Organizational Behaviour:

Understanding and Managing Life at

Work
Twelfth Edition

Chapter 4
Values, Attitudes, and Work
Behaviour

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What Are Values? (1 of 2)
• A broad tendency to prefer certain states of affairs over
others.
• Values have to do with what we consider good and bad.
• Values are motivational; they signal how we believe we
should and should not behave.

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What Are Values? (2 of 2)
• Values are very general; they do not predict behaviour in
specific situations very well.
• People tend to hold values structured around such factors
as achievement, power, autonomy, conformity, tradition,
and social welfare.

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Generational Differences in Values (1 of 4)
• There are five distinctive generations in the workplace
today:
– Traditionalists (1922-1945)
– Baby Boomers (1946-1964)
– Generation X (1965-1980)
– Millennials (Generation Y) (1981-2000)
– Generation Z (2001-2020)

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Generational Differences in Values (2 of 4)
• These generations grew up under rather different
socialization experiences.
• These differences have led to notable value differences
between the generations.
• Such value differences might underlie the differential
workplace assets and preferences for leadership style.

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Five Generations in Today’s
Workplace
Exhibit 4.1: Five generations in the workplace.

Source: Purdue University Global. Generational differences in the workplace.

www.purdueglobal.edu/education-partnerships/generational-workforce-differences-
infographic/
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Generational Stereotypes
• Traditionalists: Respectful of authority and a high work
ethic.
• Boomers: Optimistic workaholics.
• Gen X: Skeptical, confident, and pragmatic.
• Gen Y: Confident, social, demanding of feedback.
• Gen Z: Somewhat unfocused but independent and
creative.
• Are these stereotypes accurate?

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Generational Differences in Values (3 of 4)
• Most research points to more similarities than differences
in values across generations, especially regarding work
attitudes, motivation, and work ethic.
• Some indication that Gen X and Y are more inclined to
value money, status, and rapid career growth than are
boomers.
• Gen Xs, Ys, and Zs, compared to Boomers, see work as
less central, value leisure more, and are more inclined
towards work-life balance.

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Generational Differences in Values (4 of 4)
• Some research has concluded that all work generations
share the same values but express them differently.
• Generational differences in work values or the way values
are expressed is important because a good “fit” between a
person’s values and those of the organization (person-
organization fit) leads to more positive work attitudes and
behaviours, including reduced chances of quitting.

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Cultural Differences in Values
• There are basic differences in work-related values across
cultures.
• There is considerable variation in how well people adjust
to assignments in other cultures, with many failures.
• Failed business negotiations are attributable to a lack of
understanding of cross-cultural differences.
• At the root of many of these problems is a lack of
appreciation of basic differences in work-related values
across cultures.

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Work Centrality
• Work is valued differently across cultures.
• There are cross-national differences in the extent to which
people perceive work as a central life interest.
• People for whom work is a central life interest work more
hours.
• Cross-cultural differences in work centrality can lead to
adjustment problems for foreign employees and
managers.

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Hofstede’s Study (1 of 2)
• Geert Hofstede questioned over 116,000 IB M employees
in 40 countries about their work-related values.
• He discovered four basic dimensions along which work-
related values differed across cultures:
– Power distance
– Uncertainty avoidance
– Masculinity/femininity
– Individualism/collectivism

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Hofstede’s Study (2 of 2)
• Subsequent work with Canadian Michael Bond that
catered more to Eastern cultures resulted in a fifth
dimension:
– Long-term/short-term orientation

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Power Distance (1 of 2)
• The extent to which an unequal distribution of power is
accepted by society members.
• In small power distance cultures, inequality is minimized,
superiors are accessible, and power differences are
downplayed.

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Power Distance (2 of 2)
• In large power distance cultures, inequality is accepted as
natural, superiors are inaccessible, and power differences
are highlighted.
• Out of 76 countries and regions, Canada and the United
States rank 15 and 16, falling on the low power distance
side of the average.

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Uncertainty Avoidance (1 of 2)
• The extent to which people are uncomfortable with
uncertain and ambiguous situations.
• Strong uncertainty avoidance cultures stress rules and
regulations, hard work, conformity, and security.

