Organizational Behavior - Personality, Values PDF

Preview

Summary

Personality and Values Overview...

Description

Organizational Behavior – Personality, Values Organizational Behavior

26.02.2018

Field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups and structure have on behavior within organizations for the purpose of applying such knowledge toward improving an organization’s effectiveness. It studies three determinants of behavior in organizations: individuals, group and structure.  OB is the study of what people do in an organization and the way their behavior affects the organization’s performance.

Basic OB Model:

Defining Personality

The sum total of ways in which an individual reacts to and interacts with others. Personality is often described in terms of measurable traits a person exhibits.

Questions related to personality From OB perspective: - Where does personality come from? - How can we find out what personality traits individuals have? - What is the relevance of personality in regard to work behavior and performance? - What role does the specific situation (context) play? Measuring Personality

Personality tests  useful for hiring decisions, help managers forecast who is best for a job. Problem: Accuracy, Reliability (e.g. when self-test, culture influences the way we rate ourselves.)

Big Five Model

Five basic dimensions underlie all others and encompass most of the significant variation in human personality: - Conscientiousness - Emotional Stability - Extraversion - Openness to Experience - Agreeableness

Conscientiousness

A personality dimension that describes someone who is responsible, dependable, persistent and organized.

Emotional stability

A personality dimension that characterizes someone as calm, selfconfident, and secure (positive) versus nervous, depressed, and insecure (negative).

Extraversion

A personality dimension describing someone who is sociable, gregarious, and assertive.

Openness to experience

A personality dimension that characterizes someone in terms of imagination, sensitivity, and curiosity.

Agreeableness

A personality dimension that describes someone who is good natured, cooperative, and trusting.

Big Five traits predict job performance and work behavior:      

Highly conscientious people tend to have higher job performance in most if not all occupations. Highly conscientious people develop higher levels of job knowledge. Emotional stability is related to job satisfaction. Extraverts tend to be happier in their jobs and have good social skills. Open people are more creative and can be good leaders. Agreeable people are good in social settings.

The Dark Triad

A constellation of negative personality traits consisting of Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy.

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 actions cause harm.

Core Self-Evaluations (CSE)

Bottom-line conclusions individuals have about their capabilities, competence, and worth as a person. People with positive CSE live themselves and see themselves as effective and in control of their environment  usually perform better than people with negative CSE.

Self-Monitoring

An individual’s ability to adjust behavior to external, situational factors. High self-monitors show considerable adaptability in adjusting their behavior to external situational factors.

Proactive Personality

People who identify opportunities, show initiative, take action, and persevere until meaningful change occurs.

Personality and Situations Situation strength theory

A theory indicating that the way personality translates into behavior depends on the strength of the situation.

Situation strength

The degree to which norms, cues, or standards dictate appropriate behavior. There are four elements in organizations concerning situation strength: - Clarity: Degree to which cues about work duties and responsibilities are available and clear. - Consistency: Extent to which cues regarding work duties and responsibilities are compatible with one another. - Constraint: Extent to which individual’s freedom to decide or act is limited by forces outside their control. - Consequences: Degree to which decisions or actions have important implications for the organization or its members, clients, suppliers, etc.

Trait Activation Theory

A theory that predicts that some situations, events, or interventions “activate” a trait more than others. By using TAT, we can foresee which jobs suit certain personalities.

Values

Basic convictions that a specific mode of conduct or end-state of existence is personally or socially preferable to an opposite or converse mode of conduct or end-state of existence.

Value system

A hierarchy based on a ranking of an individual’s values in terms of their intensity. We all have a hierarchy of values according to the relative importance we assign to values such as freedom, pleasure, self-respect, honesty, obedience, and equality.

Terminal values

Desirable end-states of existence; the goals a person would like to achieve during his or her lifetime.

Instrumental values

Preferable modes of behavior or means of achieving one’s terminal values.

Generational values:

Five values dimensions by Geert Hofstede

1) Power distance 2) Individualism versus collectivism 3) Masculinity versus femininity 4) Uncertainty avoidance 5) Long-term versus short-term orientation...