Organizational Behavior Lecture 1 introduction to organizational behavior What is an organization? An organization is a social arrangement for achieving controlled performance in pursuit of collective goals What is organizational behavior? The scientific study of structure, functioning and performance of organizations, and the behavior of groups and individuals within them. Levels of study in OB 1) Individuals: how people behave and respond to changes 2) Group: how groups form and develop in organizations 3) Whole organization: what directions the organization wishes to go in, what strategic changes are planned and how they are to be implemented Contemporary issues in OB Diversity- welcoming and valuing difference Team-working a flexible way of organizing work Organization culture- shared values that shape the organizational performance Flexible working practices adaptability as a strategy Technology as a catalyst for change in organizations Organizational environment the issues, trends and events outside the boundaries of the organization which influence internal decisions and behaviors. Organizational boundaries Mental boundaries: relate to core ideas and concepts that are central and particular to the organization. Social boundaries: relate to the identity and social bonding tying the organization Physical boundaries: relate to formal rules and physical structures regulating human action and interaction in the organization External environment factors, leads to internal organization structures, Trends and development processes and behaviors
Technological innovation International trade Mature markets End of cold war Globalization More dangers, more competition, more speed More opportunities, new markets, fewer barriers Organizational adaptation and change External influences on organizations PESTLE analysis Political, economic, social, technological, legal and ecological. The external internal link detailed External environmental pressures: Political factors Economic factors Social factors Legislative factors Environmental factors Possible future scenarios Lead to change in External organization response: Organization strategy Organization structure Management style Working practices Employment patterns Innovative solutions
Specific organizational responses to environmental types
Lecture 2 - Personality Personality is concerned with understanding how individuals behave in patterned ways across time Personality in OB Dimensions of personality Genetic and environmental factors Work competencies Situational factors Job demands Overall job performance Idiographic versus nomothetic assumptions about personality Idiographic Personality cannot be measured meaningfully Phenomenological approach Environmental and social influences are seen as critical
Nomothetic Personality is predictable and measurable Positivistic approach Personality is largely inherited and resistant to change Statistical studies of large groups Idiographic theories The ideographic approach the study of personality emphasizes the uniqueness of individual, challenging the assumption that we can all be measured and compared on the same dimensions Psychoanalytic theories Focus on unconscious forces the personality results from a dynamic organization of internal instincts that determine individual s adjustment to his environment. Projective assessment techniques Are based on abstract or ambiguous images, which the person being assessed is asked to interpret in a manner, which reveals their inner feelings, and motives, as there are projected into their interpretations of the images presented. Thematic Apperception Test: person is asked to tell a story about the picture Rorschach Inkblot test: people are asked to report what they see. Kelly s theory of personal constructs - People learn behaviors through observing the behaviors of relevant others, they develop and test hypotheses about the social world Repertory grid technique Identify a list of elements or social objects that he/she is likely to have constructs about. Identify a list of bipolar constructs which can be differentiate between the chosen social elements Rate each element on each construct using a rating scale Nomothetic theories The nomothetic approach to the study of personality emphasizes the identification of universal personality traits and looks for systematic relationships between different aspects of personality. Trait theories concepts A personality type is a descriptive label for a distinct pattern of personality characteristics A personality trait is a relatively stable quality or attribute of an individual s personality influencing behavior in a particular direction
Big five personality types and some associated traits Personality in organizational settings: Personnel selection important predictor of job performance Training and development important predictor of stress and job related attitudes Typical job stressors: Working conditions Management style Job design Quality of relationships Job security Divided loyalties
Lecture 3 - Motivation Motivation Motivation is the cognitive decision-making process through, which goal-directed behavior is initiated, energized, directed and maintained. Key concepts in motivation theories - Drives: an innate, internal force that when activated by deprivation, produce specific behaviors - Motives: needs acquired through learning in social contexts that when activated by environmental stimuli produce specific behaviors Content theories of motivation are concerned with what motivates people. 1) Intrinsic motivation ( ex. Desire for meaningful work) 2) Extrinsic motivators ( ex pay) Process theories of motivation are concerned with how various factors; both psychological and material operate to produce motivated behavior.