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Uncertainty Avoidance (2 of 2)
• Cultures with weak uncertainty avoidance are less
concerned with rules, conformity, and security, and hard
work is not seen as a virtue and risk taking is valued.
• Canada and the United States are well below average on
uncertainty avoidance.

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Masculinity/Femininity (1 of 2)
• Masculine cultures clearly differentiate gender roles,
support the dominance of men, and stress economic
performance.
• Feminine cultures accept fluid gender roles, stress sexual
equality, and stress quality of life.

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Masculinity/Femininity (2 of 2)
• In Hofstede’s research, Japan is the most masculine
society followed by Austria, Mexico, and Venezuela.
• The Scandinavian countries are the most feminine.
• Canada ranks about mid-pack and the United States is
fairly masculine falling about halfway between Canada
and Japan.

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Individualism/Collectivism (1 of 2)
• Individualistic societies stress independence, individual
initiative, and privacy.
• Collective cultures favour interdependence and loyalty to
family or clan.

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Individualism/Collectivism (2 of 2)
• The United States, Australia, Great Britain, and Canada
are among the most individualistic societies.
• Venezuela, Columbia, and Pakistan are among the most
collective, with Japan falling about mid-pack.

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Long-Term/Short-Term Orientation (1 of 2)
• Cultures with a long-term orientation stress persistence,
perseverance, thrift, and close attention to status
differences.
• Cultures with a short-term orientation stress personal
steadiness and stability, face-saving, and social niceties.

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Long-Term/Short-Term Orientation (2 of 2)
• China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea tend
to be characterized by a long-term orientation.
• Canada and the United States are more short-term
oriented.
• Hofstede and Bond argue that the long-term orientation, in
part, explains prolific East Asian entrepreneurship.

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Cross-Cultural Value Comparisons
Exhibit 4.3 Cross-cultural value comparisons.

Note: Time orientation data for Mexico unavailable.

Source: Based on Hofstede, G. (2005). Cultures and organizations: Software of the mind
(2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

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Power Distance and Individualism Values
for Various Countries and Regions
EXHIBIT 4.4 Power distance and individualism values for
various countries and regions.

Source: Adapted from Hofstede, G., Hofstede, G.J., & Minkov, M. (2010). Cultures and
organizations: Software of the mind (3rd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill, p. 103. Used with
permission from Geert Hofstede.
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Cultural Distance
• The extent to which cultures differ in values.
• Greater cultural distance impedes communication and
makes negotiations, mergers, acquisitions, and joint
ventures more difficult.
• Expatriates working abroad will find it more difficult to
adjust to more distant cultures.
• Multicultural experiences can be extremely beneficial.

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Cultural Tightness versus Looseness
• Tight cultures tend to have strong, clear standards for
behaviour and strong sanctions for deviation from these
standards.
• Loose cultures are more flexible in terms of how people
are expected to behave and more forgiving of violations of
expected behaviour.
• A wide range of behaviours might be susceptible to the
tight-loose distinction, including how one dresses, how
rigid social class distinctions are, and how the sexes are
expected to interact.

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Implications of Cultural Variation
• What are the implications of cultural variation for
organizational behaviour?

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Exporting O B Theories (1 of 2)
• Organizational behaviour theories, research, and practices
from North America might not translate well to other
societies.
• The basic questions remain the same—it is just the
answers that will differ.

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Exporting O B Theories (2 of 2)
• Managers in North America encourage participation in
work decisions by employees which corresponds to a
fairly low degree of power distance.
• This might not transfer to cultures that value high power
distance.
• In extremely masculine cultures, integrating women into
management positions might require special sensitivity.

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Importing O B Theories (1 of 2)
• Not all theories and practices that concern organizational
behaviour are designed in North America or even in the
West.
• The most obvious examples are “Japanese management”
techniques, such as quality circles, total quality
management, and just-in-time production.

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Importing O B Theories (2 of 2)
• Difficulties can arise due to basic value differences
between Japan and North America.
• Many of the Japanese-inspired means of organizing work
are team oriented.
• Our more individualistic culture dictates that careful
selection of team members is necessary.
• Organizations need to tailor management practices to the
home culture’s concerns.

