Unit-III

Individual and Group Dimensions of

Organizational Behaviour
Syllabus:
Concept of Organization Behaviour - Role of Organizational Behaviour -
Characteristics of Organizational Behaviour - Models of Organizational Behaviour
- Foundation of Individual Behaviour – Individual Differences - Psychological
Factors affecting Human Behaviour.

Personality - Perception - Learning - Attitudes and Values - Models of Man.

Concept of Group Dynamics - Types of Groups - Theories of Group Formation -

Group Cohesiveness - Factors affecting Group Cohesiveness –Group Decision
Making - Positive and Negative aspects of Group Decision Making- Techniques
for improving Group Decision Making.
 Concept of Organization Behaviour
 OB is concerned with the study of what people do in an organization
and how their behaviour affect the organization’s performance
 OB is field of study that investigates the impact that individuals,
groups and structure have on behaviour within organization.
 The understanding, prediction and management of human behaviour
in organization. - Fred Luthans.
 The study and application of knowledge about how people as
individuals and groups act within Organizations, it strives to identify
ways in which people can act more effectively. - John Nestrom &
Keith Davis.
 Organizational behaviour is a field of study that investigates the
impact that individuals, groups, and structure have on behaviour
within Organizations, for the purpose of applying such knowledge
towards improving organization’s effectiveness - Robbins.
 Organizational behaviour can classified as an action and
attitudes of Individuals & Groups toward one another and
towards organization’s as a whole and its effect on
organization’s functioning and performance.

 Organizational behavior is a field of study that investigates the

impact that individuals, groups, and structures have
on behavior within the organization. This impact works towards
improving the organization's effectiveness.

 Organizational Behavior can be defined as the understanding,

prediction and management of human behavior both
individually or in a group that occur within an organization.
Internal and external perspectives are the two theories of
how organizational behavior can be viewed from
an organization's point of view.
 Role of Organizational Behaviour
 It tries to analyze why and how an individual behaves in a
particular way in a given situation. The behaviour of individuals is
affected by a number of Psychological, Social and Cultural
Factors. The job of organizational behaviorist is to integrate these
factors to help in understanding human behaviour.

 OB offers several ideas to management as to how human factor

should be properly emphasized to achieve organizational
objectives.

 OB helps the managers in the following areas;

Understanding Human Behaviour
Controlling and Directing Human Behaviour
Organizational adaption.
 Characteristics of Organizational Behaviour
1. Behavioural Approach to Management: Organizational behaviour is that part of
whole management which represents the behavioural approach to management.
Organizational behaviour has emerged as a distinct field of study because of the
importance of human behaviour in organizations.
2. Cause and Effect Relationship: Human behaviour is generally taken in terms of
cause and effect relationship and not in philosophical terms. It helps in predicting
the behaviour of individuals. It provides generalizations that managers can use to
anticipate the effect of certain activities on human behaviour.
3. Organizational Behaviour is a Branch of Social Sciences: Organizational
behaviour is heavily influenced by several other social sciences viz. Psychology,
Sociology And Anthropology. It draws a rich array of research from these
disciplines.
4. Three Levels of Analysis: Organizational behaviour encompasses the study of
three levels of analysis namely individual behaviour, inter-individual
behaviour and the behaviour of organizations themselves. The field of
organizational behaviour embraces all these levels as being complementary to
each other.
5. A Science as well as an Art: Organizational behaviour is a Science as well as an
Art. The systematic knowledge about human behaviour is a science and the
application of behavioural knowledge and skills is an art. Organizational
behaviour is not an exact science because it cannot exactly predict the behaviour
of people in organizations. At best a manager can generalize to a limited extent
and in many cases, he has to act on the basis of partial information.

6. A Body of Theory, Research and Application: Organizational behaviour consists

of a body of Theory, Research and Application which helps in understanding
the human behaviour in organization. All these techniques help the managers to
solve human problems in organizations.

7. Beneficial to both Organization and Individuals: Organizational behaviour

creates an atmosphere whereby both organization and individuals are benefitted
by each other. A reasonable climate is created so that employees may get much
needed satisfaction and the organization may attain its objectives.

