with MyManagementLab®
•
ynamic Study Modules—Helps students study effectively on their own by
D
continuously assessing their activity and performance in real time. Here’s how it
works: students complete a set of questions with a unique answer format that also
asks them to indicate their confidence level. Questions repeat until the student can
answer them all correctly and confidently. Once completed, Dynamic Study Modules
explain the concept using materials from the text. These are available as graded
assignments prior to class, and accessible on smartphones, tablets, and computers.
•
•
eporting Dashboard—View, analyze, and report learning outcomes
R
clearly and easily, and get the information you need to keep your students
on track throughout the course with the new Reporting Dashboard.
Available via the MyLab Gradebook and fully mobile-ready, the Reporting
Dashboard presents student performance data at the class, section, and
program levels in an accessible, visual manner.
•
•
earning Catalytics™—Is an interactive, student response tool that
L
uses students’ smartphones, tablets, or laptops to engage them in more
sophisticated tasks and thinking. Now included with MyLab with eText,
Learning Catalytics enables you to generate classroom discussion, guide
your lecture, and promote peer-to-peer learning with real-time analytics.
ccessibility (ADA)—Pearson works continuously to ensure our products are
A
as accessible as possible to all students. The platform team for our Business
MyLab products is working toward achieving WCAG 2.0 Level AA and Section 508
standards, as expressed in the Pearson Guidelines for Accessible Educational
Web Media. Moreover, our products support customers in meeting their
obligation to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by providing
access to learning technology programs for users with disabilities.
The following information provides tips and answers to frequently asked
questions for those using assistive technologies to access the Business MyLab
products. As product accessibility evolves continuously, please email our
Accessibility Team at disability.support@pearson.com for the most up-to-date
information.
MS Integration—You can now link from Blackboard Learn, Brightspace by
L
D2L, Canvas, or Moodle to MyManagementLab. Access assignments, rosters,
and resources, and synchronize grades with your LMS gradebook.
For students, single sign-on provides access to all the personalized
learning resources that make studying more efficient and effective.
ALWAYS LEARNING
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 1
24/09/16 11:56 am
This page intentionally left blank
A01_HANL4898_08_SE_FM.indd 2
24/12/14 12:49 PM
Fourteenth Edition
Essentials of
Organizational Behavior
Stephen P. Robbins
San Diego State University
Timothy A. Judge
The Ohio State University
New York, NY
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 3
24/09/16 11:56 am
Vice President, Business Publishing: Donna Battista
Director of Portfolio Management: Stephanie Wall
Portfolio Manager: Kris Ellis-Levy
Editorial Assistant: Hannah Lamarre
Vice President, Product Marketing: Roxanne McCarley
Director of Strategic Marketing: Brad Parkins
Strategic Marketing Manager: Deborah Strickland
Product Marketer: Becky Brown
Field Marketing Manager: Lenny Ann Kucenski
Product Marketing Assistant: Jessica Quazza
Vice President, Production and Digital Studio, Arts and
Business: Etain O’Dea
Director of Production, Business: Jeff Holcomb
Managing Producer, Business: Ashley Santora
Content Producer: Claudia Fernandes
Operations Specialist: Carol Melville
Creative Director: Blair Brown
Manager, Learning Tools: Brian Surette
Content Developer, Learning Tools: Lindsey Sloan
Managing Producer, Digital Studio, Arts and Business:
Diane Lombardo
Digital Studio Producer: Monique Lawrence
Digital Studio Producer: Alana Coles
Full-Service Project Management and Composition:
Cenveo® Publisher Services
Interior and Cover Designer: Cenveo® Publisher Services
Cover Art: LeitnerR/Fotolia
Printer/Binder: RR Donnelley/Crawfordsville
Cover Printer: Phoenix Color/Hagerstown
Copyright © 2018, 2016, 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved. Manufactured in the United States
of America. This publication is protected by copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited
reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise. For information regarding permissions, request forms, and the appropriate contacts within the Pearson Education
Global Rights and Permissions department, please visit www.pearsoned.com/permissions/
Acknowledgments of third-party content appear on the appropriate page within the text.
PEARSON, ALWAYS LEARNING, and MYMANAGEMENTLAB® are exclusive trademarks owned by Pearson Education, Inc. or
its affiliates in the U.S. and/or other countries.
Unless otherwise indicated herein, any third-party trademarks, logos, or icons that may appear in this work are the property of their respective owners, and any references to third-party trademarks, logos, icons, or other trade dress are for demonstrative or descriptive purposes
only. Such references are not intended to imply any sponsorship, endorsement, authorization, or promotion of Pearson’s products by the
owners of such marks, or any relationship between the owner and Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates, authors, licensees, or distributors.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Robbins, Stephen P., author. | Judge, Tim, author.
Title: Essentials of organizational behavior / Stephen P. Robbins, San Diego
State University, Timothy A. Judge, University of Notre Dame.
Description: Fourteen edition. | Boston : Pearson Education, [2016] |
Includes index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016022886 (print) | LCCN 2016034760 (ebook) | ISBN
9780134523859 (pbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780134527314
Subjects: LCSH: Organizational behavior.
Classification: LCC HD58.7 .R6 2017 (print) | LCC HD58.7 (ebook) | DDC
658.3––dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016022886
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ISBN 10: 0-13-452385-7
ISBN 13: 978-0-13-452385-9
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 4
30/09/16 11:59 AM
This book is dedicated to our friends and colleagues in
The Organizational Behavior Teaching Society
who, through their teaching, research and commitment
to the leading process, have significantly
improved the ability of students
to understand and apply OB concepts.
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 5
24/09/16 11:56 am
BRIEF CONTENTS
PART 1 Understanding Yourself and Others
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
1
What Is Organizational Behavior? 1
Diversity in Organizations 17
Attitudes and Job Satisfaction 34
Emotions and Moods 47
Personality and Values 64
PART 2 Making and Implementing Decisions
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
82
Perception and Individual Decision Making
Motivation Concepts 100
Motivation: From Concepts to Applications
PART 3 Communicating in Groups and Teams
82
120
136
Chapter 9 Foundations of Group Behavior 136
Chapter 10 Understanding Work Teams 154
Chapter 11 Communication 170
PART 4 Negotiating Power and Politics
Chapter 12 Leadership 186
Chapter 13 Power and Politics 207
Chapter 14 Conflict and Negotiation
186
226
PART 5 Leading, Understanding, and Transforming
the Organization System 245
Chapter 15 Foundations of Organization Structure 245
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture 265
Chapter 17 Organizational Change and Stress Management
285
vi
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 6
24/09/16 11:56 am
CONTENTS
Preface
xxii
Acknowledgments
xxix
About the Authors
xxx
PART 1 Understanding Yourself and Others
1
Chapter 1 WHAT IS ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR?
1
Chapter Warm-up 1
Management and Organizational Behavior 2
Organizational Behavior (OB) Defined 3
Effective versus Successful Managerial Activities 3
Watch It—Herman Miller: Organizational Behavior 4
Complementing Intuition with Systematic Study 4
Big Data 5
Disciplines That Contribute to the OB Field 6
Psychology 6
Social Psychology 6
Sociology 7
Anthropology 7
There Are Few Absolutes in OB 7
Challenges and Opportunities for OB 8
Continuing Globalization 8
Workforce Demographics 10
Workforce Diversity 10
Social Media 10
Employee Well-Being at Work 11
Positive Work Environment 11
Ethical Behavior 12
Coming Attractions: Developing an OB Model 12
Overview 12
Inputs 13
Processes 13
Outcomes 14
Summary 15
Implications for Managers 15
Personal Inventory Assessments: Multicultural Awareness Scale
16
vii
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 7
24/09/16 11:56 am
viii
Contents
Chapter 2 DIVERSITY IN ORGANIZATIONS
17
Chapter Warm-up 17
Diversity 17
Demographic Characteristics 18
Levels of Diversity 18
Discrimination 19
Stereotype Threat 19
Discrimination in the Workplace 20
Biographical Characteristics 21
Age 21
Sex 22
Race and Ethnicity 23
Disabilities 23
Hidden Disabilities 24
Other Differentiating Characteristics 25
Religion 25
Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity 25
Cultural Identity 27
Watch It—Verizon: Diversity 27
Ability 27
Intellectual Abilities 27
Physical Abilities 29
Implementing Diversity Management Strategies 29
Attracting, Selecting, Developing, and Retaining Diverse
Employees 30
Diversity in Groups 31
Diversity Programs 32
Summary 32
Implications for Managers 33
Try It—Simulation: Human Resources 33
Personal Inventory Assessments: Intercultural Sensitivity
Scale 33
Chapter 3 ATTITUDES AND JOB SATISFACTION
34
Chapter Warm-up 34
Attitudes 34
Watch It—Gawker Media: Attitudes and Job Satisfaction
Attitudes and Behavior 36
Job Attitudes 37
Job Satisfaction and Job Involvement 37
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 8
36
24/09/16 11:56 am
Contents ix
Organizational Commitment 37
Perceived Organizational Support 37
Employee Engagement 38
Measuring Job Satisfaction 38
Approaches to Measurement 39
Measured Job Satisfaction Levels 39
What Causes Job Satisfaction? 39
Job Conditions 40
Personality 41
Pay 41
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) 41
Outcomes of Job Satisfaction 42
Job Performance 42
Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) 42
Customer Satisfaction 42
Life Satisfaction 43
The Impact of Job Dissatisfaction 43
Counterproductive Work Behavior (CWB) 43
Understanding the Impact 45
Summary 46
Implications for Managers 46
Try It—Simulation: Attitudes & Job Satisfaction 46
Personal Inventory Assessments: Core Self-Evaluation (CSE)
Scale 46
Chapter 4 EMOTIONS AND MOODS
47
Chapter Warm-up 47
What Are Emotions and Moods? 47
The Basic Emotions 48
Moral Emotions 49
The Basic Moods: Positive and Negative Affect
Experiencing Moods and Emotions 50
The Function of Emotions 50
Sources of Emotions and Moods 51
Personality 52
Time of Day 52
Day of the Week 52
Weather 52
Stress 54
Sleep 54
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 9
49
24/09/16 11:56 am
x
Contents
Exercise 54
Age 54
Sex 54
Emotional Labor 55
Controlling Emotional Displays 55
Emotional Dissonance and Mindfulness 56
Affective Events Theory 56
Emotional Intelligence 56
Emotion Regulation 58
Emotion Regulation Influences and Outcomes 58
Emotion Regulation Techniques 58
Ethics of Emotion Regulation 59
Watch It—East Haven Fire Department: Emotions and Moods
OB Applications of Emotions and Moods 59
Selection 59
Decision Making 60
Creativity 60
Motivation 60
Leadership 60
Customer Service 61
Job Attitudes 61
Deviant Workplace Behaviors 61
Safety and Injury at Work 62
59
Summary 62
Implications for Managers 62
Try It—Simulation: Emotions & Moods 63
Personal Inventory Assessments: Emotional Intelligence
Assessment 63
Chapter 5 PERSONALITY AND VALUES
64
Chapter Warm-up 64
Personality 64
What Is Personality? 65
Personality Frameworks 66
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator 66
The Big Five Personality Model 67
How Do the Big Five Traits Predict Behavior at Work?