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Appreciating Global Customers
• An appreciation of cross-cultural differences in values is
essential to understanding the needs and tastes of
customers or clients around the world.
• Appreciating the values of global customers is also
important when the customers enter your own culture.

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Developing Global Employees
• Success in translating management practices to other
cultures, importing practices, and appreciating global
customers does not happen by accident.
• Companies need to select, train, and develop employees
to have an appreciation of differences in cultural values
and the implications of these differences for behaviour in
organizations.
• The goal is to foster cultural intelligence (CI).

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Cultural Intelligence (C I) (1 of 2)
• The capability to function and manage well in culturally
diverse environments.
• It encompasses knowledge, motivation, and behaviour that
contribute to good cross-cultural functioning.
• People with high CI tend to score high on intercultural
adjustment, global leadership, and performance in
intercultural settings.

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Cultural Intelligence (C I) (2 of 2)
• Canadians may be more inclined toward cultural
intelligence than the Americans, British, and French.
• Canadians are most inclined to enjoy interacting with
those from diverse cultures and to be familiar with the
values and beliefs of other cultures.

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What Are Attitudes? (1 of 6)
• An attitude is a fairly stable evaluative tendency to
respond consistently to some specific object, situation,
person, or category of people.
• Attitudes involve evaluations directed toward specific
targets.
• They are more specific than values.

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What Are Attitudes? (2 of 6)
• Attitudes are tendencies to respond to the target of the
attitude.
• Attitudes often influence our behaviour toward some
object, situation, person, or group.
Attitude  Behaviour

• However, attitudes are not always consistent with

behaviour.

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What Are Attitudes? (3 of 6)
• Behaviour is most likely to correspond to attitudes when
people have direct experience with the target of the
attitude and when the attitude is strongly and confidently
held.
• Where do attitudes come from?

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What Are Attitudes? (4 of 6)
• Attitudes are a function of what we think and what we
feel.
• Attitudes are the product of a related belief and value.

Belief + Value  Attitude  Behaviour

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What Are Attitudes? (5 of 6)
• Consider the following example of a person experiencing
work-family conflict:
• “My job is interfering with my family life.” (Belief)
• “I dislike anything that hurts my family.” (Value)
• “I dislike my job.” (Attitude)
• “I’ll search for another job.” (Behaviour)

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What Are Attitudes? (6 of 6)
• This example shows how attitudes (in this case, job
satisfaction) develop from basic beliefs and values, and
how they affect organizational behaviour (in this case,
turnover from the organization).
• Job satisfaction and organizational commitment are two
attitudes that have a strong impact on people’s positive
contributions to their work.

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What Is Job Satisfaction? (1 of 3)
• A collection of attitudes that workers have about their
jobs.
• Two aspects of satisfaction.
• Facet satisfaction refers to the tendency for an employee
to be more or less satisfied with various facets of the job.
• The most relevant attitudes toward jobs are contained in
a rather small group of facets.

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Job Satisfaction Facets
• The work itself • Working conditions
• Compensation • Supervision
• Recognition • Co-workers
• Benefits • Organizational policy

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What Is Job Satisfaction? (2 of 3)
• Overall satisfaction is a summary indicator of a person’s
attitude toward their job that cuts across the various
facets.
• It is an average or total of the attitudes individuals hold
toward various facets of the job.
• Two employees might express the same level of overall
satisfaction for different reasons.

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What Is Job Satisfaction? (3 of 3)
• Measures of job satisfaction include the Job Descriptive
Index and the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire.
• They provide measures of facet satisfaction as well as an
index of overall satisfaction.

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What Determines Job Satisfaction?
• We frequently find differences in job satisfaction
expressed by individuals performing the same job in a
given organization such as two nurses who work side by
side.
• How does this happen?

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Discrepancy
• According to discrepancy theory, job satisfaction is a
function of the discrepancy between the job outcomes
people want and the outcomes that they perceive they
obtain.
• There is strong evidence that satisfaction with one’s pay
is high when there is a small gap between the pay
received and the perception of how much pay should be
received.

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Fairness
• Issues of fairness affect both what people want from their
jobs and how they react to the inevitable discrepancies of
organizational life.
• There are three basic kinds of fairness:
– Distributive fairness
– Procedural fairness
– Interactional fairness

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Distributive Fairness
• Fairness that occurs when people receive the outcomes
they think they deserve from their jobs.
• It involves the ultimate distribution of work rewards and
resources.
• Individuals want “what’s fair.”
• Equity theory provides a way of understanding how people
determine what is fair.