8. Rational Thinking: Organizational behaviour provides a rational thinking about

people and their behaviour. The major objective of organizational behaviour is to
explain and predict human behaviour in organizations, so that result yielding
situations can be created.
 Models of Organizational Behaviour
 Organizational behavior model is a basic structure that shows the
relations between variables at different levels in the organization.
 In the field of OB, models are developed to provide framework
about How people will be treated in an organization.
 There are Five Models of Organizational Behavior, and each one
represents the progressive changes that exist in management models.
Practices in organizations can differ among departments, and
behavioral models conducted by managers may also vary due to
different perceptions and preferences. They are:
1.Autocratic Model
2.Custodial Model
3.Supportive Model
4.Collegial Model
5.System Model
 Criteria Autocratic Custodial Supportive Collegial System

1.Basis of Power Economic Leadership Partnership Trust

Model Resources

2.Managerial Authority Money Support Teamwork Culture and

Orientation Team
Environment
3.Employee Obedience Security and Job Responsible Policies and
Orientation Benefits Performance Behaviour Management

4.Employee Dependence Dependence on Participation Self- Depends on

Psychological on Boss Organization discipline Trust
Result
5.Employee Subsistence Security Status and Self- Self-
Needs Met Recognition actualization motivation

6.Performance Minimum Passive Awakened Moderate More than

Result Co-operation drives Enthusiasm expected
 Foundation of Individual Behaviour
 Individual behavior can be defined as how an individual behaves
at work place.
 Individual behavior is influenced by the following factors :
Personality
Perception
Learning
Attitude
Values
Emotions
 The basic assumption of organizational behavior is two types.
They are nature of people and nature of organization.
 The nature of people incorporates individual differences, a whole
person, motivated behavior, value of the person, selective
perception, and desire for involvement.
 Individual Differences
 Individual differences may be reflected in individual's different types of
behaviour - Conformity, Rate of Learning and Development, Interaction with
people having different types of personality characteristics, Productivity and
any such type of behaviour. Such differences range along a continuum from
desirable to undesirable. With respect to work, people differ in the following
respects:
1 . People differ in the importance.
2. People differ in the type of compensation plan.
3. People differ in the style of supervision.
4. People differ in their preferred schedules of work hour.
5.People differ in their tolerance for stress and ambiguity.
Factors causing individual differences
 Psychological Factors Affecting Human Behaviour
 Psychological factors are the elements of your personality
that limit or enhance the ways that you think. Your
personality can render something as simple as
conversation extremely difficult or very easy. A phobia
(illogical and uncontrollable fear) can limit or even
control the ways that you think or react.
 Personality
 The word personality comes from the Latin word persona meaning
“mask”. According to this meaning personality is the impression we
make on others; the mask we present to the world

 Personality refers to the long-standing traits and patterns that propel

individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways.

 Personality is “a unique set of traits and characteristics, relatively

stable over time.” Personality does not change from day to day but
over a longer term, it may change.

 Personality refers to individual differences in characteristic patterns of

thinking, feeling and behaving.

 Personality is the characteristic patterns of thoughts, feelings, and

behaviors that make a person unique. It is believed
that personality arises from within the individual and remains fairly
consistent throughout life.
 Definitions of Personality
 J.B Watson (1930): “Personality is the sum of activities that can be
discovered by actual observations over a long enough period of time to
give reliable information.”

 M. Prince (1929): Personality is the sum total of all biological innate

dispositions, impulses, tendencies, appetites, and instincts of the
individual and the dispositions and tendencies acquire by experience.

 According to Woodworth Opines “Personality is the quality of

individual’s total behavior.”

 R.B Cattel defines: “Personality is that which permits a prediction of

what a person will do in a given situation.”

 After analyzing 49 definitions by eminent persons Gordon W.Allport

(1948) defined “Personality is the dynamic organization within the
individual of those psychophysical systems that determine his unique
adjustment to his environment.”
Personality Traits
 Stages of Personality Development
1.Psycho- Analytical Stage or Freudian Stage: Freud
proposed that personality development in
childhood takes place within the 5 to 6 years in
the following stages:
Oral Stage: 0 to 1 Year
Anal Stage:1 to 3 Years
Phallic Stage: 3 to 6 Years
Latency Stage: 6 Years to Puberty
Genital Stage: Puberty to Adult
2. Social Learning Stage or Erikson Stage: Erikson maintained
that personality develops in a predetermined order through eight
stages of psychosocial development, from infancy to adulthood.
During each stage, the person experiences a psychosocial crisis
which could have a positive or negative outcome for personality
development.
3. Cognitive Development Stage: Jean Piaget's theory of
cognitive development suggests that children move through four
different stages of mental development. His theory focuses not only
on understanding how children acquire knowledge, but also on
understanding the nature of intelligence.

