Behavior and communication in organisations
Lecture 1
Errors are often confused with consequences. Error = bumping your head. Consequence = headache.
Also confused with violations = action that goes against a rule.
Difference between:
- Mistake/error = best intention, but it didn’t work out as you wanted.
- Violations = on purpose. Action that goes against a rule.
Error culture on everest
,Organization behavior focuses on people and their behavior within organizations. They focus on
human behavior at the individual the group level and the organizational level. Communication is the
key.
Organization behavior: a 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.
Organization: a consciously coordinated social unit, composed of two or more people, that functions
on a relatively continuous basis to achieve a common set goal or set of goals.
- Worker: (employee or ZZP’er)
- Manager: leader (formal and informal leaders)
- Organization
Managerial activities:
- Traditional: decision making, planning, controlling
- Communication: exchanging, processing info
- HR leadership: motivating, discipling, managing conflict, staffing, training
- Networking: socializing, politicking, interaction with outsiders
,The managers who move up most quickly in an organization do networking the most. The best
managers do communication the most.
Evidence based management: basing managerial decisions on the best available scientific evidence.
There is a lot of available science that can test which of the two ways is better. A movement that is
promoting to use all the available science in organizations.
The main focus of the field of organization behaviour is understanding and managing people at work
Lecture 2
Attitude and behaviour in organizations
Attitudes: judgement or evaluative statements about objects, people or events.
- Cognitive: the opinion or belief segment of an attitude
- Affective: the emotional or feeling of an attitude
- Behavioural: an intention to behave in a certain way toward someone or something
,Job attitudes:
- Organizational identification: the extent to which employees define themselves by the same
characteristics that define their organization
- Organizational commitment: the degree to which an employee identifies with a particular
organization and its goals and wishes to maintain membership of the organization
Affective commitment (desire): employee’s emotional attachment to, identification
with, and involvement in the organization.
o People feel that they want to be part of the organization
o This is the same as affective organizational identification
Normative commitment (obligation): reflects a feeling of obligation to continue
employment.
o People feel that they ought to be part of the organization
o Related to psychological contract
Continuance commitment (cost/benefits): awareness of the costs and benefits
associated with leaving the organization.
o People feel that they need to be part of the organization
o ‘’’for-lack-of-better’’ commitment
- Job satisfaction: a positive feeling about one’s job resulting from an evaluation of its
characteristics
Outcomes of job (dis)satisfaction:
Satisfaction:
- Job performance
- Customer satisfaction
- Life satisfaction
- Organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB)
Dissatisfaction:
- Exit-voice-loyalty-neglect framework:
Exit response: dissatisfaction expressed through behaviour directed towards leaving
the organization
Voice response: dissatisfaction expressed through active and constructive attempts
to improve conditions
Loyalty response: dissatisfaction expressed by passively waiting for conditions to
improve
Neglect response: dissatisfaction expressed through allowing conditions to worsen
- Counterproductive Work Behavior (CWB)
Extra-role behaviours in organizations
Extra-role behaviours in organizations: behaviours that are not part of the work-role or job
description but have important consequences for the functioning and performance of an
organization:
, - Organizational Citizenship Behaviour (OCB)
Positive behaviours
- Counterproductive Work Behaviour (CWB)
Negative behaviours
Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)
- Can be directed at other individuals (OCB-I): for example, helping colleagues who are behind
with their work because of illness
- Can be directed at the organization as a whole (OCB-O): for example, making suggestions
during meetings to improve processes in the organization
Counterproductive work behaviour (CWB)
- Can be directed at other individuals (CWB-I): for example, bullying or harassing colleagues.
Can also be online behaviour in the form of ‘’cyberincivility’’ or ‘’cyberostracism’’
- Can be directed at the organization as a whole (CWB-O): for example, calling in sick while not
being sick.
Can also be online behaviour: for example, using the internet for personal purposes
during worktime or ‘’cyberloafing’’
Consequences of commitment
- Turnover and withdrawal cognitions: negative relation with all forms of commitment
- Job performance: only a positive relation with affective commitment. Continuance
commitment can have negative effects
- Extra-role behaviours in organization: but only a relation with affective commitment
Organizational citizenship behaviour (+)
Counterproductive work behaviour (-)
The unique individual
Self-concept: the concept the individual has about themselves. Makes sure we recognise ourselves as
a distinct human being
Core self-evaluation: the concept the individual has about their capabilities, competences and worth
as a person. Perform better in organizations because:
- More ambitious goals
- More committed to their goals
- Persist longer in attempting to reach them
Self-esteem
Self-esteem: belief about one’s own self-worth based on an overall self-evaluation. Can also be
specific: social, performance, and appearance self-esteem.
How can you enhance your self-esteem?
, The social comparison theory:
- Downwards social-comparisons: favourable comparisons with others (thus with those you
regard as inferior (= minderwaardig)) can increase one’s self-esteem.
- Upwards social-comparisons: unfavourable comparisons with other (thus with those you
regards as better) pose a threat to one’s self-esteem.
So, make downwards social comparison when you want to feel better about yourself. But upwards
social comparisons can actually serve as motivation when it seems achievable.
Self-efficacy
Self-efficacy: a person’s belief about his chances of successfully accomplishing a specific task
Sources of self-efficacy beliefs
- Prior experience: feedback on task performance
- Behavioural models: observing others performing tasks, upward social comparisons of task
outcomes
- Persuasion from others: direct encouragements, self-fulfilling prophecies of others
(Pygmalion effect and golem effect)
- Assessment of emotional and physical state: depression and illness
