Organizational Behavior

Organizational Behavior (OB)

Definition

Organizational Behavior (OB) is a field of study that investigates the impact of individuals, groups, and structure on behavior within organizations to improve organizational effectiveness.

Contributing Disciplines

  • Psychology: Motivation, perception, stress management.

  • Social Psychology: Group dynamics, leadership.

  • Sociology: Communication, conflict.

  • Anthropology: Culture, social norms.

  • Economics: Incentives, compensation.

  • Political Science: Politics, society.

Key Concepts

  • Behavior: Response to stimuli, influenced by person and environment. B=f[PxE]B = f[P x E] where PP includes education, skills, and personality, and EE covers working conditions and motivation.

  • Overt Behavior: Observable actions (e.g., handling a machine).

  • Covert Behavior: Non-observable actions (e.g., feelings, attitudes).

Goals of OB

  • Describe: How people behave.

  • Understand: Why people behave that way.

  • Predict: Future behavior.

  • Control: Manage behavior for productivity.

Nature of OB

  • Interdisciplinary and applied science.

  • Focuses on individual, group, and organizational behavior.

  • Normative and value-centered, oriented towards organizational objectives.

Role of OB

  • Improves efficiency and enhances motivation.

  • Facilitates adaptation to change and guides effective leadership.

Understanding Human Behavior

  • Personality and individual differences.

  • Motivational drivers.

  • Behavioral psychology concepts.

  • Learning and development principles.

Levels of Analysis

  • Individual Level: Personality traits, values, attitudes, and motivation.

  • Group Level: Team dynamics, roles, norms, leadership styles, and decision-making processes.

  • Interpersonal Level: Communication styles, conflict management, power dynamics, trust, and reciprocity.

  • Intergroup Level: Intergroup conflict, organizational culture, collaboration mechanisms, power structures, and diversity efforts.

Controlling Human Behavior

Establish clear expectations, use reinforcement and motivation techniques, implement monitoring and feedback systems, and manage conflict constructively.

Organizational Adaptation

Manage resistance to change, cultivate flexibility, support leadership, and align goals with employee values.

Limitations of OB

  • Lack of unified theory.

  • Behavioral bias.

  • Law of diminishing returns.

  • Potential for unethical manipulation.

Foundations of Individual Behavior

Personal Factors

  • Age, sex, education, abilities, marital status.

  • Number of dependents and creativity.
    *Emotional Intelligence

Psychological Factors

  • Personality, perception, attitudes, values, learning.

Environmental Factors

  • Economic conditions, social norms, cultural values.

  • Ethics and social responsibility, political factors.

Key Individual Factors

  • Age: Impacts performance, turnover, absenteeism.

  • Education: Influences expectations.

  • Ability: Capacity to perform tasks.

  • Marital Status: Affects absenteeism, turnover, and satisfaction.

  • Creativity: Cognitive activity resulting in novel solutions.
    *Emotional Intelligence helps us monitor our emotions

Personality, Emotions, Values, Beliefs, and Attitudes

  • Personality influences individual behavior

  • Wrong personality causes unwanted consequences

Economic and Cultural Factors

  • Economic factors (e.g., employment opportunities, wage rates).

  • Cultural environment influences values, perceptions, and work ethics.

Core Areas of OB

  • Motivation, leader behavior, interpersonal communication.

  • Group structure and processes, attitude development and perception.

  • Change processes, conflict and negotiation, work design.

Challenges for Managers

  • Economic Pressures, Globalization, Workforce diversity.

  • Customer service, people skills, and networked organizations.

  • Employee well-being and positive work environment.

OB Model

Inputs

Individual diversity, personality, values, group structure, culture.

Processes

Emotions, motivation, communication, leadership, HRM.

Outcomes

Attitudes, task performance, cohesion, productivity.

Diversity in Organizations

Reasons for Increasing Diversity

Changing workforce demographics, legislation, international business, and diverse viewpoints.

Workforce Diversity

Incorporates variety of characteristics such as age, culture, physical abilities, race, religion, gender, socioeconomic status.

Benefits of Workplace Diversity

Variety of perspectives, increased creativity, innovation, profits, engagement, better decision-making, and improved reputation.

Layers of Diversity

Personality, internal/external dimensions, and organizational dimensions.

Forms of Workplace Diversity

Demographic diversity based on age, race, gender, etc. Surface-level (observable characteristics) and deep-level diversity (values, personality).

Challenges in Workforce Diversity

Communication issues, cultural misunderstandings, discrimination, stereotyping, and resistance to change.

Forms of Discrimination

Discriminatory policies, intimidation, mockery, exclusion, and incivility.

Overcoming Stereotypes

Individual actions, cultural intervention, and institutional intervention.

Managing Diversity

Focus on culture, create an inclusive environment, provide training, promote fair compensation, and develop equitable policies.

Attitudes

Components of Attitude

  • Cognitive (evaluation).

  • Affective (feeling).

  • Behavioral (action).

Cognitive Dissonance

Inconsistency between attitudes and behavior. Individuals seek to reduce dissonance.

Job Attitudes

  • Job satisfaction: Positive feelings about a job.

  • Job involvement: Identifying with a job.

  • Organizational commitment: Loyalty to the organization.

  • Perceived organizational support: Belief that the organization values contributions.

Causes of Job Satisfaction

Job conditions, personality, pay, and social support.

Outcomes of Job Satisfaction

Performance, organizational citizenship behavior, customer satisfaction, reduced turnover.

Responses to Dissatisfaction

Exit, voice, loyalty, neglect.

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Psychological Capital

Hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism.