OB Notes Unit Two
OB Notes Unit Two
1. Biographical Characteristics
Biographical characteristics include age, gender, and marital status. These
factors are often considered because they can affect employee behaviour in
various ways:
Age: Older employees may bring experience and stability, while younger
employees may have more enthusiasm but less experience.
Gender: Historically, certain biases and stereotypes have existed, though
modern workplaces focus on creating equitable opportunities.
Tenure and Marital Status: Tenured employees might display higher levels
of loyalty and lower absenteeism, while marital status could affect work-
life balance and job satisfaction.
Example:
A younger employee might be more willing to take risks and try innovative
approaches, while an older employee might be more cautious and prefer tested
methods.
3. Personality
Personality is a significant determinant of behaviour and includes stable traits
that influence how people respond to situations. The Big Five Personality Model is
widely used in OB to predict individual behaviour, focusing on:
Openness to Experience
Conscientiousness
Extraversion
Agreeableness
Neuroticism (Emotional Stability)
Example:
An extroverted person is likely to thrive in a sales or client-facing role
due to their sociability, while an introverted individual may prefer roles
requiring focus and analysis, such as research or accounting.
4. Perception
Perception is how individuals organize and interpret their sensory input to make
sense of the world around them. Two employees may perceive the same event
differently due to factors like past experiences, expectations, and motives.
Factors Influencing Perception:
Perceiver’s Characteristics: Attitudes, motives, experiences.
Target’s Characteristics: Novelty, motion, sound, size, or
background.
Context: The situation or environment where perception takes
place.
Example:
In a feedback session, an employee with a defensive attitude may
perceive constructive criticism as an attack, whereas another may see
it as an opportunity for growth.
5. Learning
Learning refers to how individuals acquire new knowledge, skills, and
behaviors through experience. In an organizational context, learning
can shape behavior over time, especially through reinforcement,
observation, and practice.
Learning Theories in OB:
Classical Conditioning: Behavior is learned through association
(e.g., Pavlov’s dog experiment).
Operant Conditioning: Behavior is learned through rewards and
punishments.
Social Learning Theory: People learn by observing others and
modeling their behavior.
Example:
An employee might adopt a new skill after watching a colleague
successfully implement it, or they may avoid certain behaviors after
seeing others face negative consequences.
6. Motivation
Motivation is the internal force that drives individuals to take action
toward achieving personal and organizational goals. Several motivation
theories explain how individual behavior is influenced:
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Focuses on fulfilling physiological to
self-actualization needs.
Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory: Differentiates between hygiene
factors (salary, job security) and motivators (recognition, growth
opportunities).
McClelland’s Theory of Needs: Emphasizes the need for
achievement, affiliation, and power as drivers of behavior.
Example:
An employee driven by a strong need for achievement might
continuously set high performance goals and seek challenging tasks to
maintain motivation.
Summary of Concepts:
1. Biographical Characteristics: Age, gender, and tenure affect work
behavior.
2. Values and Attitudes: Core beliefs and attitudes shape behavior
and interactions.
3. Personality: Stable traits influence an individual's response to
situations.
4. Perception: How people interpret information varies and affects
their behavior.
5. Learning: Behavior is shaped by experiences, rewards, and
observation.
6. Motivation: Internal drives guide individuals toward achieving
goals.
7. Emotions and Moods: These affect decision-making, productivity,
and engagement.
8. Decision Making: How individuals process information and make
choices.
By understanding these concepts, you can gain insights into the
behavior of individuals within an organization and design policies,
incentives, and management practices that align with these behavioral
patterns.
Personality in Organizational Behavior
Definition:
Personality is the combination of stable physical and mental
characteristics that give individuals their identity. It includes the way a
person thinks, feels, and behaves consistently across different
situations.
Key Concepts of Personality
1. Personality Traits:
These are consistent characteristics and behaviors that
individuals exhibit. A trait is considered a stable, enduring aspect
of a person’s personality. Examples include extroversion,
agreeableness, or conscientiousness.
2. Personality Development:
Personality evolves over time and can be influenced by genetics
(nature) and the environment (nurture). Family, upbringing,
culture, and personal experiences all play roles in shaping
personality.
Major Models of Personality
1. Big Five Personality Model (OCEAN)
The Big Five Personality Traits are widely accepted in organizational
behavior as they offer a comprehensive framework for understanding
personality differences.
Openness to Experience: Describes the extent to which a person
is imaginative, curious, and open-minded. High openness leads to
creativity and willingness to take risks, while low openness is
linked to traditional thinking and risk aversion.
