Organisational behaviour(Introduction)

ORGANISATIONAL

BEHAVIOUR

INTRODUCTION

Definition

It is the field of study that investigates the impact of individuals, groups and structure on behaviour in the organisation for the purpose of applying such knowledge towards improving organizational effectiveness

It is a systematic study of the behaviour and attitudes of both individuals and groups within the organisations

Concerns itself with the scientific study or the behavioral process which occurs in work settings”

Focuses on understanding and explaining

individual and group behaviours in

organisations

It is concerned with what people do in an

organisation and how that behaviour affects

performance

The understanding, prediction and

management of human behaviour in the

organisations

More micro than macro

OB is a field of study that investigates the

impact that individuals, groups, and structure

have on behaviour within an organization.

OB focuses on improving productivity,

reducing absenteeism and turnover, and

increasing employee job satisfaction and

organizational commitment.

OB uses systematic study to improve

predictions of behaviour.

OT vs. OB vs. HRM

Organizational Theory

Focuses on the organisation as the unit

of analysis. Organizational attributes

such as goals, technology and culture

are the subject of study.

Organizational theory often uses an

across-organizational approach or macro

perspective in gathering new knowledge.

Human resources management

Attempts to apply the principles of the behavioral sciences in the workplace

While OB is somewhat more concept oriented, HRM is more concerned with applied techniques and behavioral technology.

HRM tries to provide a link between the individual and the organisation by designing and implementing systems to attract, develop and motivate individuals within the organisation

OB

Emphasis on the

scientific study of

behavioral

phenomena at

individual and group

level

Level of analysis -

Micro/theory oriented

OT

Focuses largely on

organizational and

environmental

phenomena

Level of analysis -

Macro/theory

oriented

HRM

Focuses on the

application of

behavioral

knowledge in

selecting, placing,

and training personal

Level of analysis -

Micro/application

oriented field of

study

The Rigour of OB

OB looks at consistencies

What is common about behaviour, and helps predictability?

OB is more than common sense

Systematic study, based on scientific evidence

OB has few absolutes

OB takes a contingency approach

Considers behaviour in context

Beyond Common Sense

Systematic Study

Looking at relationships, attempting to attribute causes and effects and drawing conclusions based on scientific evidence Behaviour is generally predictable

There are differences between individuals

There are fundamental consistencies

There are rules (written & unwritten) in almost every setting

Exhibit 1-3

Basic OB Model, Stage I

Organization systems level

Group level

Individual level

Contributing Disciplines to the

OB Field

Psychology

Sociology

Social Psychology

Anthropology

Political Science

Contributing Disciplines to the

OB Field

E X H I B I T 1-3a

Contributing Disciplines to the

OB Field (cont’d)

E X H I B I T 1-3b

Contributing Disciplines to the

OB Field (cont’d)

E X H I B I T 1-3c

Contributing Disciplines to the

OB Field (cont’d)

E X H I B I T 1-3d

Exhibit 1-2

Toward an OB Discipline

Social psychology

Psychology

Behavioural science

Contribution Unit ofanalysis

Output

Anthropology

Sociology

Political science

Study ofOrganizational

Behaviour

Organizationsystem

LearningMotivationPerceptionTrainingLeadership effectivenessJob satisfactionIndividual decision makingPerformance appraisalAttitude measurementEmployee selectionWork designWork stress

Group dynamicsWork teamsCommunicationPowerConflictIntergroup behaviour

Formal organization theoryOrganizational technologyOrganizational changeOrganizational culture

ConflictIntraorganizational politicsPower

Organizational cultureOrganizational environment

Behavioural changeAttitude changeCommunicationGroup processesGroup decision making

Group

Comparative valuesComparative attitudesCross-cultural analysis

Individual

WHY BOTHER STUDY

ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

1. Practical application

2. Personal growth

3. Increased knowledge

Practical application

There are important practical benefits to understanding the principles of organizational behaviour:

Development of personal styles of leadership can be guided by knowledge of the results of studies of OB that have attempted to relate leadership styles to situational requirements

The choice of problem solving strategy or the selection of appropriate employee appraisal format can be guided by an understanding of the results of studies in the associated topic areas

Practical application (cont..)