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Equity Theory (1 of 8)
• A theory that job satisfaction stems from a comparison of
the inputs one invests in a job and the outcomes one
receives in comparison with the inputs and outcomes of
another person or group.

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Equity Theory (2 of 8)
• Equity will be perceived when the following distribution
ratios exist:

My outcomes Other’s outcomes

=
My inputs Other’s inputs

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Equity Theory (3 of 8)
• Inputs refer to anything that people give up, offer, or trade
to their organization in exchange for outcomes (e.g.,
education).
• Outcomes are factors that an organization distributes to
employees in exchange for their inputs (e.g., pay).
• The other in the ratio might be a co-worker performing the
same job, a number of co-workers, or even one’s
conception of all the individuals in one’s occupation.

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Equity Theory (4 of 8)
• Equity theory has important implications for job
satisfaction.
• Inequity is a dissatisfying state, especially when we are
on the “short end of the stick.”
• Consider yourself in terms of the hours you spent
studying as your input to this class and the final grade as
the outcome and compare yourself to a friend in the
class.

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Equity Theory (5 of 8)

YOU FRIEND
C grade A grade
50 hours 100 hours

How does this situation make you feel?

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Equity Theory (6 of 8)

YOU FRIEND
C grade A grade
100 hours 50 hours

How does this situation make you feel?

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Equity Theory (7 of 8)

YOU FRIEND
A grade C grade
30 hours 60 hours

How does this situation make you feel?

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Equity Theory (8 of 8)
• The equity concept suggests that outcomes should be
tied to individual contributions or inputs.
• This corresponds with the individualistic North American
culture.
• In more collective cultures, equality of outcomes might be
more important for distributive fairness, as might tying
outcomes to team performance.
• In more feminine cultures, allocating outcomes according
to need (rather than performance) might provide for
distributive fairness.

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Procedural Fairness (1 of 3)
• Fairness that occurs when the process used to determine
work outcomes is seen as reasonable.
• It is concerned with how outcomes are decided and
allocated.
• It is particularly relevant to outcomes such as
performance evaluations, pay raises, promotions, layoffs,
and work assignments.

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Procedural Fairness (2 of 3)
• In allocating outcomes, the following factors contribute to
perceptions of procedural fairness. The allocator does the
following actions:
– Follows consistent procedures over time and across
people.
– Uses accurate information and appears unbiased.
– Allows two-way communication during the allocation
process.
– Welcomes appeals of the procedure or allocation.

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Procedural Fairness (3 of 3)
• Procedural fairness is especially likely to provoke
dissatisfaction when people also see distributive fairness
as being low.
• Dissatisfaction will be maximized when people believe
that they would have obtained better outcomes if the
decision maker had used other procedures that should
have been implemented.

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Interactional Fairness (1 of 3)
• Fairness that occurs when people feel that they have
received respectful and informative communication about
an outcome.
• Respectful communication is sincere and polite and treats
the individual with dignity.
• Informative communication is candid, timely, and
thorough.

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Interactional Fairness (2 of 3)
• Interactional fairness is important because it is possible for
absolutely fair outcomes or procedures to be perceived as
unfair when they are inadequately or uncaringly explained.
• People who experience interactional unfairness are most
likely to be dissatisfied with their boss.
• Both procedural and interactional fairness can to some
extent offset the negative effects of distributive unfairness
although this may be less true in developing nations with
lower living standards.

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Interactional Fairness (3 of 3)
• Inconsistency, being fairly treated sometimes but not
others, is often more stressful than consistent unfair
treatment.
• The consequences of fairness and unfairness are far
reaching, affecting factors such as motivation, stress, and
cynicism in addition to job satisfaction.

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The Consequences of Fairness and
Unfairness
Exhibit 4.5 The consequences of fairness and unfairness.

Source: American Psychological Association. 2018. Work and well-being survey, p. 8.

Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

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Disposition (1 of 4)
• Could your personality contribute to your feelings of job
satisfaction?
• The dispositional view of job satisfaction is based on the
idea that some people are predisposed by virtue of their
personalities to be more or less satisfied despite changes
in discrepancy or fairness.

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Disposition (2 of 4)
• Research that disposition contributes to job satisfaction:
– Identical twins raised apart tend to have similar levels
of job satisfaction.
– Job satisfaction tends to be fairly stable over time,
even when changes in employer occur.
– Disposition measured early in adolescence is
correlated with one’s job satisfaction as a mature adult.

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Disposition (3 of 4)
• These findings suggest that some personality
characteristics originating in genetics or early learning
contribute to adult job satisfaction.
• People who are extraverted and conscientious tend to be
more satisfied with their jobs.
• Those high in neuroticism are less satisfied.
• People who are high in self-esteem and internal locus of
control are more satisfied.

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Disposition (4 of 4)
• In general, people who are optimistic and proactive report
higher job satisfaction.
• Mood and emotion may contribute to this connection.

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Mood and Emotion
• Affect is a broad label for feelings that includes emotions
and moods.
• Emotions (e.g., joy, anger, sadness) are intense, often
short-lived feelings caused by a particular event such as a
bad performance appraisal.
• Moods are less intense, longer-lived, and more diffuse
feelings.
• How do emotions and moods affect job satisfaction?

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Affective Events Theory
• Jobs consist of a series of events and happenings that
have the potential to provoke emotions or to influence
moods, depending on how we appraise these events and
happenings.
• Emotions and moods can then influence job satisfaction.

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Emotional Contagion
• Mood and emotion can also influence job satisfaction
through emotional contagion.
• Emotional contagion is the tendency for moods and
emotions to spread between people or throughout a
group.
• People’s moods and emotions tend to converge with
interaction.

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Emotional Labour (1 of 2)
• Mood and emotion can also influence job satisfaction
through the need for emotional labour.
• Emotional labour is the requirement for people to conform
to certain “display rules” in their job behaviour in spite of
their true mood or emotions.

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Emotional Labour (2 of 2)
• In some jobs, employees must exaggerate positive
emotions while in others they must suppress negative
emotions.
• All jobs have implicit display rules, however, service roles
(e.g., waiter) are especially laden with them.
• What are the consequences of the requirement for
emotional labour?

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Consequences of Emotional Labour
• The frequent need to suppress negative emotions and
fake emotions can lower job satisfaction and increase
stress.
• The requirement to express positive emotions boosts job
satisfaction and reduces stress.
• Mood and emotion helps explain how people with similar
beliefs and values doing the same job for the same
compensation can still exhibit very different satisfaction
levels.

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Determinants of Job Satisfaction:
Summary
• Job satisfaction is a function of:
– Dispositional factors
– Discrepancy between the job outcomes a person
wants and the outcomes received
– Mood and emotion
– Fairness and equity

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How Discrepancy, Fairness,
Disposition, Mood, and Emotion
Affect Job Satisfaction
Exhibit 4.6 How discrepancy, fairness, disposition, mood,
and emotion affect job satisfaction.

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Key Contributors to Job Satisfaction
• The facets that seem to contribute the most to feelings of
job satisfaction for most workers include:
– Mentally challenging work
– Meaningful work
– Adequate compensation
– Career opportunities
– People (friendly or helpful colleagues)

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Mentally Challenging Work
• Refers to work that tests employees’ skills and abilities,
allows them to set their own working pace.
• Employees perceive such work as personally involving
and providing clear feedback about their performance.
• Some people prefer repetitive, unchallenging work that
makes few demands on them.

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Meaningful Work
• Meaningful work is work that has a positive and
substantial impact on other people.
• It contributes greatly to job satisfaction and also to job
performance.

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Adequate Compensation
• Pay and satisfaction are positively related.
• Not everyone is equally desirous of money and some
people are willing to accept less responsibility or fewer
working hours for lower pay.
• People tend to overestimate how much pay influences
their job satisfaction and underestimate the impact of
challenging and meaningful work.

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Career Opportunities
• Opportunity for promotion is an important contributor to job
satisfaction because promotions contain a number of
valued signals about a person’s self-worth.
• Promotions contain material and social signals about a
person’s self-worth.
• Opportunities for growth and learning are often as
important as formal promotions, especially among
millennials.

