This is one of those studies that produces effects in an experiment, but may be so oversimplified that it doesn't apply to real organizational life. But it is cool.

As BPS Research reports, a recent pair of experiments by Haifa University Researcher researcher Nurit Tal-Or examined the impact of bragging about those close to you versus bragging about yourself. She found that this "indirect self-promotion, known as 'burnishing' carries all the costs of bragging but none of the gains." For example, Dr. Nurit Tal-Orng second experiment showed (similar to her first) that "The boasting student, whether done directly or indirectly, was rated by participants as more manipulative than the control version student. And yet only the student who boasted about himself was rated as more able than the control student."

Dr. Tal-Or speculates that these findings happened because "When people boast about the success of other people, this need to bask in the reflected glory of the success of others may be perceived as pathetic and unworthy of respect.'" Or perhaps because "when people brag about their associates' success, their audience may suspect that they themselves do not have any successes of their own to be proud of." These interpretations seem possible, and this research does call into question the value of bragging about others at least in situations where people have just met and don't have -- or expect to have -- long-term relationships. But, for me, two critical pieces of the puzzle are missing (although I am not trying to be overly critical, all research is incomplete and no one study can answer every question).

The first is that this research (apparently) doesn't consider the effect of the bragging on the perceived ability of those who were praised. So, if other people are saying how great you are, it may not help them much, but it may help you. The second, related, issue is that in organizational life, friends and allies often have implicit or even explicit "exchange relationships" where they brag about each other -- so they do not come across as arrogant but word still spreads of their successes (although Tal-O's study suggests that bragging about others can make you look manipulative too, so perhaps this method doesn't work as well as many people believe).

These concerns and questions aside, it is still a surprising study, and, well, I guess that there might be times when you are better-off bragging about yourself than your colleagues, relatives, and so on because it helps you come across as competent (if still manipulative). I am not wild about the implications, I confess, because these results may encourage people to rave about themselves -- but it appears that this is an evidence-base method for convincing others that you are competent.

So much for modesty. Beware, however, that this is essentially a study of what kind of bragging creates the best first impression on strangers who meet for the first time. Over time, people who constantly brag about themselves may damage their reputations as colleagues tire of their relentless chest-pounding and arrogance -- and come to see them as annoying braggarts.

P.S. The citation is Tal-Or, N. (2010). Direct and indirect self-promotion in the eyes of the perceivers. Social Influence, 5 (2), 87-100