In the area of performance enhancement, benefits can be gained by applying knowledge gathered in the field of OB

Because the environment in which the organisation operates is increasing in complexity, one must understand how to design effective organizational structures and how to relate to individuals from diverse and often international background

Being able to deal effectively with others in organizational settings requires understanding of OB

Practical application (cont..)

Attracting and developing talented individuals are 2 issues critically important to the survival and prosperity of an organisation

Emphasis of human element instead of on technical financial and other tangible resources often separate competing organisations when it comes to organizational performance. This occurs because all serious competitors in a given industry are likely to have attained nearly the same level of technical sophistication

2.PERSONAL GROWTH

The second reason for studying OB is the personal fulfillment we gain form understanding our fellow human

Understanding others may also lead to greater self-knowledge and self insight

Such personal growth is an aspect of education that is often cited as the greatest benefit of studying the liberal arts and sciences

Personal growth (cont…)

Advancement in the business world It is also important for advancement in business world – it can

make a difference when it comes to advancing beyond an entry level position.

Entry level hiring are based largely on technical competency, such as certification in a specialized area e.g. CPA. Bachelor’s degree, MBA etc.

Promotions however are often based on more that mere technical competency.

They are based on demonstrated abilities to understand and work effectively with superiors, peer and subordinated.

In short, an understanding of organizational behaviour may be invaluable to you once you have that first job and seek to

distinguish yourself

3.INCREASED KNOWLEDGE

To gather knowledge about people in a work setting

At minimum, the filed seeks to gather knowledge for its own sake just like some sciences like Physics and chemistry; the practical use of certain findings may not be practical for years.

Same could apply to Organizational Behaviour. Some early theories were not of immediate use but are today useful

Additionally, the study of OB can help one think in a critical fashion about matters that relate to experience of working. Such critical thinking ability can be useful in analyzing both employees and personal problems

challenges facing organisations today

that have made it necessary for

managers to Study OB

Exhibit 1-1 Challenges Facing

the Workplace

Workplace

Organizational Level

• Productivity• Developing Effective Employees• Global Competition• Managing in the Global Village

Group Level

• Working With Others• Workforce Diversity

Individual Level

• Job Satisfaction• Empowerment• Behaving Ethically

Today’s Challenges in the

Workplace

Challenges at the Individual Level

Job Satisfaction

Empowerment

Behaving Ethically

Challenges at the Group Level

Working With Others

Workforce Diversity

Today’s Challenges in the

Workplace

Challenges at the Organizational Level

Productivity

Developing Effective Employees

Absenteeism

Turnover

Organizational Citizenship

Competition From the Global Environment

Managing and Working in a Global Village

Productivity

Productivity

A performance measure including effectiveness and efficiency

Effectiveness

Achievement of goals

Efficiency

The ratio of effective work output to the input required to produce the work

Effective Employees

Absenteeism

Failure to report to work

Turnover

Voluntary and involuntary permanent withdrawal

from the organization

Organizational citizenship behaviour

Discretionary behaviour that is not part of an

employee’s formal job requirements, but is helpful

to the organization

Challenges facing organisations

1. Improving quality and productivity

More and more managers are confronted with the challenge of having to improve their organisations productivity and the quality of their products and services.

In improving quality and productivity, they are implementing programmes like TQM and Business Process Reengineering (BPR)

2. Improving people skills/interpersonal skills

OB gives the manager the opportunity to completely exercise insight in behaviour, how to alter the behaviour and generally improve interpersonal skills

The subject matter of OB helps both practicing managers as well as potential managers to develop skills that can be used on the job

Challenges facing organisations

(cont…)

3. Managing workforce diversity

Workforce diversity has important implication for management – managers will need to shift their philosophy form treating everyone alike to recognizing differences and responding to them in ways that will ensure employee retention and greater productivity.

4. Responding to Globalization

The world today is continuous becoming global village. Organisations no longer constraint themselves to national boarders.

