Ravi Gurung

National Institute of Business Management

Chennai - 020

FIRST SEMESTER EMBA/ MBA

Subject : Organizational Behaviour

Attend any 4 questions. Each question carries 25 marks

(Each answer should be of minimum 2 pages / of 300 words)

1. Describe Interpersonal roles.

2. Explain the major personality attributes Influencing Organizational Behaviour.

3. What is matching personalities and jobs? Discuss.

4.How do we learn? Three theories have been offered to explain the process by which we
acquire patterns of behavior. Explain each theory.

5. Explain the link between perception and individual decision-making.

6.Describe Hierarchy of Needs Theory

25 x 4=100 marks

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1. Describe Interpersonal roles.

Answer:

Interpersonal roles cover the relationships that a manager has to have with others.
The three roles within this category are figurehead, leader and liaison. Managers have
to act as figureheads because of their formal authority and symbolic position,
representing their organisations. As leader, managers have to bring together the needs
of an organisation and those of the individuals under their command. The third
interpersonal role, that of liaison, deals with the horizontal relationships which work-
activity studies have shown to be important for a manager. A manager has to maintain
a network of relationships outside the organisation.

Managers have to collect, disseminate and transmit information and have three
corresponding informational roles, namely monitor, disseminator and spokesperson.
A manager is an important figure in monitoring what goes on in the organisation,
receiving information about both internal and external events and transmitting it to
others. This process of transmission is the dissemination role, passing on information
of both a factual and value kind. A manager often has to give information concerning
the organisation to outsiders, taking on the role of spokesperson to both the general
public and those in positions of influence.

As with so many writers about management, Mintzberg regards the most crucial part
of managerial activity as that concerned with making decisions. The four roles that he
places in this category are based on different classes of decision, namely,
entrepreneurs, disturbance handler, resource allocator, and negotiator. As
entrepreneurs, managers make decisions about changing what is happening in an
organisation. They may have to both initiate change and take an active part in deciding
exactly what is to be done. In principle, they are acting voluntarily. This is very
different from their role as a disturbance handler, where managers have to make
decisions which arise from events beyond their control and unpredicted. The ability to
react to events as well as to plan activities is an important managerial skill in
Mintzberg's eyes.

The resource allocation role of a manager is central to much organisational analysis.

Clearly a manager has to make decisions about the allocation of money, people,
equipment, time and so on. Mintzberg points out that in doing so a manager is actually
scheduling time, programming work and authorising actions. The negotiation role is

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put in the decisional category by Mintzberg because it is 'resource trading in real time'.
A manager has to negotiate with others and in the process be able to make decisions
about the commitment of organisational resources.

For Mintzberg these ten roles provide a more adequate description of what managers
do than any of the various schools of management thought. In these roles it is
information that is crucial: the manager is determining the priority of information.
Through the interpersonal roles a manager acquires information, and through the
decisional roles it is put into use.

The scope for each manager to choose a different blend of roles means that
management is not reducible to a set of scientific statements and programmes.
Management is essentially an art and it is necessary for managers to try and learn
continuously about their own situations. Self-study is vital. At the moment there is no
solid basis for teaching a theory of managing. According to Mintzberg, "the
management school has been more effective at training technocrats to deal with
structured problems than managers to deal with unstructured ones."'

Mintzberg's roles were intended to provide a better description of management in

practice than the classical list of management functions. Rather than spending their
days planning and organising in an orderly fashion, many managers live hectic lives in
constantly changing contexts. Hence, they have to be adaptable and responsive, not
just pro-active and controlling.

Moreover, managers are not just involved in managing the internal resources of their
organisation, but also spend a great deal of time in maintaining contacts with other
people, both within and outside the organisation. This is partly because they need to be
aware of any changes in the environment which may affect their (part of the)
organisation, an activity known as 'boundary scanning'. Managers in business need to
be aware of what their competitors are doing, of trends in consumer demand, and of
changes in the economic environment. Managers in public sector organisations or
NGOs in rural development may need to monitor prices and activity in certain (local
or wider) markets, progress with a cropping season, political developments relevant to
their organisation, what other organisations are doing and so on.

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Mintzberg's analysis is also valuable in highlighting the importance of various forms

of information to an organisation. Information may be seen as a resource to be set
alongside personnel and capital.

