,INSTRUCTOR SOLUTION MANUAL FOR ORGANIZATIONAL
BEHAVIOR 2ND EDITION BY RICKY W GRIFFIN, JEAN M
PHILLIPS, STANLEY M. GULLY
PART ONE – INTRODUCTION TO ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR
The two chapters in Part 1 introduce the field of organisational behaviour while establishing a unique
integrated learning model that incorporates a critical perspective. Readers will discover an integrative
five-level model of analysis with the dimensions of environment, individual, groups, leadership and
organisation, how the five dimensions are interrelated and implore managers to understand, rather
than control, human behaviour in organisations.
Managers strive to make their organisations as effective and successful as possible. At the centre of
everything are the employees who work for the organisation. It is usually their talent, effort, skill and
ability that differentiates effective from less effective organisations. It is critical that managers
understand how the behaviours of their employees impact organisational effectiveness. Managers work
to enhance employee performance behaviours, commitment and engagement, and citizenship
behaviours, and to minimise various dysfunctional behaviours. A number of environmental, individual,
group and team, leadership, and organisational characteristics can make the manager’s work easier or
more difficult. This model will be more fully developed in Chapter 1 and will serve as a roadmap
throughout this book.
CHAPTER 1 – AN OVERVIEW OF ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR
Chapter overview
All organisations have at least one thing in common – they are comprised of people. It is these people
who make decisions about the strategic direction of a firm, acquire the resources the firm uses to create
new products, and sell those products. No matter how effective a manager might be, all organisational
successes – and failures – are the result of the behaviours of many people. This book is about those
people. It is also about the organisation itself and the managers who operate it; individuals do not work
in isolation. Together, the study of organisations and the study of the people who work in them
constitute the field of organisational behaviour. The starting point begins with a more detailed
discussion of its meaning and its importance to employees, business owners and managers.
The primary purpose of this chapter is to introduce the field of organisational behaviour. The chapter
begins by defining organisational behaviour as the study of human behaviour in organisational settings,
the interface between human behaviour and the organisation, and the organisation itself. The chapter
notes that understanding how people behave is critical to working effectively and that increased
cultural awareness is needed for continued organisational success. The four functions that make up
the manager’s job – planning, organising, leading and controlling – are discussed. Then the chapter
explores the various skills – technical, interpersonal, conceptual and diagnostic – managers must apply
in organisations. The chapter also discusses human resource management regarding the attraction,
development and retention of an effective workforce.
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,The strategic context is discussed, including maintaining a competitive advantage, sources of
competitive advantage and types of business strategies. The next section provides some historical
context on organisational behaviour, looking at scientific management, the Hawthorne effect and the
human relations movement. The chapter continues by defining a system and systems perspective, the
situational perspective and interactionism. The chapter then examines the outcomes – individual, team
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, and organisational – important for organisational effectiveness, including the information quality,
scientific method and meta-analysis. The chapter concludes with a preview of the remaining text.
Learning outcomes
After studying this chapter, students should be able to:
1. define organisational behaviour and describe how it impacts both personal and organisational
success
2. identify the basic management functions and essential skills that comprise the management
process and relate them to organisational behaviour
3. describe the strategic context of organisational behaviour and describe the relationships
between strategy and organisational behaviour
4. identify and describe contextual perspectives on organisational behaviour
5. describe the role of organisational behaviour in managing for effectiveness and discuss the role
of research in organisational behaviour
6. summarise the framework around which this book is organised.
Guide your learning
1. What is an organisation and why should we care about its behaviour? (LO1)
2. What makes a manager good and does it matter whether they are nice people? (LO2)
3. Does understanding organisational behaviour simply mean being able to manipulate people to
do jobs they don’t want to do? (LO3)
4. Are workers cogs in a machine or something else? (LO4)
5. Is it more important for an organisation to be effective than efficient? (LO5)
6. If managing people is like herding cats, is the study of organisational behaviour unable to have a
coherent structure? (LO6)
Chapter outline
1.1. What is organisational behaviour?
1.1.1. The meaning of organisational behaviour
Organisational behaviour (OB) is the study of human behaviour in organisational settings, the
interface between human behaviour and the organisation, and the organisation itself. All
three are ultimately necessary for a comprehensive understanding of organisational
behaviour.
OB helps explain and predict how people and groups interpret events, react and behave in
organisations, and describes the role of organisational systems, structures and process in
shaping behaviour. Figure 1.2 illustrates this view of organisational behaviour.
1.1.2. How organisational behaviour impacts personal success
The core of OB is being effective at work. Since most people reading this book are either
present or future managers, the text takes a managerial perspective throughout the
discussion. Using your knowledge of OB can help you to succeed faster in any organisation or
career. Cultural context and globalisation are also important factors to consider. The study of
organisational behaviour can greatly clarify the factors that affect how managers manage.
Hence, the field attempts to describe the complex human context of organisations and to
define the opportunities, problems, challenges and issues associated with that realm.
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