OB provides us with fundamental concepts to enable us focus on how cultural differences might require managers to modify their managerial practices

Challenges facing organisations

(cont…)

5. Empowering people

Managers are empowering employees; they are putting employees of what to do.

They have to learn how to give up control and employees have to learn how to take up responsibility for their work.

6. Stimulating innovativeness and change

This implies that today successful organisations must foster innovation and master the art of change, or they become extinct.

Victory will go to organisation that maintain flexibility, continually improve quality and beating competition in the market place

Challenges facing organisations

(cont…)

7. Coping with temporariness

Today change is an ongoing activity for most manages.

Managing in the past could be characterized by long periods of stability, interrupted occasionally by short periods of change.

But managing today could be described as long period of on going change, interrupted occasionally by short periods of stability

The world that most managers and employees face today is that of permanent temporariness.

There is permanent change in the jobs themselves, so workers need to continuously update their knowledge and skills to perform new jobs requirements

Today managers and employees must learn to cope with temporariness. They have to live with flexibility and unpredictability.

Challenges facing organisations

(cont…)

8. Dealing with employees’ loyalty

Today, organisations seek to be lean, and mean by closing down operations, moving to low cost regions, closing the less profitable branches, and eliminating entire levels of managing and replacing permanent employees with temporary ones.

These kinds of changes result in a decline of employee loyally. Employees perceive that their employers are less committed to them and as a result, they result to being committed to their employer

The manager therefore is to devise ways to motivate workers who feel less committed to their employers, but at the same time maintain organizational global competitiveness

Challenges facing organisations

(cont…)

9. Improving Ethical Behaviours

Organisations today are characterized by cut backs, expectations of improving workers productivity and tough competition in the market place.

Due to there pressures, employees feel pressured to cut corners, break roles, and engage in other forms of questionable practices could also be contracted to give guidance to employees

Today managers need to create an ethically healthy climate, living by example, for employees where they can do their work productively and confront minimal degree of ambiguity regarding what constitutes right and wrong behaviour.

OB – HISTORICAL

PERSPECTIVE

SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT (1900

– 1945)

First developed by Fredrick W. Taylor

(1856 – 1915)

Taylor aimed at making management a

science abased on a well recognized,

clearly defined and fixed principles

He replaced the rule of the thumb

method of scientific management

He advocates the use of

Observation

Measurement

Experimentation

Analysis

Rationality

Reasoning

As a chief instrument for developing managerial systems

The basic components of scientific

management as propounded by Taylor are:

Determination of the standard of performance

Functional foremanship

Responsibilities of management

Differential piecework system of wage payment

Mental revolution

Determining the standards of performance

Taylor introduced the “time and motion study” to identify exactly how long it takes to do a task and identify and eliminate wasteful motions

Functional foremanship

Here Taylor called for separation of planning from doing where the functional foreman (specialist) did the planning of various aspects of work

Responsibility and management

Managers should accept responsibility for planning, directing and organising

Managers should perform these functions in a scientific way – i.e. analyse all operations and develop scientific methods of doing them

Workers should be scientifically selected and trained

Managers should heartily cooperate with workers to ensure that work is done according to scientifically selected managers

Differential piece work system of payment – to ensure that workers turn out optimal production – so that workers who work hard get more

Mental revolution

Taylor held that the technique of determining work standards, delimiting wasteful operations and differential piece rate system of wage payment should benefit the worker in form of higher wage payment and the employer in form of higher production and this would result to a “mental revolution” between ,management and workers

They would develop a cooperative rather than antagonistic attitude towards each other

Criticism of Tailors Study

Saw man as an economic being - man

is only motivated by money

Saw that man can be programmed as a

machine – in the development of

standards of performance

The Hawthorne Studies (1924 –

1945)

The Hawthorne Experiments

The experiments were carried out between 1927 and 1933 at the Chicago Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company. Four studies were carried out namely: The illumination studies

The Relay Assembly Test Room Studies

The interviewing Program

The Bank Wiring Room studies

a)The illumination studies

These studies were expected to determine the relationship between the level of illumination and worker’s productivity.