Sensorimotor Stage: Birth To 2 Years

Preoperational Stage: 2 to 7 Years
Concrete Operational Stage: 7 to 11Years
Formal Operational Stage: 12 Years and up

Piaget believed that children take an active role in the learning

process, acting much like little scientists as they perform
experiments, make observations, and learn about the world. As kids
interact with the world around them, they continually add new
knowledge, build upon existing knowledge, and adapt previously
held ideas to accommodate new information.
Determinants of Personality
 The personality of an individual may be influenced by various
factors such as ;
Perception
 Perception is an intellectual process of transforming
sensory stimuli to meaningful information.

 It is the process of interpreting something that we see or

hear in our mind and use it later to judge and give a
judgment on a situation, person, group etc.

 Perception includes the 5 senses;

Touch
Sight
Taste
Smell
Sound
 Nature or Features of Perception
 Intellectual process through which a person selects the
data from the environment, organizes it and obtains
meaning from it.

 Cognitive or Psychological Process Peoples actions,

emotions, thoughts or feelings are triggered by the
perception of their surroundings.

 Subjective Process Perception becomes a subjective

process and Different people may perceive the same
event differently. (Intellectual and Psychological
process).
Perception Process
Factors Influencing Perception
 Learning
 Learning is a key process in human behavior. Every aspect
human behavior is responsive to learning. It is a prerequisite for
behavior.
 Learning is the process of acquiring new understanding,
knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, attitudes, and preferences.
 Learning is defined as “any relatively permanent change in
behavior that occurs as a result of practice and experience”.
This definition has three important elements:
 a. Learning is a change in behavior—better or worse.
 b. It is a change that takes place through practice or experience,
but changes due to growth or maturation are not learning.
 c. This change in behavior must be relatively permanent, and it
must last a fairly long time.
Theories of Learning
Behaviorist Theory
Cognitive Theory
Constructivist Theory
Humanist Theory
 Experiential Learning Theory
Situated Learning Theory
Social Learning Theory
Attitude
 An attitude is generally defined as the way a person
responds to his or her environment, either positively or
negatively.
 Attitude is the manner, disposition, feeling, and position
about a person or thing, tendency, or orientation,
especially in mind.
 According to Gordon Allport, “An attitude is a mental
and neural state of readiness, organized through
experience, exerting a directive or dynamic influence
upon the individual’s response to all objects and
situations with which it is related.”
 Frank Freeman said, “An attitude is a dispositional
readiness to respond to certain institutions, persons or
objects in a consistent manner which has been learned
and has become one’s typical mode of response.”
 Characteristics of Attitude
 Attitude is a complex combination of things that we call
personality, beliefs, values, behaviors and motivations.
 Attitude is present in every person's mind. Which define
our identity, guide, our actions, and influence.
 Attitude helps us to define how we see situations, as well
as to define it.
 Attitude helps to behave towards situation or object we
can offer an inner feeling, belief and thoughts about
people and goods.
 Attitude is consciously aware of an implicit attitude that
is unconscious, but still has an effect on our behavior.
 Attitude based on direct experience predicts future
behavior more accurately..
 Attitude represents the total sum of a man's inclination
and emotions.
 Attitude Formation
 The question often arises, ‘how are the attitudes and
subsequent behaviors formed?’
 While attitudes are basically learned over the years,
some inherited characteristics do affect such
attitudes
 Some of the learned characteristics responsible for
attitude formation are:
Experience
Perceptual biases
Observation of other person attitude
Association
Personality
 Values
 We can define values as the moral principles or standards of
behavior. Thus, values often stand as the moral ethics of a person or
a society. In brief, values are those what are known as the code of
conduct for a person.