The Dark Triad 69
Other Personality Attributes Relevant to OB 71
Core Self-Evaluation (CSE) 71
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 10
68
24/09/16 11:56 am
Contents xi
Self-Monitoring 72
Proactive Personality 72
Personality and Situations 72
Situation Strength Theory 73
Trait Activation Theory 74
Values 75
Watch It—Honest Tea: Ethics–Company Mission and Values 75
Terminal versus Instrumental Values 75
Generational Values 76
Linking an Individual’s Personality and Values
to the Workplace 76
Person–Job Fit 76
Person–Organization Fit 77
Other Dimensions of Fit 77
Cultural Values 78
Hofstede’s Framework 78
The GLOBE Framework 79
Comparison of Hofstede’s Framework and the Globe
Framework 79
Summary 81
Implications for Managers 81
Personal Inventory Assessments: Personality Style
Indicator 81
PART 2 Making and Implementing Decisions
82
Chapter 6 PERCEPTION AND INDIVIDUAL DECISION
MAKING 82
Chapter Warm-up 82
What Is Perception? 82
Factors That Influence Perception 83
Watch It—Orpheus Group Casting: Social Perception and
Attribution 84
Person Perception: Making Judgments about Others 84
Attribution Theory 84
Common Shortcuts in Judging Others 86
The Link between Perception and Individual Decision
Making 87
Decision Making in Organizations 87
The Rational Model, Bounded Rationality, and Intuition 87
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 11
24/09/16 11:56 am
xii
Contents
Common Biases and Errors in Decision Making 89
Influences on Decision Making: Individual Differences and
Organizational Constraints 91
Individual Differences 92
Organizational Constraints 93
What about Ethics in Decision Making? 93
Three Ethical Decision Criteria 94
Choosing between Criteria 94
Behavioral Ethics 95
Lying 95
Creativity, Creative Decision Making, and Innovation in
Organizations 95
Creative Behavior 96
Causes of Creative Behavior 96
Creative Outcomes (Innovation) 98
Summary 98
Implications for Managers 98
Try It—Simulation: Perception & Individual Decision
Making 99
Personal Inventory Assessments: How Creative Are You?
Chapter 7 Motivation Concepts
99
100
Chapter Warm-up 100
Motivation 100
Watch It—Motivation (TWZ Role Play) 101
Early Theories of Motivation 101
Hierarchy of Needs Theory 101
Two-Factor Theory 102
McClelland’s Theory of Needs 102
Contemporary Theories of Motivation 104
Self-Determination Theory 104
Goal-Setting Theory 105
Other Contemporary Theories of Motivation 108
Self-Efficacy Theory 108
Reinforcement Theory 110
Equity Theory/Organizational Justice 111
Expectancy Theory 115
Job Engagement 116
Integrating Contemporary Theories of Motivation 116
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 12
30/09/16 11:42 AM
Contents xiii
Summary 118
Implications for Managers 118
Try It—Simulation: Motivation 118
Personal Inventory Assessments: Work Motivation Indicator 119
Chapter 8 MOTIVATION: FROM CONCEPTS TO
APPLICATIONS 120
Chapter Warm-up 120
Motivating by Job Design: The Job Characteristics
Model (JCM) 121
Elements of the JCM 121
Efficacy of the JCM 121
Motivating Potential Score (MPS) 122
Cultural Generalizability of the JCM 123
Using Job Redesign to Motivate Employees 123
Job Rotation 123
Relational Job Design 124
Using Alternative Work Arrangements
to Motivate Employees 124
Flextime 125
Job Sharing 126
Telecommuting 127
Using Employee Involvement and Participation (EIP)
to Motivate Employees 127
Cultural EIP 128
Forms of Employee Involvement Programs 128
Using Extrinsic Rewards to Motivate Employees 129
What to Pay: Establishing a Pay Structure 129
How to Pay: Rewarding Individual Employees through
Variable-Pay Programs 129
Using Benefits to Motivate Employees 133
Using Intrinsic Rewards to Motivate Employees 133
Watch It—ZAPPOS: Motivating Employees through Company
Culture 134
Summary 134
Implications for Managers 135
Try It—Simulation: Extrinsic & Intrinsic Motivation 135
Personal Inventory Assessments: Diagnosing the Need for
Team Building
135
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 13
24/09/16 11:56 am
xiv
Contents
PART 3 Communicating in Groups and Teams
Chapter 9 FOUNDATIONS OF GROUP BEHAVIOR
136
136
Chapter Warm-up 136
Groups and Group Identity 137
Social Identity 137
Ingroups and Outgroups 137
Stages of Group Development 138
Watch It—Witness.org: Managing Groups & Teams 138
Group Property 1: Roles 139
Role Perception 140
Role Expectations 140
Role Conflict 140
Group Property 2: Norms 140
Norms and Emotions 141
Norms and Conformity 141
Norms and Behavior 142
Positive Norms and Group Outcomes 142
Negative Norms and Group Outcomes 143
Norms and Culture 144
Group Property 3: Status, and Group Property 4: Size 144
Group Property 3: Status 144
Group Property 4: Size 146
Group Property 5: Cohesiveness, and Group Property
6: Diversity 146
Group Property 5: Cohesiveness 147
Group Property 6: Diversity 147
Group Decision Making 149
Groups versus the Individual 149
Groupthink 150
Groupshift or Group Polarization 151
Group Decision-Making Techniques 151
Summary 152
Implications for Managers 153
Try It—Simulation: Group Behavior 153
Personal Inventory Assessments: Communicating
Supportively 153
Chapter 10 UNDERSTANDING WORK TEAMS
Chapter Warm-up 154
Why Have Teams Become so Popular?
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 14
154
154
24/09/16 11:56 am
Contents xv
Differences between Groups and Teams 155
Types of Teams 156
Problem-Solving Teams 156
Self-Managed Work Teams 156
Cross-Functional Teams 157
Virtual Teams 158
Multiteam Systems 158
Watch It—Teams (TWZ Role Play) 159
Creating Effective Teams 159
Team Context: What Factors Determine Whether
Teams Are Successful? 160
Team Composition 161
Team Processes 164
Turning Individuals into Team Players 166
Selecting: Hiring Team Players 167
Training: Creating Team Players 167
Rewarding: Providing Incentives to Be a
Good Team Player 167
Beware! Teams Aren’t Always the Answer 168
Summary 168
Implications for Managers 168
Try It—Simulation: Teams 169
Personal Inventory Assessments: Team Development
Behaviors 169
Chapter 11 COMMUNICATION
170
Chapter Warm-up 170
Communication 171
Functions of Communication 171
The Communication Process 172
Direction of Communication 172
Downward Communication 173
Upward Communication 173
Lateral Communication 173
Formal Small-Group Networks 174
The Grapevine 174
Modes of Communication 175
Oral Communication 175
Written Communication 176
Nonverbal Communication 176
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 15
24/09/16 11:56 am
xvi
Contents
Choice of Communication Channel 176
Channel Richness 176
Choosing Communication Methods 177
Information Security 178
Persuasive Communication 178
Automatic and Controlled Processing 178
Tailoring the Message 179
Barriers to Effective Communication 180
Filtering 180
Selective Perception 180
Information Overload 180
Emotions 181
Language 181
Silence 181
Communication Apprehension 181
Lying 182
Cultural Factors 182
Cultural Barriers 182
Cultural Context 183
A Cultural Guide 183
Watch It—Communication (TWZ Role Play) 184
Summary 184
Implications for Managers 185
Try It—Simulation: Communication 185
Personal Inventory Assessments: Communication Styles
PART 4 Negotiating Power and Politics
Chapter 12 LEADERSHIP
186
186
Chapter Warm-up 186
Watch It—Leadership (TWZ Role Play) 186
Trait Theories of Leadership 187
Personality Traits and Leadership 187
Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Leadership
Behavioral Theories 188
Initiating Structure 188
Consideration 189
Cultural Differences 189
Contingency Theories 189
The Fiedler Model 189
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 16
185
188
24/09/16 11:56 am
Contents xvii
Situational Leadership Theory 191
Path–Goal Theory 191
Leader–Participation Model 192
Contemporary Theories of Leadership 192
Leader–Member Exchange (LMX) Theory 192
Charismatic Leadership 194
Transactional and Transformational Leadership
196
Responsible Leadership 199
Authentic Leadership 199
Ethical Leadership 200
Servant Leadership 200
Positive Leadership 201
Trust 201
Mentoring 203
Challenges to Our Understanding of Leadership
Leadership as an Attribution 203
Substitutes for and Neutralizers of Leadership
Online Leadership 205
203
204
Summary 205
Implications for Managers 205
Try It—Simulation: Leadership
206
Personal Inventory Assessments: Ethical Leadership
Assessment 206
Chapter 13 POWER AND POLITICS
207
Chapter Warm-up 207
Watch It—Power and Political Behavior 207
Power and Leadership 208
Bases of Power 208
Formal Power 208
Personal Power 209
Which Bases of Power Are Most Effective? 210
Dependence: The Key to Power 210
The General Dependence Postulate 210
What Creates Dependence? 210
Social Network Analysis: A Tool for Assessing
Resources 211
Power Tactics 212
Using Power Tactics 212
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 17
24/09/16 11:56 am
xviii Contents
Cultural Preferences for Power Tactics
Applying Power Tactics 214
213
How Power Affects People 214
Power Variables 214
Sexual Harassment: Unequal Power in the Workplace
Politics: Power in Action 216
Definition of Organizational Politics
The Reality of Politics 216
215
216
Causes and Consequences of Political Behavior 217
Factors Contributing to Political Behavior 217
How Do People Respond to Organizational Politics?