It was expected that worker’s productivity would increase with increasing levels of illumination.

The studies failed to prove any relationship between worker’s productivity and level of illumination

b)The Relay Assembly Test Room Studies

These studies were carried out to determine the relationship between worker’s productivity and improved benefits and working conditions.

The studies found out that there was no cause – and – effect relationship betweenworking conditions and output.

Rather, there were other factors that affected worker’s output such as his/her attitudes and supervisor behavior

c) The interviewing Program

A group of employees were interviewed to learn more about their opinions with respect to their work, working conditions and supervision. The workers suggested that:

Psychological factors help determine whether a worker is satisfied or dissatisfied in any particular work situation

The person’s need for self-actualization determines his/her satisfaction in the work.

A person’s work group and his relationship to it, also determines his/her productivity.

d) The Bank Wiring Room studies

This study was expected to study the effect of group influence on workers productivity.

The researchers found out that an informal grouping and relationship was a critical factor in the workers’ productivity.

The informal group determined the group’s productivity, and functioned as a protective mechanism (served both for internal and external purposes).

Conclusions on Hawthorne

experiments

An industrial organization is a socio technical system. The socio part is the human aspects that need to be taken care of in order to increase workers’ productivity and the technical system is the physical aspects that also need to be improved.

Employee attitudes and morale are also important as determinants of productivity.

Other factors include worker’s personality and supervisor’s behavior. These two also affect worker’s altitude and morale.

A worker’s social group has a prevailing effect on his or her altitude and productivity

Criticisms of the Hawthorne studies

The philosophical basis

By emphasizing the social needs of human being rather than the economic needs and self-interest, these studies conflict the philosophical basis of economic theory.

Methodology

The study methodology lacks the basis for generalizations.

Findings

The cause – and – effect relationship conclusions lack general support and scientific verifiability.

Contribution

The Hawthorne Studies have however

made the following contribution OB.

Their finding on the importance of informal

groups is also a key to organization theory.

Their emphasis on employee altitude

towards work as an additional to other

factors was a breakthrough in OB.

CONTINGENCY APPROACH

(1945 – PRESENT

Following World War II, a new approach on organizational behaviour began to develop

Called the contingency approach, it acknowledged the difficulty of offering simple general principles to explain or predict behaviour in organizational setting

The approach sought to specify the conditions under which we can expect to find certain relationships.

As such it represented a search for the factors that would aid in predicting and explaining behaviour

Organizational behaviour researchers who subscribe t the contingency approach believe that employee behaviour is too complex to be explained by only a few simple and straight forward principles. Instead, they seek to identify the factors that are jointly necessary for a given principle to hold

Contingency researchers recognize the interdependency of personal and situational factors in determination of employee behaviour

therefore if you ask what is the best way for a manager to behaviour – autocratically or democratically, the contingent researcher will consider issues like subordinates expectations and preferences and the situations at hand, cultural differences, etc

CULTURE –QUALITY MOVEMENT

(1980 – PRESENT

TQM is a corporate culture characterized by increased customer satisfaction through continuous improvements, in which all employees actively participate

Two terms that gained quick interest among managers and organizational researcher’s wee organizational culture andquality improvement.

The authors of several books in the early 1980s – Peter Waterman ( In Search of Excellence), Deal and Kennedy ( Corporate Culture) and others focus on how to build a strong set of shared positive values and norms within a corporation (that is a strong corporate culture) while emphasizing quality service, high performance and flexibility.