However, what managers actually do is not necessarily what they want to be doing or
should be doing. Even if Mintzberg's respondents were all pursuing good management
practice, recognition of his ten roles does not invalidate the importance of planning,
organising, leading and controlling. Some of Mintzberg's roles express 'how' managers
inform their plans, lead and motivate their staff etc. Others (eg disturbance handler,
negotiator) could even be seen as skills that managers need to develop, so as not to get
sidetracked from the strategic priorities of their position and of their organisation.

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2. Explain the major personality attributes Influencing Organizational

Behaviour.
Answer:

The twelve major personality traits influencing organizational behaviour, i.e, (1)
Authoritarianism, (2) Bureaucratic Personality, (3) Machiavellianism, (4)
Introversion and Extroversion, (5) Problem Solving Style, (6) Achievement
Orientation, (7) Locus of Control, (8) Self Esteem, (9) Self Monitoring, (10) Risk
Taking, (11) Type A and Type B Personality, and (12) Myers-Briggs Type
Indicator (MBTI).

1. Authoritarianism:
Authoritarianism as a concept was developed by the psychologist Adorno during
World War II to measure susceptibility to autocratic, fascistic or antidemocratic
appeals. After that the concept was extended to the human personality.
According to Adorno, This concept refers to a belief that there should be status
and power differences among people in organisations. Authoritarians tend to
place high moral value on their beliefs and are strongly oriented towards
conformity of rules and regulations. They naturally prefer stable and structured
work environments which are governed by clean rules and procedures.

Further, they believe obedience and respect for authority and blind acceptance of
authority. These people are generally conservatives concerned with toughness
and power, are close minded and generally less educated. But because of their
belief in acceptance of authority they make good followers, work better under
directive supervision and are more productive within authoritarian
organisational structure.

2. Bureaucratic Personality:
The personality of a bureaucratic person is based upon respect for organisational
rules and regulations. He is different from an authoritarian person in respect that
his acceptance of authority is not total and blind. A person who is bureaucratic in
nature values subordination, conformity to rules, impersonal and formal
relationships. These people become better supervisors when the type of work is
routine, repetitive and proceduralised because these people are not innovative,

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they do not like taking risks and feel more at ease in following established
directions.

3. Machiavellianism:
This personality trait of Machiavellianism also known as Mach is named after
Niccolo Machiavelli, who wrote in the 16th century on how to gain and use
power.

The characteristics of high MACH employers are as follows:

(i) A Mach man is pragmatic, maintains emotional distance and believes that
ends can justify means.

(ii) A high Mach man manipulates more, wins more, are persuaded less and
persuade others more than the low machs.

(iii) High Mach people flourish when they interact face to face with others rather
than indirectly.

(iv) These people are successful when the situation has a minimum number of
rules and regulations.

(v) High Mach man has high self confidence and high self esteem. They are cool
and calculating and have no hesitation using others or taking advantage of others
in order to serve their own goals.

(vi) They are not easily swayed by a sense of friendship, trust or loyalty. They
are specially successful in exploiting structured situations and vulnerable
people.

We cannot conclude that whether high machs make good employees or not. The
answer will depend upon the type of the job and whether moral and ethical
values are considered in evaluating the performance of a person.

4. Introversion and Extroversion:

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These two terms are generally associated with the interpersonal behaviour of an
individual and his sociability. Extroverts are gregarious and sociable individuals
while introverts are shy, quiet and retiring. It has been observed that introverts
and extroverts people have different career orientations and require different
organisational environment to maximize performance. Extroverts are more
suitable for positions that require considerable interaction with others that is
why managerial positions are dominated by extroverts.

Thus, we can say that to be an extrovert is a managerial trait to be a successful

manager. On the other hand, introvert people are more inclined to excel at tastes
that require thought and analytical skill. An extreme introvert works best alone
in a quiet office without external interruption or influence.

5. Problem Solving Style:

Individuals have their own style of solving their problems and making their
decisions and this style of their affects their personality in certain ways. There
are four problem solving styles based upon Don Hellriegll, John W. Slocum and
Richard W. Woodman organisational behaviour.

These styles are:

(i) Sensation Feeling Style:
The people who have the sensation feeling style are dependable, friendly, social
and they approach facts with human concerns. These people are pragmatic,
methodical and like jobs which involve human contract and public relations.
Some suitable areas of jobs for these people are teaching, customer relations,
social workers and marketing.

