Organizational Behavior

Eighteenth Edition

Chapter 5
Personality and Values

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Learning Objectives (1 of 2)
5.1 Describe personality, the way it is measured, and the
factors that shape it.
5.2 Describe the strengths and weaknesses of the
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality
framework and the Big Five model.
5.3 Discuss how the concepts of core self-evaluation (CSE),
self-monitoring, and proactive personality contribute to
the understanding of personality.
5.4 Describe how personality affects job search and
unemployment.

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Learning Objectives (2 of 2)
5.5 Describe how the situation affects whether personality
predicts behavior.
5.6 Contrast terminal and instrumental values.
5.7 Describe the differences between person-job fit and
person-organization fit.
5.8 Compare Hofstede’s five value dimensions and the
GLOBE framework.

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Describe Personality, the Way It Is Measured,
and the Factors that Shape It (1 of 4)
• Defining Personality
– Personality is a dynamic concept describing the
growth and development of a person’s whole
psychological system.
– The sum of ways in which an individual reacts to and
interacts with others.

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Describe Personality, the Way It Is Measured,
and the Factors that Shape It (2 of 4)
• Measuring Personality
– Managers need to know how to measure personality.
▪ Personality tests are useful in hiring decisions and
help managers forecast who is best for a job.
– The most common means of measuring personality
is through self-report surveys.

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Describe Personality, the Way It Is Measured,
and the Factors that Shape It (3 of 4)
• Personality Determinants
– Is personality the result of heredity or environment?
– Heredity refers to those factors that were determined
at conception.
▪ The heredity approach argues that the ultimate
explanation of an individual’s personality is the
molecular structure of the genes, located in the
chromosomes.

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Describe Personality, the Way It Is Measured,
and the Factors that Shape It (4 of 4)
• Early research tried to identify and label enduring
personality characteristics.
– Shy, aggressive, submissive, lazy, ambitious, loyal,
and timid.
▪ These are personality traits.

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Strengths and Weakness of the MBTI
and Big Five Model (1 of 7)
• The most widely used personality framework is the
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).
• Individuals are classified as:
– Extroverted or Introverted (E or I)
– Sensing or Intuitive (S or N)
– Thinking or Feeling (T or F)
– Perceiving or Judging (P or J)
▪ INTJs are visionaries.
▪ ESTJs are organizers.
▪ ENTPs are conceptualizers.

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Strengths and Weakness of the MBTI
and Big Five Model (2 of 7)
• The Big Five Model
– Extraversion
– Agreeableness
– Conscientiousness
– Emotional stability
– Openness to experience

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Strengths and Weakness of the MBTI
and Big Five Model (3 of 7)
Exhibit 5-1 Traits That Matter Most to Business Success at Buyout
Companies

Most Important Less Important

Persistence Strong oral communication

Efficiency Flexibility/adaptability

Analytical skills Enthusiasm

Setting high standards Listening skills

Source: Based on S. N. Kaplan, M. M. Klebanov, and M. Sorensen, “Which CEO Characteristics and Abilities Matter?”
The Journal of Finance 67, no. 3 (2012): 973–1007.

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Strengths and Weakness of the MBTI
and Big Five Model (4 of 7)
Exhibit 5-2 Model of How Big Five Traits Influence OB Criteria

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Strengths and Weakness of the MBTI
and Big Five Model (5 of 7)
• The Dark Triad
– Machiavellianism: the degree to which an individual is
pragmatic, maintains emotional distance, and believes
that ends can justify means.
– Narcissism: the tendency to be arrogant, have a
grandiose sense of self-importance, require excessive
admiration, and have a sense of entitlement.
– Psychopathy: the tendency for a lack of concern for
others and a lack of guilt or remorse when their actions
cause harm.

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Strengths and Weakness of the MBTI
and Big Five Model (6 of 7)
• An emerging framework to study dark side traits:
– First, antisocial people are indifferent and callous
toward others.
– Second, borderline people have low self-esteem
and high uncertainty.

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Strengths and Weakness of the MBTI
and Big Five Model (7 of 7)
– Third, schizotypal individuals are eccentric and
disorganized.
– Fourth, obsessive compulsive people are
perfectionists and can be stubborn, yet they attend
to details, carry a strong work ethic, and may be
motivated by achievement.
– Fifth, avoidant individuals feel inadequate and hate
criticism.

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CSE, Self-Monitoring, and Proactive
Personality
• Other Personality Traits Relevant to OB
– Core Self-Evaluation: bottom line conclusions
individuals have about their capabilities,
competence, and worth as a person.
– Self-Monitoring: measures an individual’s ability
to adjust his or her behavior to external, situational
factors.
– Proactive Personality: people who identify
opportunities, show initiative, take action, and
persevere until meaningful change occurs.

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The Situation, Job Search, and
Unemployment
• What personality characteristics predict job search
behaviors among the unemployed?
– Conscientiousness and extraversion are the two
strongest predictors of job search behavior,
▪ Self-esteem and self-efficacy (parts of CSE) are
also important.

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Person-Job Fit vs.
Person-Organization Fit (1 of 3)
Exhibit 5-5 Holland’s Typology of Personality and Congruent
Occupations
Type Personality Characteristics Congruent Occupations

Realistic: Prefers physical activities that Shy, genuine, persistent, stable, Mechanic, drill press operator,
require skill, strength, and coordination conforming, practical assembly-line worker, farmer
Investigative: Prefers activities that Analytical, original, curious, independent Biologist, economist,
involve thinking, organizing, and mathematician, news reporter
understanding
Social: Prefers activities that involve Sociable, friendly, cooperative, Social worker, teacher, counselor,
helping and developing others understanding clinical psychologist
Conventional: Prefers rule-regulated, Conforming, efficient, practical, Accountant, corporate manager,
orderly, and unambiguous activities unimaginative, inflexible bank teller, file clerk
Enterprising: Prefers verbal activities in Self-confident, ambitious, energetic, Lawyer, real estate agent, public
which there are opportunities to domineering relations specialist, small business
influence others and attain power manager
Artistic: Prefers ambiguous and Imaginative, disorderly, idealistic, Painter, musician, writer, interior
unsystematic activities that allow emotional, impractical decorator
creative expression

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Person-Job Fit vs.
Person-Organization Fit (2 of 3)
• Person-Organization Fit
– People high on extraversion fit well with aggressive
and team-oriented cultures.
– People high on agreeableness match up better with a
supportive organizational climate than one focused on
aggressiveness.
– People high on openness to experience fit better in
organizations that emphasize innovation rather than
standardization.

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Person-Job Fit vs.
Person-Organization Fit (3 of 3)
• Other Dimensions of Fit
– Although person-job fit and person-organization fit are
considered the most salient dimensions for workplace
outcomes, other avenues of fit are worth examining.
▪ Person-group fit
▪ Person-supervisor fit

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Implications for Managers (1 of 2)
• Consider screening job candidates for high
conscientiousness—and the other Big Five
traits—depending on the criteria your organization finds
most important. Other aspects, such as core
self-evaluation or narcissism, may be relevant in certain
situations.
• Although the MBTI has faults, you can use it for training
and development; to help employees better understand
each other, open communication in work groups, and
possibly reduce conflicts.

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Implications for Managers (2 of 2)
• Evaluate jobs, work groups, and your organization to
determine the optimal personality fit..
• The more you consider people’s different cultures, the
better you will be able to determine their work behavior
and create a positive organizational climate that performs
well.

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Copyright

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