Impression Management 220
The Ethics of Behaving Politically 222
Mapping Your Political Career 223
219
Summary 224
Implications for Managers 225
Try It—Simulation: Power & Politics 225
Personal Inventory Assessments: Gaining Power and
Influence 225
Chapter 14 Conflict and Negotiation
226
Chapter Warm-up 226
A Definition of Conflict 226
Types of Conflict 228
Loci of Conflict 229
The Conflict Process 229
Stage I: Potential Opposition or Incompatibility
Stage II: Cognition and Personalization 231
Stage III: Intentions 231
Stage IV: Behavior 232
Stage V: Outcomes 233
230
Watch It—Gordon Law Group: Conflict and Negotiation
Negotiation 235
Bargaining Strategies 235
The Negotiation Process 237
Individual Differences in Negotiation Effectiveness
Negotiating in a Social Context 241
Reputation 241
Relationships 242
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 18
235
239
30/09/16 11:42 AM
Contents xix
Third-Party Negotiations
242
Summary 243
Implications for Managers 243
Personal Inventory Assessments: Strategies for Handling
Conflict 244
PART 5 Leading, Understanding, and Transforming
the Organization System 245
Chapter 15 Foundations of Organization
Structure 245
Chapter Warm-up 245
What Is Organizational Structure? 246
Work Specialization 246
Departmentalization 247
Chain of Command 248
Span of Control 249
Centralization and Decentralization 250
Formalization 251
Boundary Spanning 251
Common Organizational Frameworks and Structures 252
The Simple Structure 252
The Bureaucracy 253
The Matrix Structure 254
Alternate Design Options 255
The Virtual Structure 255
The Team Structure 256
The Circular Structure 257
The Leaner Organization: Downsizing 257
Why Do Structures Differ? 258
Organizational Strategies 258
Organization Size 260
Technology 260
Environment 260
Institutions 261
Organizational Designs and Employee Behavior 262
Work Specialization 262
Span of Control 262
Centralization 263
Predictability versus Autonomy 263
National Culture 263
Watch It—ZipCar: Organizational Structure
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 19
263
30/09/16 11:42 AM
xx
Contents
Summary 263
Implications for Managers 264
Try It—Simulation: Organizational Structure 264
Personal Inventory Assessments: Organizational Structure
Assessment 264
Chapter 16 ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
265
Chapter Warm-up 265
Watch It—Organizational Culture (TWZ Role Play) 265
What Is Organizational Culture? 266
A Definition of Organizational Culture 266
Do Organizations Have Uniform Cultures? 266
Strong versus Weak Cultures 267
Culture versus Formalization 268
What Do Cultures Do? 268
The Functions of Culture 268
Culture Creates Climate 269
The Ethical Dimension of Culture 269
Culture and Sustainability 270
Culture and Innovation 271
Culture as an Asset 271
Culture as a Liability 272
Creating and Sustaining Culture 273
How a Culture Begins 273
Keeping a Culture Alive 274
Summary: How Organizational Cultures Form 276
How Employees Learn Culture 276
Stories 277
Rituals 277
Symbols 277
Language 278
Influencing an Organizational Culture 278
An Ethical Culture 278
A Positive Culture 279
A Spiritual Culture 280
The Global Context 282
Summary 283
Implications for Managers 283
Try It—Simulation: Organizational Culture 283
Personal Inventory Assessments: Organizational Structure
Assessment 284
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 20
24/09/16 11:56 am
Contents xxi
Chapter 17 ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE AND STRESS
MANAGEMENT 285
Chapter Warm-up 285
Change 285
Forces for Change 286
Reactionary versus Planned Change 286
Resistance to Change 287
Overcoming Resistance to Change 287
The Politics of Change 289
Approaches to Managing Organizational Change 290
Lewin’s Three-Step Model 290
Kotter’s Eight-Step Plan 290
Action Research 291
Organizational Development 291
Creating a Culture for Change 293
Managing Paradox 293
Stimulating a Culture of Innovation 294
Creating a Learning Organization 295
Organizational Change and Stress 296
Watch It—East Haven Fire Department: Managing Stress
Stress at Work 296
What Is Stress? 297
Potential Sources of Stress at Work 298
Individual Differences in Stress 300
Cultural Differences 301
Consequences of Stress at Work 301
Managing Stress 302
Individual Approaches 302
Organizational Approaches 303
296
Summary 304
Implications for Managers 305
Try It—Simulation: Change 305
Personal Inventory Assessments: Tolerance of Ambiguity
Scale 305
Epilogue 306
Endnotes 307
Glossary 354
Index 363
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 21
24/09/16 11:56 am
PREFACE
This book was created as an alternative to the 600- or 700-page comprehensive text in
organizational behavior (OB). It attempts to provide balanced coverage of all the key
elements comprising the discipline of OB in a style that readers will find both informative and interesting. We’re pleased to say that this text has achieved a wide following in
short courses and executive programs as well as in traditional courses as a companion
volume to experiential, skill development, case, and readings books. It is currently used
at more than 500 colleges and universities in the United States, Canada, Latin America,
Europe, Australia, and Asia. It’s also been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese,
Chinese, Dutch, Polish, Turkish, Danish, and Bahasa Indonesian.
KEY CHANGES FOR THE FOURTEENTH EDITION
• Increased content coverage was added to include updated research, relevant discussion, and new exhibits on current issues of all aspects of organizational behavior.
• Increased integration of contemporary global issues was added into topic
discussions.
• Extensive reorganization of all chapters with new headings and subsections to
make navigating the print and digital versions of the text easier and bring important
content to the fore.
• Increased cross-references between chapters to link themes and concepts for the
student’s quick access and to provide a more in-depth understanding of topics.
• New assisted and auto-graded questions that students can complete and submit via
MyManagementLab are provided for each chapter.
• A new feature, Try It, has been added to 14 chapters to direct the student’s attention
to MyManagementLab simulations specific to the content in the text.
RETAINED FROM THE PREVIOUS EDITION
What do people like about this book? Surveys of users have found general agreement about the following features. Needless to say, they’ve all been retained in this
edition.
xxii
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 22
• Length. Since its inception in 1984, we’ve tried diligently to keep this book in the
range of 325 to 400 pages. Users tell us this length allows them considerable flexibility in assigning supporting materials and projects.
• Balanced topic coverage. Although short in length, this book continues to provide
balanced coverage of all the key concepts in OB. This includes not only traditional
topics such as personality, motivation, and leadership but also cutting-edge issues
such as emotions, diversity, negotiation, and teamwork.
• Writing style. This book is frequently singled out for its fluid writing style
and extensive use of examples. Users regularly tell us that they find this
book “conversational,” “interesting,” “student friendly,” and “very clear and
understandable.”
24/09/16 11:56 am
Preface xxiii
• Practicality. This book has never been solely about theory. It’s about using theory
to better explain and predict the behavior of people in organizations. In each edition of this book, we have focused on making sure that readers see the link between
OB theories, research, and implications for practice.
• Absence of pedagogy. Part of the reason we’ve been able to keep this book short in
length is that it doesn’t include review questions, cases, exercises, or similar teaching/learning aids. It continues to provide only the basic core of OB knowledge, allowing instructors the maximum flexibility in designing and shaping their courses.
• Integration of globalization, diversity, and ethics. The topics of globalization and
cross-cultural differences, diversity, and ethics are discussed throughout this book.
Rather than being presented only in separate chapters, these topics have been woven into the context of relevant issues. Users tell us they find that this integrative
approach makes these topics more fully part of OB and reinforces their importance.
• Comprehensive supplements. Although this book may be short in length, it’s not
short on supplements. It comes with a complete, high-tech support package for both
faculty and students. Instructors are provided with a comprehensive Instructor’s
Manual and Test Bank, TestGenerator, and PowerPoint slides. The MyManagementLab course provides both instructors and students with various types of assessments,
video exercises, decision-making simulations, and Personal Inventory Assessments.
CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER CHANGES
Chapter 1: What Is Organizational Behavior?
• New content: Effective versus Successful Managerial Activities; Current Usage
of, New Trends in, and Limitations of Big Data; Workforce Demographics; Social
Media; and Inputs, Processes, and Outcomes of our General Model of Organizational Behavior
• Newly revised sections: Management and Organizational Behavior
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Introduction to Organizational Behavior, Big Data, Adapting to Differing Cultural and Regulatory Norms,
Positive Work Environments, and Ethical Behavior
• New features: Watch It (Herman Miller: Organizational Behavior) and Personal
Inventory Assessments (Multicultural Awareness Scale)
Chapter 2: Diversity in Organizations
• New content: Stereotype Threat and Hidden Disabilities
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives, Demographic Characteristics,
Discrimination, Implementing Diversity Management Strategies, and Implications
for Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Discrimination in the
Workplace; Biographical Characteristics, including Age, Sex, Race, and Ethnicity; Disabilities; the Wonderlic Intellectual Ability Test; Diversity in Groups;
and International Research on Religion, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and
Physical Abilities
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 23
24/09/16 11:56 am
xxiv Preface
• New features: Personal Inventory Assessments (Intercultural Sensitivity Scale),
Watch It (Verizon: Diversity), and Try It (Simulation: Human Resources)
Chapter 3: Attitudes and Job Satisfaction
• New content: The Causes of Job Satisfaction, including Job Conditions, Personality, Pay, and Corporate Social Responsibility; Life Satisfaction as an Outcome of
Job Satisfaction; and Counterproductive Work Behavior (CWB) as an Outcome of
Job Dissatisfaction
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives and Implications for Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Attitudes and Behavior, Employee Engagement, Measured Job Satisfaction Levels, How Satisfied Are People
in Their Jobs, and Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) as an Outcome of
Job Satisfaction
• New features: Watch It (Gawker Media: Attitudes and Job Satisfaction), Personal
Inventory Assessments [Core Self-Evaluation (CSE) Scale], and Try It (Simulation:
Attitudes & Job Satisfaction)
Chapter 4: Emotions and Moods
• New content: Moral Emotions; the Functions of Emotions, including Whether or
Not Emotions Make Us Ethical; Emotion Regulation Influences, Outcomes, and
Techniques; and the Ethics of Emotion Regulation
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives, Time of the Day as a Source of
Emotions and Moods, Implications for Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Stress, Sleep, Age, and Sex
as Sources of Emotions and Moods; Controlling Emotional Displays; Emotional
Intelligence; Safety and Injury at Work as Outcomes of Emotions and Moods; and
International Research on the Basic Emotions, Experiencing Moods, and Emotions, as well as on the Day of the Week and Weather as Sources of Emotions and
Moods
• New features: Personal Inventory Assessments (Emotional Intelligence Assessment) and Try It (Simulation: Emotions & Moods)
Chapter 5: Personality and Values
• New content: Whether or Not the Big Five Personality Traits Predict Behavior at
Work, Other Dark-Side Traits, and Other Dimensions of Fit
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives, Personality Frameworks, the MyersBriggs Type Indicator, Cultural Values, Summary, and Implications for Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Describing Personality; the
Big Five Personality Model; the Dark Triad, Proactive Personality; Organizational Situations, Generational Values; Person–Organization Fit; and International
Research on Measuring Personality, Narcissism, and Person–Job Fit
• New features: Watch It (Honest Tea: Ethics—Company Mission and Values), and
Personality Inventory Assessment (Personality Style Indicator)
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 24
24/09/16 11:56 am
Preface xxv
Chapter 6: Perception and Individual Decision Making
• New content: The Perceiver, Target, and Context as Factors That Influence Perception, Randomness Error; Nudging as an Influence on Decision Making; Choosing
between the Three Ethical Decision Criteria; Lying and Ethical Decision Making;
and Ethics and Creativity
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives, the Halo Effect, Escalation of Commitment, Creative Potential, and Implications for Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Person Perception: Making Judgments about Others; Attribution Theory; the Link between Perception and Individual
Decision Making; Gender as an Influence on Decision Making; Creative Behavior;
Intelligence, Personality, and Expertise as Causes of Creative Behavior; the Creative
Environment; and International Research on the Three Ethical Decision Criteria
• New features: Watch It (Orpheus Group Casting: Social Perception and Attribution), Try It (Simulation: Perception & Individual Decision Making), and Personal
Inventory Assessments (How Creative Are You?)