 Values are stable long-lasting beliefs about what is important to a

person. They become standards by which people order their lives
and make their choices.

 A belief will develop into a value when the person’s commitment to

it grows and they see it as being important.

 It is possible to categories beliefs into different types of values –

examples include values that relate to happiness, wealth, career
success or family.

 A person must be able to articulate their values in order to make

clear, rational, responsible and consistent decisions.
Types of Human Values
Individualistic Values
Family Values
Professional Values
National Values
Moral Values
Spiritual Values
 Models of Man
 Managers try to understand individual differences in order to
understand human behavior and accordingly assign different
jobs to different people.
 In other words, managers understand individual differences
in order to make a balance between the individual behavior
and job demands.
 Managers make assumptions about man while understanding
their differences. These assumptions resulted in developing
various models of man.
 Schein and William H. Whyte have developed Five Models of
Man viz.,
1. Rational Economic Man
2. Social Man
3. Organizational Man (Developed by William H. Whyte)
4. Self - actualizing Man
5. Complex Man
 Rational Economic Man
 The rational-economic man model is the oldest one. Man bases it on the
doctrine of maximizing of self-interest. There are two elements in this
maximization. First, a man is able to calculate the cost of his efforts for
getting any inducement similarly he can also calculate the value of
inducement, which he receives from his efforts. Second he is able to know
all alternative available. Thus, he maximizes his need satisfaction in terms of
managerial effort being equal to marginal inducement for work.
 The following assumptions can be made about rational-economic man respect of
his behavior:
1. Man is primarily motivated by economic incentives and he is willing to do thing,
which maximize his economic returns.
2. The feelings of man are essentially irrational and must be controlled in order to
achieve rationally self interest.
3. In the context of organization individual relationship, the organization controls the
economic incentives and man remains mostly passive.
4. Since man’s feeling will interfere his rationally, the organization can be designed in
such a way that it controls his feeling and consequently avoids unpredictability in his
behavior.
Social Man
 Social man concept is based on the line that man begin part of the society,
and influenced by social forces & seeks satisfaction of those needs, which
are in term with maintain his social relationship. This is the basic crux of
human relations approach in management.
 The following are the assumptions of social man concept:
1. Man is basically motivated by his social man needs and all his efforts
directed to get this satisfaction by maintaining relation with others.
2. Man is more responsive to group pressure and sanction rather than
control & pressure put by management in the organization because he
values social relationship higher than economic motives, which are
directly controlled by management.
3. He will obey & comply management orders so long as there is conformity
with satisfaction of his social needs.
4. As a result of industrialization, specialization, and rationalization the
work has become meaningless which develops more attention, frustration,
conflict therefore management should change & organize work in such
way that it provides more belongingness not only in terms of interpersonal
& group relationship, but also man`s relationship with his job.
 Organization Man
 Organization man is an extension of social man. William Whyte who has
given the concept of organization man; believes that the value of loyalty to
the organizational and co-operation with fellow workers is important for
man. A man who believes and acts in this way according to him organization
man. This concept is based on the group and organization.
 Whyte suggests that social ethic guides organization man, which based on
three major propositions:

• The group is source of creativity. The individual by himself is isolated and

meaningless; only when he collaborates with other does he create. Individual help
to produce a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.

• Belongings is the ultimate need of individual. There should be conflicts between

man and society because what is normally consider conflict is merely
misunderstanding and breakdown in communication.

