would feel in this workplace and found that the impact of using nicknames was much greater when participants knew that the workplace was more hierarchical. In contrast, when the workplace was more flat, the impact of using nicknames became much less substantial, or even completely gone.
So, what does this mean for managers? The research has several practical lessons for leaders and organizations.
It’s okay to use nicknames for the boss. The findings suggest that managers should not dissuade their staff from calling them by their nicknames. While managers might be tempted to stop nickname use altogether fearing that would seem unprofessional, the research demonstrated that doing so may actually make the managers appear impersonal and unapproachable. The studies demonstrate that emboldening workers to use nicknames is a good practice for managers to send the message that they view themselves as part of the team for a more inclusive workplace. However, nicknames have to come up naturally and cannot be forced or they might backfire.
Avoid nicknames for employees. Managers should be wary about calling their subordinates nicknames. Although it could be seen as fun, the data showed that even using a friendly and well-intentioned nickname could cause harm. Given that professional relationships commonly have power disparities, nicknaming an employee can make managers seem like they are abusing their power. Even worse, with workers usually relying on their supervisor for performance evaluations and promotions, they might be especially hesitant to express their discomfort with a nickname, which makes it more difficult to address the problem. Firms should develop clear policies while training managers about appropriate nickname usage.
Consider the firm’s organizational culture. Zhang and Du also found that the harmful impact of calling a direct report by a nickname was more evident in organizations with highly hierarchical cultures. So it is crucial to consider the company’s unique culture before settling on an approach. When determining whether to use nicknames, managers and leaders should take into account how hierarchical their organization is—and if their culture is especially hierarchical, they should probably avoid using nicknames for their staff. However, Zhang and Du also suggest managers in less hierarchical workplaces closely monitor the impacts of nicknames on key indicators of employee well-being and adjust their approach accordingly.
Don’t use mean nicknames. Mean or derogatory nicknames are never okay, although research demonstrates that using friendly nicknames can sometimes be beneficial. Other research has demonstrated that microaggressions, such as calling someone by a demeaning nickname, can have an immediate and harmful impact both on the well-being of the person and on the entire team’s effectiveness. In some extreme instances, utilizing inappropriate nicknames at work can lead to lawsuits.
When in doubt, communicate. Finally, if unsure if it’s okay to utilize someone’s nickname, just ask. Find a private moment to check in with the person to make sure they are comfortable with the nickname. Cultural and linguistic preferences are inherently highly subjective. These norms may vary substantially in different kinds of workplaces and global cultures. Though the studies only looked at U.S.-based employees, research shows that individuals from different global cultures might have very different norms and expectations about the appropriateness of using nicknames.
Furthermore, even within the same general culture, different workplaces and individuals are probably going to experience nicknames differently depending on their unique experiences and perspectives. That said, overall, both researchers said that their study indicated that encouraging employees to call their supervisors by their nicknames can be a boost to the organization, especially in more hierarchical workplaces, but that when supervisors call subordinates by nicknames, worker well-being might suffer.