Chapter 7: Motivation Concepts
• New content: Goal-Setting and Ethics, Reinforcement Theory, Influencing SelfEfficacy in Others, Ensuring Justice, and Culture and Justice
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives, Goal-Setting Theory, and Equity
Theory/Organizational Justice
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Hierarchy of Needs Theory
as well as International Research on McClelland’s Theory of Needs, Goal-Setting
Theory, Self-Determination Theory, Self-Efficacy Theory, and Equity Theory/
Organizational Justice
• New features: Watch It [Motivation (TWZ Role Play)], Try It (Simulation: Motivation), and Personal Inventory Assessments (Work Motivation Indicator)
Chapter 8: Motivation: From Concepts to Applications
• Newly revised sections: The Job Characteristics Model, Job Rotation, Rewarding Individual Employees through Variable-Pay Programs, and Using Benefits to
Motivate Employees
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Job Rotation; Relational
Job Design; Flextime; Job Sharing; Participative Management; Establishing a Pay
Structure; Merit-Based Pay; Employee Stock Ownership Plans; Using Intrinsic
Rewards; and International Research on the Job Characteristics Model, Telecommuting, Cultural Employee Involvement Programs, Representative Participation,
Rewarding Individual Employees through Variable-Pay Programs, Piece-Rate Pay,
Bonuses, and Profit-Sharing Plans
• New features: Personal Inventory Assessments (Diagnosing the Need for Team
Building), Watch It (Zappos: Motivating Employees through Company Culture),
and Try It (Simulation: Extrinsic & Intrinsic Motivation)
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 25
24/09/16 11:56 am
xxvi Preface
Chapter 9: Foundations of Group Behavior
• New content: Social Identity, Ingroups and Outgroups, Norms and Emotions, Positive and Negative Norms and Group Outcomes, Norms and Culture, Group Status
Inequity, and Group Status and Stigmatization
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives; Role Expectations; Role Conflict;
Group Status, Group Size, and Dynamics, Group Cohesiveness; Group Diversity;
and Implications for Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Group Norms, Group Status
and Norms, Group Status and Group Interaction, Group Size and Dynamics, Challenges of Group Diversity, Group Effectiveness and Efficiency, and International
Research in Group Diversity
• New features: Watch It (Witness.org: Managing Groups & Teams), Personal Inventory
Assessments (Communicating Supportively), and Try It (Simulation: Group Behavior)
Chapter 10: Understanding Work Teams
• New content: Cultural Differences in Work Teams, Team Identity, Team Cohesion, and Shared Mental Models
• Newly revised sections: Problem-Solving Teams, Summary, and Implications for
Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: The Popularity of Teams,
Cross-Functional Teams, Virtual Teams, Multiteam Systems, Creating Effective
Teams, Team Composition, Personality of Team Members, Size of Teams, and
International Research on Climate of Trust
• New features: Watch It [Teams (TWZ Role Play)], Personal Inventory Assessments (Team Development Behaviors), and Try It (Simulation: Teams)
Chapter 11: Communication
• New content: Managing Behavior, Feedback, Emotional Feedback, Emotional
Sharing, Persuasion, and Information Exchange
• Newly revised sections: Downward and Upward Communication, The Grapevine,
Oral Communication, and Telephone
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Functions of Communication
and Information Overload
• New features: Watch It [Communication (TWZ Role Play)], Personal Inventory
Assessments (Communication Styles), and Try It (Simulation: Communication)
Chapter 12: Leadership
• New content: Dark Side Traits, Leader–Member Exchange Theory, How Transformational Leadership Works, Transformational versus Charismatic Leadership, Emotional
Intelligence and Leadership, Leader-Participation Model, and Trust and Culture
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives, Trait Theories of Leadership, Contemporary Theories of Leadership, Behavioral Theories, Responsible Leadership,
and Authentic Leadership
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 26
24/09/16 11:56 am
Preface xxvii
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Big Five Traits, Transactional and Transformational Leadership, Path–Goal Theory, Servant Leadership,
and International Research on Charismatic Leadership and the Evaluation of
Transformational Leadership
• New features: Watch It [Leadership (TWZ Role Play)], Personal Inventory Assessments (Ethical Leadership Assessment), and Try It (Simulation:
Leadership)
Chapter 13: Power and Politics
• New content: The General Dependence Postulate, Social Network Analysis, Sexual Harassment, Inter-Organizational Factors Contributing to Political Behavior,
Interviews and Impression Management, Scarcity, and Nonsubstitutability
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives and Individual Factors Contributing
to Political Behavior
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Impression Management,
Performance Evaluations and Impression Management, Organizational Factors,
and Contributing to Political Behavior
• New features: Watch It (Power and Political Behavior), Personal Inventory
Assessments (Gaining Power and Influence), and Try It (Simulation: Power & Politics)
Chapter 14: Conflict and Negotiation
• New content: Negotiating in a Social Context, Reputation and Relationships in
Negotiations, and Third-Party Negotiations
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives, A Definition of Conflict, Loci of
Conflict, and Stage IV of the Conflict Process: Behavior, Personality Traits, and
Gender Differences in Negotiations
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Functional Outcomes, Preparation and Planning for Negotiation, and International Research on Personal Variables as Sources of Conflict and Cultural Influences on Negotiation
• New features: Watch It (Gordon Law Group: Conflict and Negotiation) and Personal Inventory Assessments (Strategies for Handling Conflict)
Chapter 15: Foundations of Organization Structure
• New content: Implications of Organizational Structure for OB; Boundary Spanning; Types of Organizational Structures, including Functional, Divisional, Team,
and Circular Structures; and Institutions and Strategy
• Newly revised sections: Learning Objectives and Description of Organizational
Structure
• New research incorporated in the following areas: The Leaner Organization:
Downsizing, Organizational Strategies and Structure, and International Research
on Technology and Strategy
• New features: Personal Inventory Assessments (Organizational Structure Assessment), Try It (Simulation: Organizational Structure), and Watch It (ZipCar: Organizational Structure)
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 27
24/09/16 11:56 am
xxviii Preface
Chapter 16: Organizational Culture
• New content: The Ethical Dimensions of Culture, Culture and Sustainability,
Culture and Innovation, Culture as an Asset, Strengthening Dysfunctions, Rivals,
and Influencing an Organizational Culture
• Newly revised sections: Description of Organizational Culture, Barriers to
Acquisitions and Mergers, Ethical Culture, Positive Culture, Rewarding More
Than Punishing, and Building on Employee Strengths
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Organizational Socialization
• New features: Try It (Simulation: Organizational Culture) and Personal Inventory
Assessments (Organizational Structure Assessment)
Chapter 17: Organizational Change and Stress Management
• New content: Reactionary versus Planned Change; The Politics of Change; Action
Research; Sensitivity Training, Managing the Change Paradox; Describing and
Creating a Learning Organization; Organizational Change and Stress; Allostasis;
Potential Sources of Stress at Work; Environmental, Personal, and Organizational
Factors Leading to Stress; Stress Additivity; Perception and Stress; Job Experience and Stress; Personality Traits and Stress; Cultural Differences and Stress; and
Wellness Programs
• Newly revised sections: Description of Change, Forces for Change, Coercion as
a Tactic to Overcome Resistance to Change, Demands and Resources, Social Support and Stress, Summary, and Implications for Managers
• New research incorporated in the following areas: Resistance to Change, Developing Positive Relationships to Overcome Resistance to Change, Context and
Innovation, Behavioral Symptoms of Stress, and International Research on Communication to Overcome Resistance to Change and on Idea Champions
• New features: Try It (Simulation: Change), Watch It (East Haven Fire Department: Managing Stress), and Personal Inventory Assessments (Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale)
INSTRUCTOR RESOURCES
At Pearson’s Higher Ed catalog, https://www.pearsonhighered.com/sign-in.html, instructors can easily register to gain access to a variety of instructor resources available with
this text in downloadable format. If assistance is needed, our dedicated technical support
team is ready to help with the media supplements that accompany this text. Visit https://
support.pearson.com/getsupport for answers to frequently asked questions and toll-free
user support phone numbers.
The following supplements are available with this text:
•
•
•
•
Instructor’s Resource Manual
Test Bank
TestGen® Computerized Test Bank
PowerPoint Presentation
This title is available as an eBook and can be purchased at most eBook retailers.