Advocates of culture – quality movement claim that productivity and financial return can be significantly enhanced by developing culture that emphasize key values

Presently, the evidence suggest that, properly introduced, there are some economic advantages to following culture-quality movement

THEORITICAL

FRAMEWORKS OF OB

OB – Theoretical Framework

Although OB is extremely complex and

includes many inputs and dimensions,

three frameworks:

The cognitive,

Behaviouristic,

social cognitive frameworks

Can be used to develop an overall model

for OB

Cognitive Framework

The cognitive approach to human behaviour

has many sources of inputs ( the five senses)

Cognition, which is the basic unit of the

cognitive framework, can be defined as the act

of knowing an item from information

Under this framework, cognition precedes

behaviour and constitutes input into the

persons thinking, perception, problem solving,

and information processing

Edward Tolman Cognitive

framework

Although Tolman believed behaviour to be appropriate unit of analysis, he felt that behaviour is purposeful, that it is directed towards a goal

He felt that cognitive learning consists of a relationship between cognitive environmental cues and expectations

Through experimentation, he found out that a rat could learn to run through an intricate maze, with purpose and direction, towards goal (food)

Tolman observed that at each point in the maze, expectations were established – in other words, the rat learned to expect a certain cogitative cue associated with the choice point might eventually lead to the food

If the rat actually received the food, the association between the cue and the expectancy was strengthen, and leaning occurred

Tolman’s approach could be depicted that learning is an association between the cue and the expectancy)

In his laboratory experiment, he found that animals learned to expect a certain event would follow another – for example, animal learned to behaviour as if they expect food when a certain cue appeared.

Thus, Tolman believed that learning consist of expectancy that a particular event will lead to a particular consequence

This cognitive concept of expectancy implies that the organisms is thinking about or is conscious or aware of, the goal.

Thus Tolman and others espousing the

cognitive approach felt hat behaviour is

best explained by these cognitions

Applied to OB, cognitive approach has

dominated unit of analysis such as

perception, personality and attitudes,

motivation, decision making and goal

setting

BEHAVIOURISTIC FRAMEWORK

The roots of behavioristic theory of human behaviour can be trace back to the work of Ivan Pavlov and John Watson

These pioneering behaviorists stressed the importance of dealing with observable behaviour instead of the elusive mind that had preoccupied earlier psychologist

They used the classical conditioning experiment to formulate the stimulus-response (S - R) explanation of human behaviour

Both Pavlov and Watson felt that behaviour

could be best understood in terms of S-R

A stimulus elicit response

They concentrated mainly on the impact of the

stimulus and felt that learning occurred when

the S -R connection was made

Ivan Pavlov who attributed leaning to the

association or connection between stimulus

and response (S-R

Based on Pavlov classical conditioning experiment using dogs as subjects

When presented with meat powder ( unconditioned stimulus) - the dog secreted saliva (unconditioned response)

When he merely rang a bell (neutral stimulus) the dog did not salivate

When meat was accompanied with the ringing of the bell several times, then Pavlov rang the bell without presenting the meat, the dog salivated to the bell alone

Conclusion - that the dog has become classically conditioned to salivate (conditioned response) to the sound of the bell ( conditioned stimulus

Thus classical conditioned can be defined as a process in which a formerly neutral stimulus, when paired with an unconditioned stimulus, becomes a conditioned stimulus that elicit a conditioned response; in other words, the S-R connection is learned

Example of Pavlov S - R

Stimulus (S)

Is stuck by a pin

Is shocked by an

electric current

Is surprised by a

loud sound

Is tapped below the

kneecap

Response ®

Flinches

Jumps/screams

Jumps/screams

Flexes lower leg

B.F Skinner

Another psychologist whose work explains this framework is B. F. Skinner.

He felt that the early behaviorists helped explain respondent’s behaviours (those behaviours elicited by stimulus) but not the more complex operant behaviours

In other words, the S -R approach helped explain the physical reflexes, for examples, when stuck by a pin (S), the person will flinch ( R) or when tapped below the kneecap (S) the Epson will extend the lower leg ( R)

Skinner felt that classical conditioning explains only respondent (reflexive) behaviours. – i.e. involuntary responses that are elicited by a stimulus

He felt that more complex, but common human behaviour cannot be explained by classical conditioning alone.

He noted that the greater part of the behaviour of an organism was under control of stimuli which were effective only because they were correlated with reinforcing consequences

Through his research thus , skinner posited that behaviour was a function of consequences, not the classical conditioning eliciting stimuli

He felt that most human behaviour affects, or operates on, the environment to receive a desirable consequences.