Impact on Decision-Making: Individuals high in openness are more likely
to consider novel solutions and take innovative approaches.
Conscientiousness: Refers to being responsible, organized, and
dependable. Individuals high in conscientiousness are goal-
oriented and diligent.
Impact on Decision-Making: Conscientious individuals are more likely to
make decisions based on careful planning and detailed analysis,
avoiding impulsive actions.
Extraversion: Describes the degree to which a person is sociable,
outgoing, and assertive. Extroverts gain energy from interacting
with others, while introverts prefer solitude and reflection.
Impact on Decision-Making: Extroverts tend to make decisions that
involve social interaction and collaboration, while introverts may prefer
to work independently and focus on internal thought processes.
Agreeableness: Refers to being cooperative, kind, and
compassionate. Highly agreeable individuals are often good team
players and prefer harmony.
Impact on Decision-Making: Agreeable individuals might prioritize the
needs of others and prefer consensus, sometimes compromising their
own preferences to maintain harmony.
Neuroticism (Emotional Stability): Measures how well individuals
handle stress and emotional situations. Low emotional stability
(high neuroticism) leads to mood swings, anxiety, and emotional
reactions, while emotionally stable individuals remain calm under
pressure.
Impact on Decision-Making: Emotionally stable individuals make
decisions calmly, while those high in neuroticism may struggle with
stressful decisions and react impulsively.
Impact on Decision-Making:
Introverted Thinking Types (IT): Analyze situations thoroughly
before making decisions.
Extraverted Feeling Types (EF): Prioritize the impact on people
and relationships in decision-making.
Sensing Judging Types (SJ): Focus on facts and structured
decision-making.
Intuitive Perceiving Types (NP): Take creative approaches and are
open to revising their decisions.
3. Locus of Control
Locus of Control is the degree to which individuals believe they control
their own fate.
Internal Locus of Control: Individuals with an internal locus believe they
can influence events and outcomes through their actions. They are more
proactive and tend to take responsibility for their decisions.
Impact on Decision-Making: These individuals are more likely to take initiative
and assume control over their decisions, leading to a sense of empowerment.
External Locus of Control: Those with an external locus believe that
external forces (such as luck, fate, or powerful others) have control over
what happens. They may be more reactive in decision-making, waiting
for things to happen rather than taking the lead.
Impact on Decision-Making: These individuals may avoid making significant
decisions or rely on others to shape outcomes.
Definition of Perception:
Perception is the process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory
impressions to give meaning to their environment. In the context of organizational behavior,
perception plays a significant role in determining how employees view and react to various
aspects of the workplace, including their jobs, colleagues, and superiors.
According to Aswathappa, perception is not just about receiving information but about how
we interpret and make sense of it. This can vary significantly among individuals, which is
why different employees may respond differently to the same situation.
Aswathappa outlines the perceptual process as a series of stages that individuals go through
when perceiving their environment. This process consists of the following steps:
1. Selection of Stimuli:
o Not all stimuli in the environment are perceived. People selectively attend to
certain stimuli based on interest, novelty, and relevance. This selection is
influenced by both external (e.g., intensity, size) and internal (e.g., motivation,
past experiences) factors.
o Example: An employee might pay more attention to feedback from a manager
if it directly relates to their career growth, while ignoring other unrelated
information.
2. Organization:
o Once the stimuli are selected, the brain organizes them into a coherent pattern.
This involves grouping information and filling in gaps based on prior
knowledge and experience.
o Example: An employee who has had a positive relationship with a previous
boss might assume that their new boss will also be supportive, even before any
interaction takes place.
3. Interpretation:
o Interpretation is the process of assigning meaning to the organized stimuli.
This meaning can vary significantly depending on the individual's
background, expectations, and emotional state.
o Example: Two employees receiving the same feedback might interpret it
differently—one may see it as constructive criticism, while the other might
view it as harsh criticism.
4. Response:
o After interpreting the stimuli, individuals react or respond in some manner.
The response could be verbal or non-verbal, behavioral, or emotional.
o Example: If an employee perceives a project deadline as unreasonable, they
may react by feeling stressed or may even approach their manager to request
an extension.
Aswathappa discusses various factors that influence perception, categorizing them into
internal and external factors.
A. Internal Factors:
1. Motivation:
o The level of an individual's motivation can influence their perception. People
tend to perceive things that are in line with their current needs and desires.
o Example: A highly motivated salesperson might perceive every potential
client as a great opportunity, whereas a demotivated colleague may not notice
the same leads.
2. Experience:
o Past experiences shape how people perceive new situations. Individuals tend
to use their previous experiences to interpret current events.
o Example: An employee who has been micromanaged in the past might
perceive any form of oversight from their manager as micromanagement, even
if it's not intended that way.