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 28
24/09/16 11:56 am
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We owe a debt of gratitude to all those at Pearson who have supported this text over the
past 25 years and who have worked so hard on the development of this latest edition. On
the editorial side, we want to thank Director of Portfolio Management Stephanie Wall,
Portfolio Manager Kris Ellis-Levy, Managing Producer Ashley Santora, Content Producer Claudia Fernandes, and Editorial Assistant Hannah Lamarre. On the production
side, we want to thank Moumita Majumdar and Revathi Viswanathan, Project Managers
at Cenveo® Publisher Services. The authors are grateful for Lori Ehrman Tinkey of the
University of Notre Dame for her invaluable assistance in manuscript editing and preparation. Thank you also to David Glerum, Ph.D., for his input. Last but not least, we would
like to thank the marketing team for promoting the book to the market, and the sales
staff who have been selling this book over its many editions. We appreciate the attention
you’ve given this book.
xxix
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 29
24/09/16 11:56 am
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Stephen P. Robbins,
Ph.D. University of Arizona
Stephen P. Robbins is Professor Emeritus of Management at San Diego State University
and the world’s best-selling textbook author in the areas of both management and organizational behavior. His books are used at more than a thousand U.S. colleges and universities, have been translated into 19 languages, and have adapted editions for Canada,
Australia, South Africa, and India. Dr. Robbins is also the author of the best-selling books
The Truth About Managing People, 2nd ed. (Financial Times/Prentice Hall, 2008) and
Decide & Conquer (Financial Times/Prentice Hall, 2004).
In his “other life,” Dr. Robbins actively participates in masters’ track competitions.
Since turning 50 in 1993, he’s won 18 national championships and 12 world titles, and
set numerous U.S. and world age-group records at 60, 100, 200, and 400 meters. In 2005,
Dr. Robbins was elected into the USA Masters’ Track & Field Hall of Fame.
Timothy A. Judge,
Ph.D. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Timothy A. Judge is currently the Alutto Professor of Leadership at The Ohio State University and Visiting Professor, Division of Psychology & Language Sciences, University College London. He has held academic positions at the University of Notre Dame,
University of Florida, University of Iowa, Cornell University, Charles University in the
Czech Republic, Comenius University in Slovakia, and University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. Dr. Judge’s primary research interests are in (1) personality, moods, and
emotions; (2) job attitudes; (3) leadership and influence behaviors; and (4) careers
(person–organization fit, career success). Dr. Judge has published more than 154 articles
in these and other major topics in journals such as the Academy of Management Journal
and the Journal of Applied Psychology. He is a fellow of several organizations, including
the American Psychological Association and the Academy of Management. Among the
many professional acknowledgments of his work, most recently Dr. Judge was awarded
the Academy of Management Human Resources Division’s Scholarly Achievement
Award for 2014. Dr. Judge is a co-author of Organizational Behavior, 17th ed., with Stephen P. Robbins, and Staffing Organizations, 8th ed., with Herbert G. Heneman III. He is
married and has three children—a daughter who is a health care social worker, a daughter
who is studying for a master’s degree, and a son in middle school.
xxx
A01_ROBB3859_14_SE_FM.indd 30
24/09/16 11:56 am
PART 1 Understanding Yourself and Others
1
What Is Organizational
Behavior?
MyManagementLab
®
Improve Your Grade!
When you see this icon , visit mymanagementlab.com for activities that are
applied, personalized, and offer immediate feedback.
Learning Objectives
After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
1. Define organizational behavior (referred to as OB throughout the text).
2. Show the value of systematic study to OB.
3. Identify the major behavioral science disciplines that contribute to OB.
4. Demonstrate why few absolutes apply to OB.
5. Identify managers’ challenges and opportunities in applying OB concepts.
6. Compare the three levels of analysis in this text’s OB model.
Chapter Warm-up
If your professor has chosen to assign this, go to the Assignments section of
mymanagementlab.com to complete the chapter warm-up.
A
s you begin your study of this text, you might be wondering, “What is organizational
behavior and why does it matter to me?” We get to the definition of organizational
behavior, or OB, in a moment, but let’s begin with the end in mind—why OB matters, and
what the study of OB offers you.
First, a bit of history. Until the late 1980s, business school curricula emphasized the
technical aspects of management, focusing on economics, accounting, finance, and quantitative techniques. Course work in human behavior and people skills received relatively
1
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 1
19/09/16 3:58 PM
2
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
less attention. Since then, however, business schools have realized the significant role
interpersonal skills play in determining a manager’s effectiveness. In fact, a survey of
over 2,100 CFOs across 20 industries indicated that a lack of interpersonal skills is the
top reason why some employees fail to advance.1
One of the principal applications of OB is toward an improvement in interpersonal skills. Developing managers’ interpersonal skills helps organizations attract and
keep high-performing employees, which is important since outstanding employees are
always in short supply and are costly to replace. But the development of interpersonal
skills is not the only reason OB matters. Secondly, from the organizational standpoint,
incorporating OB principles can help transform a workplace from good to great, with a
positive impact on the bottom line. Companies known as good places to work—such as
Genentech, the Boston Consulting Group, Qualcomm, McKinsey & Company, Procter
& Gamble, Facebook, and Southwest Airlines2—have been found to generate superior
financial performance.3 Third, there are strong associations between the quality of workplace relationships and employee job satisfaction, stress, and turnover. For example, one
very large survey of hundreds of workplaces and more than 200,000 respondents showed
that social relationships among coworkers and supervisors were strongly related to overall job satisfaction. Positive social relationships also were associated with lower stress
at work and lower intentions to quit.4 Further research indicates that employees who
relate to their managers with supportive dialogue and proactivity find that their ideas are
endorsed more often, which improves workplace satisfaction.5 Fourth, increasing the OB
element in organizations can foster social responsibility awareness. Accordingly, universities have begun to incorporate social entrepreneurship education into their curriculum
in order to train future leaders to address social issues within their organizations.6 This
is especially important because there is a growing need for understanding the means and
outcomes of corporate social responsibility, known as CSR.7 We discuss CSR more fully
in Chapter 3.
We understand that in today’s competitive and demanding workplace, managers
can’t succeed on their technical skills alone. They also have to exhibit good people skills.
This text has been written to help both managers and potential managers develop those
people skills with the knowledge that understanding human behavior provides. In so
doing, we believe you’ll also obtain lasting skills and insight about yourself and others.
Management and Organizational Behavior
The roles of a manager—and the necessary skills needed to perform as one—are constantly evolving. More than ever, individuals are placed into management positions without management training or informed experience. According to a large-scale survey, more
than 58 percent of managers reported they had not received any training and 25 percent
admitted they were not ready to lead others when they were given the role.8 Added to that
challenge, the demands of the job have increased: the average manager has seven direct
reports (five was once the norm), and has less management time to spend with them than
before.9 Considering that a Gallup poll found organizations chose the wrong candidate for
management positions 82 percent of the time,10 we conclude that the more you can learn
about people and how to manage them, the better prepared you will be to be that right
candidate. OB will help you get there.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 2
19/09/16 3:58 PM
Chapter 1 • What Is Organizational Behavior?
3
Organizational Behavior (OB) Defined
Organizational behavior (OB) is a field of study that investigates the impact individuals,
groups, and structure have on behavior within organizations, for the purpose of applying
such knowledge toward improving an organization’s effectiveness. That’s a mouthful, so
let’s break it down.
OB is a field of study, meaning that it is a distinct area of expertise with a common
body of knowledge. What does it study? It studies three determinants of behavior within
organizations: individuals, groups, and structure. In addition, OB applies the knowledge
gained about individuals, groups, and the effect of structure on behavior in order to make
organizations work more effectively.
To sum up our definition, OB is the study of what people do in an organization and
the way their behavior affects the organization’s performance. Because OB is concerned
specifically with employment-related situations, it examines behavior in the context of
job satisfaction, absenteeism, employment turnover, productivity, human performance,
and management. Although debate exists about the relative importance of each, OB includes these core topics:11
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
organizational
behavior
A field of study that
investigates the impact
individuals, groups,
and structure have
on behavior within
organizations, for the
purpose of applying
such knowledge
toward improving
an organization’s
effectiveness.
Motivation
Leader behavior and power
Interpersonal communication
Group structure and processes
Attitude development and perception
Change processes
Conflict and negotiation
Work design
Effective versus Successful Managerial Activities
Now that we understand what OB is, we may begin to apply some concepts. Consider
the important issue of effective management. What makes one manager more effective
than another? To answer the question, Fred Luthans, a prominent OB researcher, and his
associates looked at what managers do from a unique perspective.12 They asked, “Do
managers who move up most quickly in an organization do the same activities and with
the same emphasis as managers who do the best job?” You might think the answer is yes,
but that’s not always the case.
Luthans and his associates studied more than 450 managers. All engaged in four
managerial activities:
1. Traditional management. Decision making, planning, and controlling.
2. Communication. Exchanging routine information and processing paperwork.
3. Human resources (HR) management. Motivating, disciplining, managing conflict, staffing, and training.
4. Networking. Socializing, politicking, and interacting with outsiders.
The “average” manager spent 32 percent of his or her time in traditional management activities, 29 percent communicating, 20 percent in HR management activities, and
19 percent networking. However, the time and effort different individual managers spent
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 3
19/09/16 3:58 PM
4
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
When you see this
icon, Global OB issues
are being discussed in
the paragraph.
on those activities varied a great deal. Among managers who were successful (defined
in terms of speed of promotion within their organizations), networking made the largest
relative contribution to success and HR management activities made the least relative
contribution, which is the opposite of the average manager. Indeed, other studies in Australia, Israel, Italy, Japan, and the United States confirm the link between networking,
social relationships, and success within an organization.13 However, Luthans and associates found that among effective managers (defined in terms of quantity and quality of
their performance and the satisfaction and commitment of their employees), communication made the largest relative contribution and networking the least. This finding is more
in line with the average manager, with the important exception of increased emphasis
on communication. The connection between communication and effective managers is
clear. Managers who explain their decisions and seek information from colleagues and
employees—even if the information turns out to be negative—are the most effective.14
Watch It
If your professor has assigned this, go to the Assignments section of mymanagementlab
.com to complete the video exercise titled Herman Miller: Organizational
Behavior.
Complementing Intuition with Systematic Study
systematic study
Looking at
relationships,
attempting to attribute
causes and effects, and
drawing conclusions
based on scientific
evidence.
evidence-based
management (EBM)
The basing of
managerial decisions
on the best available
scientific evidence.
intuition
An instinctive feeling
not necessarily
supported by research.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 4
Whether you’ve explicitly thought about it before or not, you’ve been “reading” people
almost all your life by watching their actions and interpreting what you see, or by trying
to predict what people might do under different conditions. The casual approach to reading others can often lead to erroneous predictions, but using a systematic approach can
improve your accuracy.