• The science achieves the goal of belongings. By applying the methods of science,
the obstacles to consensus can be eliminated and equilibrium can be created where
society`s needs of the individual are one and the same.
 Self-actualizing Man
 Self-actualization is self-fulfillment the need to develop one’s fullest
potential, to become the best that one is capable of being.
 According to A.H. Maslow, it is the desire to become what one is capable of
becoming. A Musician must make Music, a Poet must Write, a General must
win Battles, an Artist must Paint, a Teacher must Teach if he is to
be ultimately happy. What a man can be, he must be.
 The assumptions normally made by managers, in formal organizations, about
self-actualizing man are basically related to what McGregor proposed in
Theory Y. They are:
1. Human needs could be arranged in the form of a hierarchy, ranging
from physiological, safety, love, esteem and self-actualizing. Self-
actualizing is the final goal of any individual.
2. Man moves from a state of immaturity to a state of maturity to satisfy this
particular need
3. Conflicts between self-actualizing man and the form of organization
structure are inevitable because the formal structure is based on the
assumptions of immaturity of individuals.
 Complex Man
 According to this model, man is complex and it is not possible to predict his
behavior with any amount of certainty. Man is influenced by a confusing variety
of factors such as incentives, work group pressures, political influences, family
concerns, social demands etc. He responds to managerial actions in
unpredictable ways. Man is a complex mixture of needs, goals, aspirations,
perceptions, attitudes and faculties.
 According to Edgar Schein, the complex man model is built around the
following assumptions:
1. Man is motivated by a variety of factors which are complex and unpredictable.
2. A person’s needs, aspirations, attitudes, etc. will undergo significant changes
as he begins to interact with his colleagues, organization and the environment.
3. There are wide variations among people in the same organization.
Such variations maybe in terms of their need pattern, their behavior and hence
the need for direction and control.
4. A simple understanding of human need hierarchy is inadequate because
empirical verification of the relationship between a particular need and the
behavior is difficult.
5. A person could respond to managerial actions in multifarious ways, depending
on his needs, aspirations, attitudes etc.
Concept of Group Dynamics
 A group can be defined as several individuals
who come together to accomplish a particular task
or goal. Group dynamics refers to the attitudinal
and behavioral characteristics of a group. Group
dynamics concern how groups form, their
structure and process, and how they function.
 Group dynamics is a set of behavioural and
psychological processes that occur within a
social group or between groups. It refers to the
"nature of groups, the laws of their development,
and their interrelations with individuals,
other groups, and larger institutions“
 Group behavior or dynamics of the group includes
qualities and personality traits of group members.
Characteristics of Group:
 Group dynamics describes how a group should be
organized and operated. This includes pattern of
leadership and cooperation.
 Group dynamics consists of a set of techniques
such as role playing, brainstorming, group
therapy, sensitivity training etc.
 Group dynamics deals with internal nature of
groups, their formation, structure and process, and
the way they affect individual members, other
groups and the organization as a whole.
 Group dynamics refers to changes which take
place within groups and is concerned with the
interaction and forces obtained between group
members in a social setting.
Features of Group:
1. Two or More Persons: The term group refers to two
or more individuals who bear an explicit
psychological relationship to one another.
2. Collective Identity: The group consists of two or
more individuals and possesses some cohesiveness.
3. Interaction: It reveals some amount of interaction
among its members who have definite ideas of their
position and role in it.
4. Numerous Relationship: Relationships concentrating
on status and roll along with common values or norms
are characteristics features of the group.
5. Shared Goal Interest: As the group operates on a
common task, common attitudes develop and
members become aware that they are part of it.
Types of Groups

Primary and Secondary Groups

Membership and Reference Groups
Command and Task Groups
In-Groups and Out- Groups
Formal and Informal Groups
Theories of Group Formation
1. Propinquity Theory
2. Homan’s Theory
3. Balance Theory
4. Exchange Theory
1. Propinquity Theory:
This interesting word simply means that individuals
affiliate with one another because of spatial or
geographical proximity. In an organization employees
who work in the same area of the plant or office or
managers with offices close to one another would
more probably form into groups than would those who
are not physically located together.
2. Homan’s Theory:
According to George C. Humans, it is a very comprehensive
theory and based on Activities, Interactions and Sentiments.
These three elements are directly related to each other. The
members’ activities interactions and of a group share activities
and interact with one another not just because of physical
proximity but also to accomplish group goals.
3.Balance Theory:
Another very comprehensive theory is a Balance Theory of group
formation. This theory as proposed by Theodore Newcomb states that
“Persons are attracted to one another on the basis of similar attitudes
towards commonly relevant objects and goals. Once a relationship is
formed, it strives to maintain a symmetrical balance between the attraction
and the common attitudes. If an imbalance occurs, attempts are made to
restore the balance. If the balance cannot be restored, the relationship
dissolves.”
4. Exchange Theory:
This theory is based on reward-cost outcomes of
interactions. To be attracted towards a group, a
person thinks in terms of what he will get in
exchange of interaction with group members. A
minimum positive level (rewards greater than
costs) of an outcome must exist in order for
attraction or affiliation to take place. Rewards
from interactions gratify needs while costs incur
anxiety, frustrations, embarrassment or fatigue.
Propinquity, interaction and common attitudes all
have roles in the exchange theory.
Group cohesiveness
 Group cohesiveness is one of the characteristic features of the groups,
which is very important from behaviouristic point of view.

