Key Concepts in Organizational Behavior and Management

Posted on Sep 28, 2025 in Business Administration and Management (BAM)

Organizational Behavior: Introduction and Variables

  • Dependent Variables: Productivity, absenteeism, turnover, job satisfaction, organizational citizenship.
  • Independent Variables:
    • Individual (perceptions, background)
    • Group (communication, conflict)
    • Organizational (culture, HR policies)

Core Learning Theories in Organizational Settings

  1. Classical (Pavlovian) Conditioning: Dogs salivate (conditioned response) when the ‘food whistle’ is blown (conditioned stimulus).
  2. Operant Conditioning: Learned (voluntary) behavior which produces a reward or prevents punishment.
  3. Social Learning Theory: Learning from indirect (vicarious) experiences.
  4. Behavior Modeling: Rewards at fixed or variable intervals (e.g., evaluating a class through surprise tests).

Values, Attitudes, and Job Satisfaction

  1. Rokeach Value Survey (RVS):
    • Terminal Values: Desirable end-states of existence (e.g., “I want my family to be safe”).
    • Instrumental Values: Preferred modes of behavior (e.g., “I must be responsible,” used to attain Terminal Values).
  2. Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory:
    1. Power Distance
    2. Individualism vs. Collectivism
    3. Masculinity vs. Femininity (Material and emphatic levels)
    4. Uncertainty Avoidance (e.g., reliance on religion)
    5. Long-Term vs. Short-Term Orientation
  3. GLOBE Framework (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness):
    1. Assertiveness (degree people are pushed to be tough)
    2. Gender Egalitarianism
    3. In-Group Collectivism
    4. Performance Orientation
    5. Humane Orientation

Personality Traits and Emotional Dynamics

  1. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI): 100-question personality questionnaire (Note: limited proven relevance in predicting job performance).
  2. The Big Five Model (OCEAN): Personality traits are mainly defined by:
    1. Extroversion
    2. Agreeableness (tendency toward conformity and pleasing others)
    3. Conscientiousness (being thorough and responsible)
    4. Emotional Stability (the inverse of Neuroticism)
    5. Openness to Experience

Key Theories of Workplace Motivation

  1. Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory: The opposite of dissatisfaction is not satisfaction, but no-dissatisfaction. Hygiene factors (e.g., air conditioning, offices) prevent dissatisfaction but do not provide intrinsic motivation. Motivational factors relate to the essence of the job itself.
  2. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:
    1. Physiological
    2. Security
    3. Social
    4. Self-Esteem
    5. Self-Actualization
  3. McClelland’s Theory of Needs: Achievement, Power, Affiliation.
  4. ERG Theory (Alderfer): Existence (Maslow 1 & 2), Relatedness (Maslow 3), Growth (Maslow 4 & 5).
  5. Cognitive Evaluation Theory: If you enjoy what you do, receiving a higher monetary reward may decrease your intrinsic motivation (i.e., it’s not for the money).

Group Dynamics and Team Effectiveness

  1. Group Development Stages (Tuckman):
    1. Forming
    2. Storming
    3. Norming
    4. Performing
  2. Group Decision Phenomena:
    • Groupthink: Pressures for conformity where individuals suppress dissenting opinions.
    • Groupshift (Polarization): People exaggerate their initial positions (becoming more risky or conservative) to reach a group solution.
  3. Factors Affecting Team Efficacy:
    1. Context (resources, climate of trust)
    2. Composition (size, flexibility)
    3. Work Design (abilities, autonomy)
    4. Process (common purpose, goals, level of social loafing)

Classical and Contemporary Leadership Theories

Classical Theories

  1. Trait Theory: Leadership is inherent.
  2. Behavioral Theory: Leadership can be learned.
  3. Contingency Theory: Leadership can be learned, but effectiveness depends on the context or situation (e.g., Fiedler Contingency Model).
  4. Leader-Member Exchange (LMX): Due to time pressures, leaders appoint small groups with special relationships (“in-groups”).
  5. Vroom-Yetton Leader-Participation Model: How a leader makes decisions is as important as the decision itself.

Contemporary Theories

  1. Level 5 Hierarchy:
    1. Executive
    2. Effective Leader
    3. Competent Manager
    4. Contributing Team Member
    5. Highly Capable Individual

Conflict Management and Negotiation Strategies

  1. Conflict Views:
    1. Traditional View: Conflict is bad and must be avoided.
    2. Human Relations View: Conflict is natural and inevitable; it might be positive.
    3. Interactionist View: Conflict is absolutely necessary for groups to perform effectively.
  2. Negotiation Types:
    1. Distributive Bargaining: Win/Lose approach.
    2. Integrative Bargaining: Win/Win approach.
  3. BATNA (Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement): The lowest acceptable outcome for a deal to take place.

Organizational Structure Models and Determinants

  1. Structural Models:
    1. Mechanistic Model: Strong job formalization, rigid departmentalization, high specialization.
    2. Organic Model: Cross-functional teams, unclear command chain, cross-hierarchical teams, decentralization.
  2. Determinants of Organizational Structure:
    1. Technology
    2. Size
    3. Strategy
    4. Environment

Organizational Culture and Socialization

  1. Defining Characteristics of Organizational Culture:
    1. Innovation and Risk Taking
    2. Focus on Details
    3. Results Orientation
    4. People Orientation (staff members)
    5. Team Orientation
    6. Aggressiveness
    7. Stability vs. Growth
  2. Functions of Culture:
    1. Transmits a sense of identity.
    2. Commits people to something bigger than self-interests.
    3. Defines organizational boundaries.
    4. Enhances social system stability.
  3. Culture as an Obstacle:
    1. Barrier to change (e.g., market changes)
    2. Barrier to diversity of problem-solving points of view.
    3. Barrier to acquisitions and mergers.
  4. New Employee Socialization Process:
    1. Prearrival
    2. Encounter
    3. Metamorphosis