Underlying the systematic approach is the belief that behavior is not random.
Rather, we can identify fundamental consistencies underlying the behavior of all individuals and modify them to reflect individual differences. These fundamental consistencies are very important. Why? Because they allow for predictability. Behavior is generally
predictable, and the systematic study of behavior is a means to making reasonably accurate predictions. When we use the term systematic study, we mean looking at relationships, attempting to attribute causes and effects, and basing our conclusions on scientific
evidence—that is, on data gathered under controlled conditions and measured, and interpreted, in a rigorous manner.
Evidence-based management (EBM) complements systematic study by basing
managerial decisions on the best available scientific evidence. For example, we want doctors to make decisions about patient care based on the latest available evidence, and EBM
argues that managers should do the same, thinking more scientifically about management
problems. A manager might pose a question, search for the best available evidence, and
apply the relevant information to the question or case at hand. You might wonder what
manager would not base decisions on evidence, but the vast majority of management decisions are still made “on the fly,” with little to no systematic study of available evidence.15
Systematic study and EBM add to intuition, or those “gut feelings” about what
makes others (and ourselves) “tick.” Of course, the things you have come to believe in
an unsystematic way are not necessarily incorrect. Jack Welch (former CEO of General
19/09/16 3:58 PM
Chapter 1 • What Is Organizational Behavior?
5
Electric) noted, “The trick, of course, is to know when to go with your gut.”16 But if we
make all decisions with intuition or gut instinct, we’re likely working with incomplete
information—like making an investment decision with only half the data about the potential for risk and reward.
Big Data
Data, the foundation of EBM, have been used to evaluate behavior since at least 1749,
when the word “statistic” was coined to mean a “description of the state.”17 Statistics back
then were used for purposes of governance, but since the data collection methods were
clumsy and simplistic, so were the conclusions. “Big data”—the extensive use of statistical compilation and analysis—didn’t become possible until computers were sophisticated
enough to both store and manipulate large amounts of information. The use of big data
began with online retailers but has since permeated virtually every business.
Current Usage No matter how many terabytes of data firms collect or from how
many sources, the reasons for data analytics include: predicting events, from a book
purchase to a spacesuit malfunction; detecting how much risk is incurred at any time,
from the risk of a fire to that of a loan default; and preventing catastrophes large and
small, from a plane crash to the overstocking of a product.18 With big data, U.S. defense
contractor BAE Systems protects itself from cyber-attacks, San Francisco’s Bank of
the West uses customer data to create tiered pricing systems, and London’s Graze.com
analyzes customers’ preferences to select snack samples to send with their orders.19
New Trends The use of big data for understanding, helping, and managing people is
relatively new but holds promise. In fact, research on 10,000 workers in China, Germany,
India, the United Kingdom, and the United States indicated that employees expect the
next transformation in the way people work will rely more on technological advancements
than on any other factor, such as demographic changes.20
It is good news for the future of business that researchers, the media, and company
leaders have identified the potential of data-driven management and decision making. A
manager who uses data to define objectives, develop theories of causality, and test those theories can determine which employee activities are relevant to the objectives.21 Big data has
implications for correcting management assumptions and increasing positive performance
outcomes. Increasingly, it is applied toward making effective decisions (Chapter 6) and
managing organizational change (Chapter 17). It is quite possible that the best use of big
data in managing people will come from OB and psychology research where it might, for
instance, even help employees with mental illnesses monitor and change their behavior.22
Limitations As technological capabilities for handling big data have increased, so
have issues of privacy and appropriate application. This is particularly true when data
collection includes surveillance instruments. For instance, an experiment in Brooklyn,
New York, has been designed to improve the quality of life for residents, but the researchers
will collect potentially intrusive data from infrared cameras, sensors, and smartphone
Wi-Fi signals.23 Through similar methods of surveillance monitoring, a bank call center
and a pharmaceutical company found that employees were more productive with more
social interaction, so they changed their break time policies so more people took breaks
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 5
19/09/16 3:58 PM
6
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
together. They then saw sales increase and turnover decrease. Bread Winners Café in
Dallas, Texas, constantly monitors all employees in the restaurant through surveillance
and uses that data to promote or discipline its servers.24 Privacy and application issues
abound with these techniques, but abandoning them is not necessarily the fix.
An understanding of deeper OB issues can help find the productive balance. These
big data tactics and others might yield results—and research indicates that, in fact, electronic performance monitoring does increase task performance and citizenship behavior
(helping behaviors towards others), at least in the short term. But critics point out that
after Frederick Taylor introduced surveillance analytics in 1911 to increase productivity through monitoring and feedback controls, his management control techniques were
surpassed by Alfred Sloan’s greater success with management outcomes, achieved by
providing meaningful work to employees.25
We are not advising you to throw intuition out the window. In dealing with people,
leaders often rely on hunches, and sometimes the outcomes are excellent. At other times,
human tendencies get in the way. What we are advising is to use evidence as much as possible to inform your intuition and experience. The prudent use of big data, along with an
understanding of human behavioral tendencies, can contribute to sound decision making
and ease natural biases. That is the promise of OB.
Disciplines That Contribute to the OB Field
OB is an applied behavioral science built on contributions from a number of behavioral
disciplines, mainly psychology and social psychology, sociology, and anthropology. Psychology’s contributions have been principally at the individual or micro-level of analysis,
while the other disciplines have contributed to our understanding of macro concepts such
as group processes and organization. Exhibit 1-1 is an overview of the major contributions to the study of OB.
Psychology
psychology
The science that seeks
to measure, explain,
and sometimes change
the behavior of humans
and other animals.
Psychology seeks to measure, explain, and sometimes change the behavior of humans and
other animals. Contributors to the knowledge of OB are learning theorists, personality theorists,
counseling psychologists, and, most important, industrial and organizational psychologists.
Early industrial and organizational psychologists studied the problems of fatigue,
boredom, and other working conditions that could impede efficient work performance.
More recently, their contributions have expanded to include learning, perception, personality, emotions, training, leadership effectiveness, needs and motivational forces, job
satisfaction, decision-making processes, performance appraisals, attitude measurement,
employee-selection techniques, work design, and job stress.
Social Psychology
social psychology
An area of psychology
that blends concepts
from psychology and
sociology to focus on
the influence of people
on one another.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 6
Social psychology, generally considered a branch of psychology, blends concepts from
both psychology and sociology to focus on people’s influence on one another. One major
study area is change—how to implement it and how to reduce barriers to its acceptance.
Social psychologists also contribute to measuring, understanding, and changing attitudes;
identifying communication patterns; and building trust. Finally, they have made important contributions to our study of group behavior, power, and conflict.
19/09/16 3:58 PM
7
Chapter 1 • What Is Organizational Behavior?
Behavioral
science
Psychology
Social psychology
Contribution
Learning
Motivation
Personality
Emotions
Perception
Training
Leadership effectiveness
Job satisfaction
Individual decision making
Performance appraisal
Attitude measurement
Employee selection
Work design
Work stress
Output
Exhibit 1-1
Toward an OB
Discipline
Individual
Behavioral change
Attitude change
Communication
Group processes
Group decision making
Communication
Power
Conflict
Intergroup behavior
Sociology
Unit of
analysis
Group
Study of
organizational
behavior
Formal organization theory
Organizational technology
Organizational change
Organizational culture
Comparative values
Comparative attitudes
Cross-cultural analysis
Organization
system
Anthropology
Organizational culture
Organizational environment
Power
Sociology
While psychology focuses on the individual, sociology studies people in relation to their
social environment or culture. Sociologists have contributed to OB through their study of
group behaviors in organizations, particularly formal and complex organizations. Perhaps
most importantly, sociologists have studied organizational culture, formal organization
theory and structure, organizational technology, communications, power, and conflict.
sociology
The study of people in
relation to their social
environment or culture.
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of societies in order to learn about human beings and their
activities. Anthropologists’ work on cultures and environments has helped us understand
differences in fundamental values, attitudes, and behavior among people in different
countries and within different organizations. Much of our current understanding of organizational culture, organizational climate, and differences among national cultures is a
result of the work of anthropologists or those using their methods.
anthropology
The study of societies
to learn about human
beings and their
activities.
There are Few Absolutes in OB
Laws in the physical sciences—chemistry, astronomy, physics—are consistent and apply in
a wide range of situations. They allow scientists to generalize about the pull of gravity or to
be confident about sending astronauts into space to repair satellites. Human beings are complex, and few, if any, simple and universal principles explain human behavior. Because we
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 7
19/09/16 3:58 PM
8
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
contingency
variables
Situational factors or
variables that moderate
the relationship
between two or more
variables.
are not alike, our ability to make simple, accurate, and sweeping generalizations about ourselves is limited. Two people often act very differently in the same situation, and the same
person’s behavior changes in different situations. For instance, not everyone is motivated
by money, and people may behave differently at a religious service than they do at a party.
This doesn’t mean, of course, that we can’t offer reasonably accurate explanations
of human behavior or make valid predictions. It does mean that OB concepts must reflect
situational, or contingency, conditions. We can say x leads to y, but only under conditions specified in z—the contingency variables. The science of OB was developed by
applying general concepts to a particular situation, person, or group. For example, OB
scholars would avoid stating that everyone likes complex and challenging work (a general concept). Why? Because not everyone wants a challenging job. Some people prefer
routine over varied work, or simple over complex tasks. A job attractive to one person
may be unattractive to another; its appeal is contingent on the person who holds it. Often,
we find both general effects (money does have some ability to motivate most of us) and
contingencies (some of us are more motivated by money than others, and some situations
are more about money than others). We best understand OB when we realize how both
(general effects and the contingencies that affect them) often guide behavior.
Challenges and Opportunities for OB
Understanding organizational behavior has never been more important for managers.
Take a quick look at the dramatic changes in organizations. The typical employee is getting older; the workforce is becoming increasingly diverse; and global competition requires employees to become more flexible and cope with rapid change.
As a result of these changes and others, employment options have adapted to include
new opportunities for workers. Exhibit 1-2 details some of the types of options individuals
may find offered to them by organizations or for which they would like to negotiate. Under
each heading in the exhibit, you will find a grouping of options from which to choose—or
combine. For instance, at one point in your career you may find yourself employed full
time in an office in a localized, nonunion setting with a salary and bonus compensation
package, while at another point you may wish to negotiate for a flextime, virtual position
and choose to work from overseas for a combination of salary and extra paid time off.