 Cohesiveness is the degree to which the group members are attracted to

each other and are motivated to stay in the groups.

 Cohesiveness defines the degree of closeness that the members feel with
the groups.

 It is understood as the extent of liking each member has towards others in

the group and how far everyone wants to remain as a member of the group.

 The greater the cohesiveness, the greater the influence of the group
members to persuade one another to conform to the group norms. The
greater the conformity, the greater the identity of the members to the group
and the greater the group cohesiveness.
Factors Affecting Group Cohesiveness

1. Degree of Dependency on the Group

2. Size of the Group
3. Homogeneity and Stable Membership
4. Location of the Group
5. Group Status
6. Group Leadership
7. Outside Pressures
8. Competition
 Group Decision Making
 Group decision-making also known as collaborative decision-
making or collective decision-making. Group decision-
making is a situation faced when individuals collectively
make a choice from the alternatives before them.
 The decision is then no longer attributable to any single
individual who is a member of the group. This is because all
the individuals and social group processes such as social
influence contribute to the outcome.
 The decisions made by groups are often different from those
made by individuals. In workplace settings, collaborative
decision-making is one of the most successful models to
generate buy-in from other stakeholders, build consensus, and
encourage creativity.
 According to the idea of synergy, decisions made collectively
also tend to be more effective than decisions made by a single
individual.
Features or Characteristics of Group Decision Making:
 Rational Thinking: It is invariably based on rational
thinking.
 Process: It is the process followed by deliberations and
reasoning.
 Selective: It is the choice of the best course among
alternatives.
 Purposive: The solution to a problem provides an
effective means to the desired goal.
 Positive: Although every decision is usually positive
sometimes certain decisions may be negative and may
just be a decision not to decide.
 Commitment: Every decision is based on the concept of
commitment
 Evaluation: Decision making involves evaluation of
alternatives.
Positive and Negative Aspects OR Advantages and
Disadvantages of Group Decision Making
Techniques for Improving Group Decision Making
1. Brainstorming: This technique involves a group of people, usually
between five and ten, sitting around a table, generating ideas in the form of
free association. The primary focus is on generation of ideas rather them on
evaluation of ideas.

2. Nominal Group Technique: Nominal group technique is similar to

brainstorming except that the approach is more structured. Members form
the group in name only and operate independently, generating ideas for
solving the problem on their own, in silence and in writing. Members do not
interact with each other so that strong personality domination is avoided. It
encourages individual creativity.

3. Delphi Technique: This technique is the modification of the nominal group

technique, except that it involves obtaining the opinions of experts
physically separated from each other and unknown to each other. This
insulates group members from the undue influence of others. Generally, the
types of problems handled by this technique are not specific in nature or
related to a particular situation at a given time. For example, the technique
could be used to understand the problems that could be created in the event
of a war.
The steps in the Delphi technique are:
 The problem is identified and a sample of experts is selected. These
experts are asked to provide potential solutions through a series of
carefully designed questionnaires.
 Each expert completes and returns the initial questionnaire.
 The results of the questionnaire are compiled at a central location
and the central coordinator prepares a second questionnaire based on
the previous answers.
 Each member receives a copy of the results along with the second
questionnaire.
 Members are asked to review the results and respond to the second
questionnaire. The results typically trigger new solutions or cause
changes in the original position.
 The process is repeated until a consensus is reached.

The process is very time consuming and is primarily useful in

illuminating broad range, long term complex issues such as future
effects of energy shortages that might occur.
4.Dialectic Decision Method: This technique is applicable only in certain
situations, but is an excellent method when such a situation exists. The type
of problem should be such that it results in a yes-no solution. For example,
the decision may be to buy or not to buy, to merge or not to merge, to
expand or not to expand and so on. Such a decision requires an extensive
and exhaustive discussion and investigation since a wrong decision can
have serious consequences.