Maslow s needs hierarchy Self-actualization.. the desire for personal fulfillment to develop our potential, to become everything that we are capable of becoming Alderfer s ERG theory 1) Existence needs (maslow s physiological and safety needs) 2) Relatedness needs (maslow s social and esteem needs) 3) Growth needs (maslow s self-actualisation needs) Herzberg s two factor theory
Vroom s expectancy theory Equity theories of motivation The equity calculus My rewards (my effort and contribution) = your rewards ( your effort and contribution) Motivational process in ET Equity theory: the causal chain 1) Perception of inequity 2) Experience of tension 3) Motivation of resolve 4) Action to resolve 5) Equity restored Strategies for reducing inequality Alter your outcomes Adjust your inputs Alter the comparison person s output Alter the comparison person s input Compare with someone else Rationalize the inequality Leave the group/organization Goal settings theory - People become satisfied when they achieve specific goals - The more difficult the goal, the greater the effort directed towards its achievement and the greater the satisfaction experienced on its achievement Important features of goals - Difficulty- goals should be difficult but not achievable - Specificity goals should be expressed in clear language in quantifiable terms - Participation goals that are negotiated are more motivating than those that are assigned
- Acceptance goals should be shared by the ones involved in goal accomplishments efforts - Feedback on progress towards goal achievement is critical Relationship between Goal difficulty & group performance Hackman and Oldham s job characteristics model Lecture 4 Learning Learning: is the key process of acquiring knowledge through experience which leads to an enduring change in behavior
Main learning theories: Behaviorist theories: classical conditioning theory, operant conditioning theory Cognitive learning theories: cybernetic theories; social learning theories Classical conditioning Conditioning type of learning in which an association is made between a stimulus and a response Classical conditioning the association of a response normally elicited by one stimulus to a new stimulus because the two are repeatedly paired Operant conditioning theory The learning process by which a given behavior is changed by the consequences of that behavior Types of behavioral consequences Positive reinforcement is the attempt to encourage desirable behaviors by introducing positive consequences when the desired behavior occurs Negative reinforcement is the attempt to encourage desirable behaviors by withdrawing negative consequences when the desired behavior occurs. Punishment is the attempt to eliminate or to weaken undesirable behaviors through the application of negative consequence following undesired behavior Operant conditioning summary Antecedents > behavior > consequences Behavioral modification is a set of techniques for encouraging desired behaviors and discouraging unwanted behaviors using the principles of operant conditioning
Behavior modification main steps Identify critical behaviors Measure the frequency of behaviors Establish the antecedents and consequences of these behaviors Develop an intervention strategy to strengthen the desired behaviors and weaken the dysfunctional ones Evaluate the effectiveness of interventions Punishment works when: - Its quick and short - Is limited in intensity - Is administered immediately after the behavior - Is closely related to the behavior - It is clear Cognitive learning theories Cognitive theories affirm that learning is internal and affected by meaning, thoughts and is based on information processing Socialization: the process through which individual behaviors, values, attitudes and motives are influenced to conform with those seen as desirable in a given social or organizational context.
Organizational learning: the process through which organizations process information in order to create valued outcomes like innovation, efficiency, environmental alignment and competitive advantage. Single loop learning: the ability to use feedback to make continuous adjustments and adaptations to maintain performance to a predetermined standard. Double loop learning: the ability to challenge and to redefine the assumptions underlying performance standards and to improve performance Lecture 6 Perception and communication Perception is the dynamic psychological process responsible for attending to, organizing and interpreting sensory data Recognize stimulus Combine specific features into more complex forms Detect specific features of stimulus Bottom-up processing Top-down processing Formulate perceptual hypothesis about the nature of the stimulus as a whole Select and examine features to check hypothesis Recognize stimulus
Perception and information processing: Selective attention Perceptual organization The process through which incoming stimuli are organized or patterned in systematic and meaningful ways Social perception Refers to the process that influence the way we perceive and make judgments about other people. Key concepts: Stereotypes and attitudes.