In short, today’s challenges bring opportunities for managers to use OB concepts. In
this section, we review some—but not nearly all—of the critical developing issues confronting managers for which OB offers solutions or, at least, meaningful insights toward solutions.
Continuing Globalization
Organizations are no longer constrained by national borders. Samsung, the largest South
Korean business conglomerate, sells most of its products to organizations in other countries; Burger King is owned by a Brazilian firm; and McDonald’s sells hamburgers in 118
countries on 6 continents. Even Apple—arguably the U.S. company with the strongest
U.S. identity—employs twice as many workers outside the United States as it does inside
the country. And all major automobile makers now manufacture cars outside their borders; Honda builds cars in Ohio, Ford in Brazil, Volkswagen in Mexico, and both Mercedes and BMW in the United States and South Africa. The world has become a global
village. In the process, the manager’s job has changed. Effective managers anticipate and
adapt their approaches to the global issues we discuss next.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 8
19/09/16 3:58 PM
9
Chapter 1 • What Is Organizational Behavior?
Categories of
Employment
Types of
Employment
Places of
Employment
Conditions of
Employment
Compensation
for Employment
Employed
Full-time
Anchored
(office/cubicle)
Local
Salary
Underemployed/
underutilized
Part-time
Floating (shared
space)
Expatriate
Hourly
Re-employed
Flextime
Virtual
Short-term assignee
Overtime
Unemployed/jobless
Job share
Flexible
Flexpatriate
Bonus
Work from home
International
business traveler
Contract
Entrepreneur
Contingent
Retired
Independent
contractor
Visa employee
Time off
Job seeking
Temporary
Union/nonunion
employee
Benefits
Furloughed
Reduced hours
Laid off
Intern
Exhibit 1-2
Employment Options
Sources: J.R. Anderson Jr., et al., “Action Items: 42 Trends Affecting Benefits, Compensation, Training, Staffing and Technology,” HR Magazine (January 2013) p. 33; M. Dewhurst, B. Hancock, and D. Ellsworth, “Redesigning Knowledge Work,”
Harvard Business Review (January-February 2013), 58–64; E. Frauenheim, “Creating a New Contingent Culture,“ Workforce
Management (August 2012), 34–39; N. Koeppen, “State Job Aid Takes Pressure off Germany,” The Wall Street Journal
(february 1, 2013), p. A8; and M. A. Shaffer, M. L. Kraimer, Y,-P. Chen, and M.C. Bolino, “Choices, Challenges, and Career
Consequences of Global Work Experiences: A Review and Future Agenda,” Journal of Management (July 2012), 1282–1327.
Working with People from Different Cultures In your own country or on
foreign assignment, you’ll find yourself working with bosses, peers, and other employees
born and raised in different cultures. What motivates you may not motivate them. Or
your communication style may be straightforward and open, which others may find
uncomfortable and threatening. To work effectively with people from different cultures,
you need to understand how their culture and background have shaped them and how to
adapt your management style to fit any differences.
Adapting to Differing Cultural and Regulatory Norms To be effective,
managers need to know the cultural norms of the workforce in each country where they
do business. For instance, in some countries a large percentage of the workforce enjoys
long holidays. There are national and local regulations to consider, too. Managers of
subsidiaries abroad need to be aware of the unique financial and legal regulations applying
to “guest companies” or else risk violating them. Violations can have implications for their
operations in that country and also for political relations between countries. Managers
also need to be cognizant of differences in regulations for competitors in that country;
many times, understanding the laws can lead to success or failure. For example, knowing
local banking laws allowed one multinational firm—the Bank of China—to seize control
of a storied (and very valuable) London building, Grosvenor House, from under the nose
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 9
19/09/16 3:58 PM
10
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
of the owner, the Indian hotel group Sahara. Management at Sahara contended that the
loan default that led to the seizure was a misunderstanding regarding one of their other
properties in New York.26 Globalization can get complicated.
Workforce Demographics
The workforce has always adapted to variations in the economy, longevity, birth rates,
socioeconomic conditions, and other changes that have a widespread impact. People
adapt to survive, and OB studies the way those adaptations affect individuals’ behavior.
For instance, even though the 2008 global recession ended years ago, some trends from
those years are continuing: many people who have been long unemployed have left the
workforce,27 while others have cobbled together several part-time jobs28 or settled for ondemand work.29 Further options that have been particularly popular for younger educated
workers have included obtaining specialized industry training after college,30 accepting
full-time jobs that are lower-level,31 and starting their own companies.32 As students of
OB, we can investigate what factors lead employees to make various choices and how
their experiences affect their perceptions of their workplaces. In turn, this can help us
predict organizational outcomes.
Longevity and birth rates have also changed the dynamics in organizations. Global
longevity rates have increased by six years in a very short time (since 1990),33 while
birth rates are decreasing for many developed countries; trends that together indicate a
lasting shift toward an older workforce. OB research can help explain what this means
for employee attitudes, organizational culture, leadership, structure, and communication.
Finally, socioeconomic shifts have a profound effect on workforce demographics. For
example, the days when women stayed home because it was expected are just a memory
in some cultures, while in others, women face significant barriers to entry into the workforce. We are interested in how these women fare in the workplace, and how their conditions can be improved. This is just one illustration of how cultural and socioeconomic
changes affect the workplace, but it is one of many. We discuss how OB can provide
understanding and insight on workforce issues throughout this text.
Workforce Diversity
workforce diversity
The concept that
organizations are
becoming more
heterogeneous in
terms of gender, age,
race, ethnicity, sexual
orientation, and other
characteristics.
One of the most important challenges for organizations is workforce diversity, a trend by
which organizations are becoming more heterogeneous in terms of employees’ gender, age,
race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and other characteristics. Managing this diversity is a global
concern. Though we have more to say about it in the next chapter, suffice it to say here that
diversity presents great opportunities and poses challenging questions for managers and employees. How can we leverage differences within groups for competitive advantage? Should we
treat all employees alike? Should we recognize individual and cultural differences? What are
the legal requirements in each country? Does increasing diversity even matter? It is important
to address the spoken and unspoken concerns of organizations today.
Social Media
As we discuss in Chapter 11, social media in the business world is here to stay. Despite its
pervasiveness, many organizations continue to struggle with employees’ use of social media in the workplace. For instance, in February 2015, a Texas pizzeria fired an employee
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 10
19/09/16 3:58 PM
Chapter 1 • What Is Organizational Behavior?
11
before her first day of work because she tweeted unflattering comments about her future
job. In December 2014, Nordstrom fired an Oregon employee who had posted a personal
Facebook comment seeming to advocate violence against white police officers.34 These
examples show that social media is a difficult issue for today’s managers, presenting
both a challenge and an opportunity for OB. For instance, how much should HR look
into a candidate’s social media presence? Should a hiring manager read the candidate’s
Twitter feeds, or just do a quick perusal of his or her Facebook profile? Managers need
to adopt policies designed to protect employees and their organizations with balance and
understanding.
Once employees are on the job, many organizations have policies about accessing
social media at work—when, where, and for what purposes. But what about the impact
of social media on employee well-being? One recent study found that subjects who woke
up in a positive mood and then accessed Facebook frequently found their mood worsened
during the day. Moreover, subjects who checked Facebook frequently over a two-week
period reported a decreased level of satisfaction with their lives.35 Managers—and OB—
are trying to increase employee satisfaction, and therefore improve and enhance positive
organizational outcomes. We discuss these issues further in Chapters 3 and 4.
Employee Well-Being at Work
One of the biggest challenges to maintaining employee well-being is the reality that
many workers never get away from the virtual workplace. while communication technology allows many technical and professional employees to do their work at home,
in their cars, or on the beach in Tahiti, it also means many feel like they’re not part of
a team. “The sense of belonging is very challenging for virtual workers, who seem to
be all alone out in cyberland,” said Ellen Raineri of Kaplan University, and many can
relate to this feeling.36 Another challenge is that organizations are asking employees to
put in longer hours. According to one recent study, one in four employees shows signs
of burnout, and two in three report high stress levels and fatigue.37 This may actually
be an underestimate because workers report maintaining “always on” access for their
managers through e-mail and texting. Finally, employee well-being is challenged by
heavy outside commitments. Millions of single-parent employees and employees with
dependent parents face significant challenges in balancing work and family responsibilities, for instance.
As you’ll see in later chapters, the field of OB offers a number of suggestions to
guide managers in designing workplaces and jobs that can help employees deal with
work–life conflicts.
Positive Work Environment
A growing area in OB research is positive organizational scholarship (POS; also called
positive organizational behavior), which studies how organizations develop human
strengths, foster vitality and resilience, and unlock potential. Researchers in this area say
too much of OB research and management practice has been targeted toward identifying what’s wrong with organizations and their employees. In response, they try to study
what’s good about them.38 Some key subjects in positive OB research are engagement,
hope, optimism, and resilience in the face of strain. Researchers hope to help practitioners
create positive work environments for employees.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 11
positive
organizational
scholarship
An area of OB
research that concerns
how organizations
develop human
strengths, foster
vitality and resilience,
and unlock potential.
19/09/16 3:58 PM
12
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
Although positive organizational scholarship does not deny the value of the negative (such as critical feedback), it does challenge researchers to look at OB through a new
lens and pushes organizations to make use of employees’ strengths rather than dwell on
their limitations. One aspect of a positive work environment is the organization’s culture,
the topic of Chapter 16. Organizational culture influences employee behavior so strongly
that organizations have employed “culture officers” to shape and preserve the company’s
personality.39
Ethical Behavior
ethical dilemmas
and ethical choices
Situations in which
individuals are
required to define right
and wrong conduct.
In an organizational world characterized by cutbacks, expectations of increasing productivity, and tough competition; it’s not surprising many employees feel pressured to cut
corners, break rules, and engage in other questionable practices. Increasingly they face
ethical dilemmas and ethical choices in which they are required to identify right and
wrong conduct. Should they “blow the whistle” if they uncover illegal activities in their
companies? Do they follow orders with which they don’t personally agree? Should they
“play politics” to advance their careers?
What constitutes good ethical behavior has never been clearly defined and, in recent years, the line differentiating right from wrong has blurred. We see people all around
us engaging in unethical practices—elected officials pad expense accounts or take bribes;
corporate executives inflate profits to cash in lucrative stock options; and university administrators look the other way when winning coaches encourage scholarship athletes to
take easy courses or even, in the recent case at the University of North Carolina–Chapel
Hill, sham courses with fake grades.40 When caught, we see people give excuses such as
“Everyone does it” or “You have to seize every advantage.”