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People (1 of 2)
• Friendly, considerate, good-natured superiors and co-
workers contribute to job satisfaction.
• The ability of others to help us do our work and attain
outcomes that we value also contributes to job
satisfaction.
• The friendliness aspect is most important in lower-level
jobs with clear duties and in dead-end jobs.

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People (2 of 2)
• The ability of others to help us do our work contributes
most to job satisfaction when pay is tied to performance,
jobs become more complex, and promotion opportunities
increase.

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Dirty Work
• Jobs that have physical, social, or moral stigma attached
to them by the public.
• Many people doing dirty work actually express
considerable job satisfaction.
• Those doing dirty work often find social solidarity with
each other and develop strong occupational cultures that
reframe their work to stress the positive and foster
cohesion (we’re tough, we’re brave, most can’t do this
work).

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Consequences of Job Satisfaction
• Job satisfaction has a number of consequences:
– Absence from work
– Turnover
– Performance
– Organizational citizenship behaviour
– Counterproductive work behaviour
– Customer satisfaction and profit

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Absence from Work (1 of 3)
• Absenteeism is an expensive behaviour.
• Less satisfied employees are more likely to be absent.
• Satisfaction with the content of the work is the best
predictor of absenteeism.
• The absence-satisfaction connection is not very strong.

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Absence from Work (2 of 3)
• Several factors constrain the ability of many people to
convert their like or dislike of work into corresponding
attendance patterns:
– Some absence is unavoidable.
– Some organizations have attendance control policies
that influence absence more than satisfaction does.
– It might be unclear to employees how much
absenteeism is reasonable or sensible.

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Absence from Work (3 of 3)
• The norm for absenteeism and the “absence culture”
might have a stronger effect than an individual employee’s
satisfaction with their job.

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Turnover (1 of 3)
• Turnover refers to resignation from an organization and it
can be very expensive.
• Turnover also tends to be contagious—if one leaves more
may follow.
• High turnover rates can damage organizational financial
performance.
• Research indicates a moderately strong connection
between job satisfaction and turnover.
• Less-satisfied workers are more likely to quit.
• The relationship is far from perfect.

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A Model of Employee Turnover
Exhibit 4.7 A model of employee turnover.

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Turnover (2 of 3)
• The model shows that job satisfaction as well as
commitment to the organization and various “shocks” can
contribute to intentions to leave.
• Research shows that such intentions are very good
predictors of turnover.
• Why do satisfied people sometimes quit their jobs and
dissatisfied people stay?

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Turnover (3 of 3)
• Certain “shocks” might stimulate turnover despite
satisfaction with the current job.
• An employee’s dissatisfaction with their job might be offset
by a strong commitment to the overall values and mission
of the organization.
• An employee might be so embedded in the community
that they are willing to endure a dissatisfying job rather
than move.
• A weak job market might result in limited employment
alternatives.

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The Honeymoon-Hangover Effect (1 of 2)
• A decrease in job satisfaction often precedes turnover,
and those who quit experience a boost in job satisfaction
on their new job.
• Some of this boost might be due to a “honeymoon effect,”
in which the bad facets of the old job are gone, the good
facets of the new job are apparent, and the bad facets of
the new job are not yet known.

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The Honeymoon-Hangover Effect (2 of 2)
• Over time, as the bad facets of the new job are
recognized, a “hangover effect” can occur in which overall
satisfaction with the new job decreases.
• Not all turnover is bad as poor performers might leave.
• Turnover allows for fresh thinking as new recruits join the
organization.

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The Honeymoon-Hangover Effect
Exhibit 4.8 The honeymoon– hangover effect.

Source: Based on Boswell, W.R., Boudreau, J.W., & Tichy, J. (2005). The relationship
between employee job change and job satisfaction: The honeymoon–hangover effect.
Journal of Applied Psychology, 90, 882–892.

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Performance (1 of 3)
• Research has found that job satisfaction is associated with
higher job performance.
• However, the connection is complicated; many factors
influence motivation and performance besides job
satisfaction.
• The most important satisfaction facet for stimulating
performance is the content of the work itself.