This type of behaviour is learned through operant conditioning

Operant conditioning is concerned primarily with learning that occurs as a consequence of behaviour, or R-S.

It is not concerned with the eliciting causes of behaviour, as classical , or respondent, conditioning is

The organism has to operate on an environment (thus the term operant conditioning) in order to receive the desirable consequences.

The preceding stimulus does not cause the behaviour in operant conditioning; it serves as a cue to emit the behaviour. For skinner and other behaviorists, behaviour is a function of its contingent environmental consequences

So behavourisitic approach is environmentally based. It posits that cognitive processes such as thinking, expectancies, and perception may exist but are not needed to predict and control or manage behaviour

On the other hand, Skinner found out

through his operant conditioning

experiment, that the consequences of a

response could better explain most

behaviour than elicit stimuli could

He emphasized the importance of the

response-stimulus (R -S) relationship

Example of Skinners operant

conditioning

Response ®

Works

Talks to others

Enters a restaurant

Enters a library

Increases productivity

Completes a difficult assignment

Stimulus (S)

Paid

Meets more people

Obtain food

Finds a book

Receives merit pay

Receives praise or a

promotion

Today operant conditioning has much greater impact on human learning than classical conditioning

It explain much of organizational behaviour

E.g. people go to work to feed, cloth and house themselves and their families - working (conditioned response) is instrumental in obtaining food, shelter and clothing

Managers can analyse the consequences of organizational behaviour, to change the environment, and help accomplish goals

Social cognitive Framework

The cognitive approach has been accused of being mentalistic, and the behavioristic approach has been accused of being deterministic.

Social Cognitive theorists argue that the S-R model and to a lesser degree the R –S model, are too mechanistic explanation of human

The social cognitive approach tires to integrate the contribution so both of these approaches

Social cognitive theory recognizes the importance of behaviorism’s contingent environmental consequences, but also includes cognitive processes of self regulation

Based on the work of Albert Bandura social learning theory and David and Luthans, this framework proposes a social learning approach to organizational behaviour

Social learning takes the position that behaviour can best be explained in terms of a continuous reciprocal interaction among cognitive, behavioral and environmental determinants.

The persons and the environmental situations do not function as independent units but, in conjunction with the behaviour itself, reciprocally interact to determine behaviour

Bandura explains that “it is largely through their actions that people produce the environmental conditions that affect their behavior in a reciprocal fashion

The expediencies generated by behaviour also partly determine what a person becomes and can do which in turn, affects subsequent behaviour

A triangular model of Organizational participants, organizational environment and organizational behaviour takes this social learning work of Bandura and translates it into relevant unit of analysis and variables of organizational behaviour

Org. participant, environment and behaviour - relationship

participant control their own behaviour to the extent that they rely on cognitive support and manage relevant environmental cuesand consequences

Cognitive representation of reality helps guide organizational behaviour

Much of complex behaviour is acquired by directly observing others in the surrounding environment

Bandura has taken his social leaning and developed into the more comprehensive social cognitive theory (SCT). Specifically SCT recognises the importance of behaviorism’s contingent environmental consequences, but also includes cognitive processes of self regulation

Bandura identified five basic human capabilities as a part of SCT

Human capabilities

Symbolizing

Forethought

Observational

Self regulatory

Self reflective

Basic human capabilities

Symbolizing - employees process visual

experiences ( customer named Applegate) into

cognitive models (apple) that then serves as a

guide for future action (remembering the

name)

Forethoughts - employees plan their actions

(what I am going to do), anticipate

consequences (what I am going to get for it)

and determine the level of desired

performance (what my performance goal is)

Observational: Employees learn by

observing the performance of

the referent group (peers, supervisors

and high performers) and the

consequences of their actions

Self-regulatory: Employees self regulate

their actions by setting internal standards

(aspired level of performance) and by

evaluating the discrepancy between the

standard and performance (where do I stand)

in order to improve .

Self-reflective: Employees reflect back

on their actions (how did I do?) and

perceptually determine how they believe

then can successfully accomplish the

task in the future given the context

(probability of success between 0 to

100% is estimated)