Today’s manager must create an ethically healthy climate for employees in which
they can do their work productively with minimal ambiguity about right and wrong
behaviors. Companies that promote a strong ethical mission, encourage employees to
behave with integrity, and provide strong leadership can influence employee decisions
to behave ethically.41 Classroom training sessions in ethics have also proven helpful
in maintaining a higher level of awareness of the implications of employee choices as
long as the training sessions are given on an ongoing basis.42 In upcoming chapters, we
discuss the actions managers can take to create an ethically healthy climate and help
employees sort through ambiguous situations.
Coming Attractions: Developing An OB Model
We conclude this chapter by presenting a general model that defines the field of OB and
stakes out its parameters, concepts, and relationships. By studying the model, you will
have a good picture of how the topics in this text can inform your approach to management issues and opportunities.
Overview
model
An abstraction of
reality, a simplified
representation of some
real-world phenomenon.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 12
A model is an abstraction of reality, a simplified representation of some real-world phenomenon. Exhibit 1-3 presents the skeleton of our OB model. It proposes three types of
variables (inputs, processes, and outcomes) at three levels of analysis (individual, group,
and organizational). In the chapters to follow, we proceed from the individual level
19/09/16 3:58 PM
Chapter 1 • What Is Organizational Behavior?
Inputs
Processes
13
Outcomes
Individual Level
• Diversity
• Personality
• Values
Individual Level
• Emotions and moods
• Motivation
• Perception
• Decision making
Individual Level
• Attitudes and stress
• Task performance
• Citizenship behavior
• Withdrawal behavior
Group Level
• Group structure
• Group roles
• Team responsibilities
Group Level
• Communication
• Leadership
• Power and politics
• Conflict and negotiation
Group Level
• Group cohesion
• Group functioning
Organizational Level
• Structure
• Culture
Organizational Level
• Human resource
management
• Change practices
Organizational Level
• Productivity
• Survival
Exhibit 1-3
A Basic OB Model
(Chapters 2 through 8) to group behavior (Chapters 9 through 14) to the organizational
system (Chapters 15 through 17). The model illustrates that inputs lead to processes,
which lead to outcomes; we discuss interrelationships at each level of analysis. Notice
that the model also shows that outcomes can influence inputs in the future, which highlights the broad-reaching effect OB initiatives can have on an organization’s future.
Inputs
Inputs are the variables like personality, group structure, and organizational culture that
lead to processes. These variables set the stage for what will occur in an organization
later. Many are determined in advance of the employment relationship. For example, individual diversity characteristics, personality, and values are shaped by a combination of an
individual’s genetic inheritance and childhood environment. Group structure, roles, and
team responsibilities are typically assigned immediately before or after a group is formed.
Finally, organizational structure and culture are usually the result of years of development
and change as the organization adapts to its environment and builds up customs and norms.
inputs
Variables like
personality, group
structure, and
organizational culture
that lead to processes.
Processes
If inputs are like the nouns in OB, processes are like verbs. Processes are actions that
individuals, groups, and organizations engage in as a result of inputs and that lead to
certain outcomes. At the individual level, processes include emotions and moods, motivation, perception, and decision making. At the group level, they include communication,
leadership, power and politics, and conflict and negotiation. Finally, at the organizational
level, processes include HR management and change practices.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 13
processes
Actions that
individuals, groups,
and organizations
engage in as a result of
inputs and that lead to
certain outcomes.
19/09/16 3:58 PM
14
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
Outcomes
outcomes
Key factors that are
affected by some other
variables.
Outcomes are the key variables that you want to explain or predict, and that are affected by some other variables. What are the primary outcomes in OB? Scholars have
emphasized individual-level outcomes, such as attitudes and stress, task performance,
citizenship behavior, and withdrawal. At the group level, cohesion and functioning are the
dependent variables. Finally, at the organizational level, we look at overall productivity
and survival. Because these outcomes are covered in all the chapters, we briefly discuss
each so you can understand the goal of OB.
attitudes
Evaluative statements or
judgments concerning
objects, people, or
events.
stress
An unpleasant
psychological process
that occurs in response
to environmental
pressures.
Attitudes and Stress
task performance
The combination of
effectiveness and
efficiency at doing
core job tasks.
As we discuss in depth in Chapter 3, employee attitudes
are the evaluations employees make, ranging from positive to negative, about objects,
people, or events. For example, the statement “I really think my job is great” is a
positive job attitude, while “My job is boring and tedious” is a negative job attitude.
Stress is an unpleasant psychological condition that occurs in response to environmental
pressures.
Some people might think influencing employee attitudes and stress is purely soft
stuff and not the business of serious managers, but as you will learn, attitudes often have
behavioral consequences that directly relate to organizational effectiveness. Ample evidence shows that employees who are more satisfied and treated fairly are more willing to
engage in the above-and-beyond citizenship behavior that is so vital in the contemporary
business environment.
Task Performance The combination of effectiveness and efficiency at doing your
core job tasks is a reflection of your level of task performance. If we think about the
job of a factory worker, task performance could be measured by the number and quality
of products produced in an hour. The task performance measurement of a teacher would
be the level of education that students obtain. The task performance measurement of
consultants might be the timeliness and quality of the presentations they offer to the
client. All these types of performance relate to the core duties and responsibilities of a job
and are often directly related to the functions listed on a formal job description.
organizational
citizenship behavior
(OCB)
Discretionary behavior
that contributes to the
psychological and
social environment of
the workplace.
The discretionary behavior that is
not part of an employee’s formal job requirements, and that contributes to the psychological
and social environment of the workplace, is called organizational citizenship behavior
(OCB), or simply citizenship behavior. Successful organizations have employees who
do more than their usual job duties—who provide performance beyond expectations.
Organizations want and need employees who make positive contributions that aren’t
in any job description, and evidence indicates organizations that have such employees
outperform those that don’t. As a result, OB is concerned with citizenship behavior as an
outcome variable.
withdrawal behavior
The set of actions
employees take to
separate themselves
from the organization.
Withdrawal Behavior We’ve already mentioned behavior that goes above and
beyond task requirements, but what about behavior that in some way is below task
requirements? Withdrawal behavior is the set of actions that employees take to separate
themselves from the organization. There are many forms of withdrawal, ranging from
showing up late or failing to attend meetings to absenteeism and turnover. Employee
withdrawal can have a very negative effect on an organization.
Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB)
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 14
19/09/16 3:58 PM
Chapter 1 • What Is Organizational Behavior?
Although many outcomes in our model can be conceptualized as
individual-level phenomena, some relate to the way groups operate. Group cohesion
is the extent to which members of a group support and validate one another at work.
In other words, a cohesive group is one that sticks together. When employees trust one
another, seek common goals, and work together to achieve these common ends, the group
is cohesive; when employees are divided among themselves in terms of what they want
to achieve and have little loyalty to one another, the group is not cohesive. We can apply
OB concepts toward group cohesion.
15
Group Cohesion
Group Functioning In the same way that positive job attitudes can be associated
with higher levels of task performance, group cohesion should lead to positive group
functioning. Group functioning refers to the quantity and quality of a group’s work
output. In the same way that the performance of a sports team is more than the sum of
each individual player’s performance, group functioning in work organizations is more
than the sum of individual task performances.
Productivity The highest level of analysis in OB is the organization as a whole. An
organization is productive if it achieves its goals by transforming inputs into outputs at the
lowest cost. Thus productivity requires both effectiveness and efficiency.
A business firm is effective when it attains its sales or market share goals, but its
productivity also depends on achieving those goals efficiently. Popular measures of organizational efficiency include return on investment, profit per dollar of sales, and output
per hour of labor.
Service organizations must include customer needs and requirements in assessing
their effectiveness. Why? Because a clear chain of cause and effect runs from employee
attitudes and behavior to customer attitudes and profitability. For example, a recent study
of six hotels in China indicated that negative employee attitudes decreased customer satisfaction and ultimately harmed the organization’s profitability.43
Survival The final outcome we consider is organizational survival, which is simply
evidence that the organization is able to exist and grow over the long term. The survival of
an organization depends not just on how productive the organization is, but also on how
well it fits with its environment. A company that is very productively making goods and
services of little value to the market is unlikely to survive for long, so survival also relies on
perceiving the market successfully, making good decisions about how and when to pursue
opportunities, and successfully managing change to adapt to new business conditions.
group cohesion
The extent to which
members of a group
support and validate
one another while at
work.
group functioning
The quantity and
quality of a group’s
work output.
productivity
The combination
of the effectiveness
and efficiency of an
organization.
effectiveness
The degree to which an
organization meets the
needs of its clientele or
customers.
efficiency
The degree to which
an organization can
achieve its ends at a
low cost.
organizational
survival
The degree to which an
organization is able to
exist and grow over the
long term.
Summary
Managers need to develop their interpersonal, or people, skills to be effective in their jobs.
OB investigates the impact that individuals, groups, and structure have on behavior within an
organization, and then applies that knowledge to make organizations work more effectively.
Implications for Managers
• Resist the inclination to rely on generalizations; some provide valid insights into
human behavior, but many are erroneous. Get to know the person, and understand
the context.
M01_ROBB3859_14_SE_C01.indd 15
19/09/16 3:58 PM
16
Part 1 • Understanding Yourself and Others
• Use metrics rather than hunches to explain cause-and-effect relationships.
• Work on your interpersonal skills to increase your leadership potential.
• Improve your technical skills and conceptual skills through training and staying
current with OB trends like big data.
• OB can improve your employees’ work quality and productivity by showing you
how to empower your employees, design and implement change programs, improve customer service, and help your employees balance work–life conflicts.
P
I
Personal Inventory Assessments
A
PERSONAL INVENTORY ASSESSMENTS
Multicultural Awareness Scale
Any study of organizational behavior (OB) starts with knowledge of yourself. As one
step, take this PIA to determine your multicultural awareness.
MyManagementLab
®
Go to mymanagementlab.com for auto-graded writing questions as well as the following
assisted-graded writing questions:
1-1. How do you think an understanding of organizational behavior (OB) might contribute to
your ability to manage others effectively?
1-2. MyManagementLab Only—comprehensive writing assignment for this chapter.
M01_ROBB3859_14...
Purchase answer to see full
attachment