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Performance (2 of 3)
• The connection between job satisfaction and performance
is stronger for complex, high-tech jobs and less strong for
more routine labour jobs.
• Although job satisfaction contributes to performance,
performance can also contribute to job satisfaction.
• When good performance is followed by rewards,
employees are more likely to be satisfied.

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Performance (3 of 3)
• Many organizations do not reward good performance
sufficiently.
• Thus, research indicates that satisfaction is more likely to
affect performance, rather than the reverse.

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Organizational Citizenship Behaviour
(O C B) (1 of 5)
• OCB is voluntary, informal behaviour that contributes to
organizational effectiveness.
• In many cases, the formal performance evaluation
system does not detect and reward it.
• Job satisfaction contributes greatly to the occurrence of
OCB, more than it does to regular task performance.

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Organizational Citizenship Behaviour
(O C B) (2 of 5)
• The defining characteristics of OCB :
– The behaviour is voluntary.
– The behaviour is spontaneous.
– The behaviour contributes to organizational
effectiveness.
– The behaviour is unlikely to be explicitly picked up and
rewarded by the performance evaluation system.
• What forms might OCB take?

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Organizational Citizenship Behaviour
(O C B) (3 of 5)
• The various forms that O CB might take:
– Helping behaviour and offering assistance to others.
– Conscientiousness to the details of work.
– Being a good sport.
– Courtesy and cooperation.
• How does job satisfaction contribute to O CB?

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Organizational Citizenship Behaviour
(O C B) (4 of 5)
• Fairness seems to be key.
• Although distributive fairness is important, procedural and
interactional fairness from a supportive manager seem
especially critical.
• OCB is also influenced by the employee’s mood at work.

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Organizational Citizenship Behaviour
(O C B) (5 of 5)
• People in a pleasant, relaxed, optimistic mood are more
likely to provide special assistance to others.
• OCB contributes to organizational productivity and
efficiency and to reduced turnover.
• There is sometimes a progression of withdrawal in
response to job dissatisfaction.

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Progression of Withdrawal (1 of 3)
• People withdraw their attention or work effort to
compensate for dissatisfaction.
• This begins with more subtle behaviours and progresses
to more extreme behaviours until some equilibrium is
struck.
• A reduction in OCB is often the first withdrawal response.

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Progression of Withdrawal (2 of 3)
• This may be followed by coming to work late, then
absenteeism, and ultimately turnover.
• Managers should be alert to increases in the lower forms
of withdrawal, because they may signal bigger problems in
the future.

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Progression of Withdrawal (3 of 3)
Exhibit 4.9 Progression of withdrawal.

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Counterproductive Work Behaviour (1 of 2)
• Counterproductive work behaviour is intentional verbal or
physical behaviour meant to harm one’s organization or
individuals such as co-workers or customers.
• Theft, abusive supervision, and the use of uncivil
language, as well as bullying, ostracizing, and
undermining others.
• Job dissatisfaction underpins many of these behaviours.

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Counterproductive Work Behaviour (2 of 2)
• The source of dissatisfaction, the dissatisfied person’s
personality, and the work context affect exactly which
counterproductive behaviour is enacted.

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Customer Satisfaction and Profit (1 of 2)
• A growing body of evidence has established that
employee job satisfaction is translated into customer or
client satisfaction and organizational profitability.
• Organizations with higher average levels of employee
satisfaction are more effective.
• The same applies to units within larger organizations.
• How does employee satisfaction translate into customer
satisfaction?

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Customer Satisfaction and Profit (2 of 2)
• Reduced absenteeism and turnover contribute to the
seamless delivery of service.
• OCB s stimulate good teamwork.
• A good mood among employees can be contagious for
customers.

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What Is Organizational Commitment?
(1 of 3)

• Organizational commitment is an attitude that reflects the

strength of the linkage between an employee and an
organization.
• This linkage has implications for whether someone tends
to remain in an organization.

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What Is Organizational Commitment?
(2 of 3)

• There are three very different types of organizational

commitment:
– Affective commitment
– Continuance commitment
– Normative commitment

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Affective Commitment
• Commitment based on a person’s identification and
involvement with an organization.
• People with high affective commitment stay with an
organization because they want to.