3. Personality:
o Personality traits, such as optimism or pessimism, can affect how a person
interprets events. Optimistic individuals may see opportunities in challenges,
while pessimists might focus on the risks.
o Example: An optimistic manager might view an economic downturn as an
opportunity for strategic innovation, whereas a pessimist may only see it as a
threat to the company.
4. Learning:
o Learning affects perception because individuals tend to perceive what they
have learned to expect. Prior knowledge allows individuals to fill in gaps and
make assumptions.
o Example: An employee with extensive experience in project management
may quickly perceive inefficiencies in a new project, whereas a less
experienced employee may not notice these issues.
B. External Factors:
1. Intensity of Stimuli:
o Strong or intense stimuli are more likely to be noticed and perceived. This
could be in the form of loud sounds, bright colors, or strong odors.
o Example: In an organization, a loud and energetic team leader may be noticed
more than a quieter, introverted manager, even if both perform equally well.
2. Size:
o Larger objects are more likely to be noticed than smaller ones.
o Example: A big, well-designed presentation board might capture the attention
of a team during a meeting, while small details on handouts may go unnoticed.
3. Contrast:
o People tend to perceive things that stand out or are different from their
surroundings.
o Example: In a group of employees dressed in formal attire, someone dressed
casually is likely to be noticed more easily.
4. Motion:
o Moving objects are more likely to be noticed than stationary ones.
o Example: An employee walking around the office during a meeting is likely
to attract more attention than one who is seated.
5. Repetition:
o Stimuli that are repeated are more likely to be noticed and perceived.
o Example: A repeated message about a company policy change is more likely
to be remembered by employees than a single announcement.
A. Selective Perception:
Stereotyping occurs when individuals make generalized judgments about others based
on their membership in a particular group (e.g., gender, race, age, profession).
Example: Assuming that younger employees are always tech-savvy or that older
employees are resistant to change are examples of stereotyping in the workplace.
C. Halo Effect:
The halo effect occurs when an individual's overall impression of a person is based
on one positive characteristic, which then overshadows other traits.
Example: An employee who is particularly good at public speaking might be
perceived as being highly competent in all areas, even if they lack skills in other tasks.
D. Horn Effect:
The horn effect is the opposite of the halo effect, where one negative characteristic
leads to an overall negative impression.
Example: If an employee frequently misses deadlines, a manager might view them as
unproductive, even if they excel in other areas of their work.
E. Projection:
F. Attribution Errors:
Motivation refers to the internal forces that drive an individual to engage in goal-
directed behavior. It involves the processes that initiate, sustain, and regulate actions
toward achieving objectives.
It is the psychological feature that stimulates a person to act toward a desired goal and
elicits, controls, and sustains certain behaviors.
2. Importance of Motivation in OB
3. Theories of Motivation
A. Content Theories
Overview: Maslow proposed that human needs are arranged in a hierarchy. As one
need is satisfied, the individual moves to the next level.
1. Physiological Needs: Basic needs like food, water, and shelter.
2. Safety Needs: Protection from physical and emotional harm.
3. Social Needs: Affection, belonging, and friendship.
4. Esteem Needs: Self-respect, recognition, and achievement.
5. Self-Actualization Needs: Personal growth, fulfillment, and achieving
potential.
Example: A junior employee may initially focus on earning a stable income
(physiological needs) but later seek recognition for their achievements (esteem needs)
as they progress in their career.
B. Process Theories
Overview: Vroom’s theory is based on the idea that motivation depends on the
expectation that effort will lead to desired outcomes. It is built on three components:
1. Expectancy: Belief that effort leads to performance.
2. Instrumentality: Belief that performance will lead to rewards.
3. Valence: The value placed on the rewards.
Example: An employee may work hard on a project (effort) if they believe their
performance will be evaluated positively (expectancy) and result in a promotion
(instrumentality) that they value (valence).
Overview: This theory asserts that individuals are motivated by setting specific,
challenging, and attainable goals. Clear goals, along with appropriate feedback,
increase performance.
1. Goal Specificity: Clear and specific goals lead to higher performance.
2. Goal Difficulty: Challenging goals lead to better performance than easy goals.
3. Goal Commitment: The individual must commit to achieving the goal.
4. Feedback: Timely and relevant feedback is essential for goal accomplishment.
Example: A sales representative with a clear sales target (specific and challenging
goal) is more likely to be motivated to meet or exceed that target than one with a
vague goal like "increase sales."
C. Reinforcement Theory