Sources of errors in person perception (stereotypes) Not collecting enough information Using irrelevant information Seeing only what we expect to see Allowing early information to affect judgment Basing our judgment on our own characteristics Using stereotypes uncritically Basing attribution on irrelevant evidence Personal information The more we know about someone, the less likely we are to rely on stereotypes Direct contact The more opportunities there are for focusing on the unique characteristics of individuals, the less likely it is that stereotypes will be used to make judgments Motivation In situations where individuals need to get to know one another, the more likely it is that stereotypes will reduce Check assumptions If we check our assumptions about the causes of behavior we are less prone to use stereotypes. Attitudes consist of three components: 1) Cognitive (beliefs about an object) 2) Affective (feelings about an objective) 3) Behavioral (ways of acting with respect to an object) Cognitive dissonance theory Cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we have an inner drive to hold all our attitudes and beliefs in harmony and avoid disharmony. Cognitive dissonance refers to a situation involving conflicting attitudes, beliefs or behaviors. This produces a feeling of discomfort leading to an alteration in one of the attitudes, beliefs or behaviors to reduce the discomfort and restore balance etc. The three components of organizational commitment 1) Continuance commitment a desire to remain with the organization 2) Affective commitment a positive feeling about working for the organization 3) Normative commitment- a belief in the organization s goals Communication The transmission of information and the exchange of meaning, between at least two people.
The communication process Barriers to effective communication Power differences Gender differences Physical surroundings Language Cultural diversity Limitations of the communication environment Dimensions of non-verbal behavior Eye movements/behavior Tone and pitch of voice Facial expressions Distance Posture Limb movements Effective communication guidelines Face-to-face Reality checks Time and place Empathetic listening Assertiveness Lecture 6 Individuals in groups Groups impact on - Individual self-perceptions - Individual performance - Individual behavior
- Individual attitudes Social influence- the process where attitudes and behaviors are influences by the real and implied presence of others Groups and self-representations Social identity the part of the self-concept derived from group membership Self-concept the set of perceptions we have about ourselves Self-esteem a set of evaluative judgments about ourselves Group influences on performance Social facilitation increase in individual performance due to the presence of others Social loafing- the tendency for individuals to exert less effort in group situations as compared to when working alone Social loafing in brainstorming N um ber of Ideas G enerated 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 67 72 4 8 3 4 2 5 1 2 4 8 12 Number o f G rou p M em bers A relative increase in group output..and a decrease in individual output People are more motivated when they think their work is identifiable and separable from the work of others in the team An integrated model of social influence Presence of others Individual efforts can be evaluated Individual efforts cannot be evaluated Alertness Relaxation Performance in simple tasks goes UP Performance in complex tasks goes DOWN Performance in simple tasks goes DOWN Performance in complex tasks goed UP
Group influences on individual behavior and attitudes Group norms regulate individual behavior Norms = expected modes of behavior and beliefs that are established either formally of informally Pivotal norms = central to group objectives Peripheral norms = important but not crucial for group performance Conformity A change in beliefs or behavior in response to real or imagined group pressure when there is no direct request to comply with the group nor any reason to justify the behavior change Normative influence The normative social influence involves conforming in order to be accepted or liked by a group, not necessarily because one actually believes the things one is doing or saying. Informational influence Informational is basically when we conform to others behavior because we believe it provides information about reality. It is often when we care about getting the right answer and trying to be rational. Group norms are important because.. They facilitate group task achievement and group survival They increase the predictability of group member s behaviors They reduce the embarrassing interpersonal problems for group members They express groups core values and identity Group norms formation Explicit statement by supervisor Critical events in group s history Initial pattern of behaviors Transfer behaviors from past situations Individual obedience to group norms
Conversion The shift of private opinions, beliefs or attitudes of the group members as a result of a divergent opinion systematically expressed and defended by a minority Minorities are efficient when They are visible Create a cognitive tension Are consistent Are persistent Are unyielding Are self-confident Seek defectors from majority Obedience to authority A situation in which an individual changes his/her behavior in response to direction from others