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Continuance Commitment
• Commitment based on the costs that would be incurred in
leaving an organization or a lack of suitable job
alternatives.
• People with high continuance commitment stay with an
organization because they have to.

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Normative Commitment
• Commitment based on ideology or a feeling of obligation
to an organization.
• People with high normative commitment stay with an
organization because they think that they should do so.

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What Is Organizational Commitment?
(3 of 3)

• Employees can also be committed to various

constituencies within and outside the organization.
• Each type of commitment could also apply to one’s work
team, union, or profession.

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Commitment Profiles
• The three types of commitment can be combined as
“profiles” of attachment that exist in high to low patterns.
• There is evidence for the following profiles:
– Fully committed (high on all three types)
– Weakly committed (low on all three types)
– Affective dominant
– Affective/normative dominant
• These profiles suggest overarching motives for
attachment.

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Key Contributors to Organizational
Commitment (1 of 3)
• The best predictor of affective commitment is interesting,
satisfying work.
• Role clarity and having one’s expectations met after being
hired also contribute to affective commitment.

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Key Contributors to Organizational
Commitment (2 of 3)
• Continuance commitment occurs when people feel that
leaving the organization will result in personal sacrifice or
they perceive that good alternative employment is lacking.
• Building up “side bets” can lock employees into
organizations even though they would rather go
elsewhere.
• Continuance commitment increases with the time a
person is employed by an organization.

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Key Contributors to Organizational
Commitment (3 of 3)
• Normative commitment can be fostered by benefits that
build a sense of obligation to the organization.
• Strong identification with an organization’s product or
service can also foster normative commitment.
• Socialization practices that emphasize loyalty to the
organization can stimulate normative commitment.

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Consequences of Organizational
Commitment (1 of 4)
• High continuance commitment due to lack of alternatives
provokes dissatisfaction and stress.
• High affective commitment is associated with elevated job
satisfaction and lower work stress.
• Profiles research demonstrates that being fully committed
(profile 1) or affective/normative dominant (profile 4) is
more advantageous than being solely affective dominant
(profile 3).

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Consequences of Organizational
Commitment (2 of 4)
• All forms of commitment reduce turnover intentions and
actual turnover.
• Affective commitment is positively related to performance
because it focuses attention on goals and thus enhances
motivation.
• Continuance commitment is negatively related to
performance.

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Consequences of Organizational
Commitment (3 of 4)
• An especially bad (if rare) combination for both the
employee and the organization is high continuance
commitment coupled with low affective commitment—
people locked into organizations that they detest.
• Is there a downside to organizational commitment?

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Consequences of Organizational
Commitment (4 of 4)
• Very high levels of commitment can cause conflicts
between family life and work life.
• High levels of commitment have often been implicated in
unethical and illegal behaviour.
• High levels of commitment to a particular form or style of
organization can cause a lack of innovation and lead to
resistance when a change in culture is necessary.

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Changes in the Workplace and
Employee Commitment
• Changes in the workplace have implications for
organizational commitment in three main areas:
– Changes in the nature of employees’ commitment to
the organization.
– Changes in the focus of employees’ commitment.
– The multiplicity of employer-employee relationships
within organizations.

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Changes in the Nature of Employees’
Commitment to the Organization
• Each type of commitment can increase or decrease.
• Maintaining high levels of affective commitment will be
especially challenging.
• Changes that are made in the organization’s best interest
but that are detrimental to employees’ well-being are most
likely to damage affective commitment.

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Changes in the Focus of Employees’
Commitment
• Employees have multiple commitments directed to others
within the organization as well as entities outside the
organization.
• Changes in the workplace might alter the focus of
employees’ commitment within and outside the
organization.
• Changes that threaten employees’ future in the
organization might result in a shift in commitment to
entities outside the organization.

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The Multiplicity of Employer-
Employee Relationships within
Organizations (1 of 2)
• Organizations need to be flexible enough to shrink and
expand their workforce and they need a workforce that is
flexible.
• This creates a potential conflict and requires different
relationships with employee groups.

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The Multiplicity of Employer-
Employee Relationships within
Organizations (2 of 2)
• Core employees who perform the key operations required
for organizational success should have high affective
commitment.
• High affective commitment is less critical for employee
groups that do not perform core tasks (e.g., temporary
workers).

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