(ii) Sensation Thinking Style:

People with sensation thinking style are practical, logical, decisive and sensitive
to details. These people prefer bureaucratic type organisations. They are not
highly suitable for jobs requiring interpersonal relations. But these people are

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more skilled in technical jobs e.g. production, accounting, engineering and

computers.

(iii) Intuition Feeling style:

The persons with intuition feeling style are enthusiastic, people oriented,
charismatic and helpful. The professions which are suited to this style are public
relations, advertising, politics and personnel.

(iv) Intuition Thinking Style:

These people are very creative, energetic, ingenious and like jobs which are
challenging in terms of design and analysis such as system design, law, research
and development, top management and so on.

6. Achievement Orientation:
Achievement orientation or a high need to achieve is a personality trait which
varies among different types of people and can be used to predict certain
behaviour. The people with very high achievement orientation strive to do things
in a better way. They want to feel that their success or failure is due to their own
actions. These people do not like to perform easy tasks where there is no
challenge or tasks with very high amount of risk as the failure rate is more.

These people like to do the acts with moderate difficulties, so that they can have
a sense of achievement also and on the other hand the failure rate is also not
very high. Or in other words, achievers will like to do the jobs where the
outcome is directly attributed to their efforts and chances of success are so-so.
The high achievers will do better in sports, management and sales where there is
moderate difficulty, rapid performance feedback and direct relationship between
effort and reward.

7. Locus of Control:
Locus of control refers to an individuals belief that events are either within
ones control (Internal Locus of Control) or are determined by forces beyond

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ones control. Some people believe that they are the masters of their own fate.
Other people see themselves as pawns of fate, believing that whatever happens
to them in their lives is due to their luck or fate. The first type is labeled as
internals and the latter has been called externals. A PERSONS PERCEPTION
OF THE SOURCE OF HIS OR HER FATE IS TERMED LOCUS OF
CONTROL.

A large amount of research has consistently shown the following characteristics

of the internals and externals.

Internal Locus of Control:

(i) A person with a strong internal locus of control has more control over his
own behavior. He believes that he controls events concerning his own life and
his internal traits determine what happens in a given situation. He believes that
he is the master of his own density.

(ii) These people are more active in seeking more information to make
decisions. They are better at retaining the information and are less satisfied with
the amount of information they possess.

(iii) Internals are more active socially.

(iv) Internals prefer skill achievement outcomes.

(v) Internals are more likely to use personally persuasive rewards and power
bases and less likely to use coercion.

(vi) These people are more independent and less susceptible to influence of
others.

(vii) The internals prefer participative management.

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(viii) Research has shown that internally oriented people hold jobs of higher
Status, advance more rapidly in their careers.

(ix) Internals take more responsibility for their health and have better health
habits. As a result their incidents of sickness and of absenteeism are lower.

External Locus of Control:

(i) People who rate high in externality are less satisfied with their jobs, have
higher absenteeism rates, are more alienated from the work setting and are less
involved on jobs than are internals. They generally prefer directive management.

(ii) Unlike the internals, these people prefer chance oriented awards.

(iii) A person with a strong external locus of control feels that outside forces
are affecting the events in his life and he is at the mercy of destiny, chance or
other people. He believes that everything will happen by the will of God and
nothing or nobody can stop it. External locus of control refer

(iv) Unlike, the internals, the externals are more interested in job security and
not in advancement of careers.

(v) Whereas the internals prefer intrinsic rewards e.g. feeling of and he is at the
mercy of achievement, externals are more interested in extrinsic awards, destiny,
chance or other people. From the above mentioned traits of internals and
controls it can be concluded that internals would be better on sophisticated tasks,
which include most managerial and professional jobs or any other jobs which
require complex information processing and learning. In addition, they are
suited to jobs requiring initiative and independence of action. As against this,
externals would do well on jobs that are well structured and routine and in
which success depends heavily on coupling with the directions given by others.

8. Self Esteem:

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Self Esteem refers to the feeling of like or dislike for oneself. Self Esteem is
the degree of respect a person has for himself. This trait varies from person to
person as people differ in the degree to which they like or dislike each other. The
research on self esteem offers some interesting insights into organisation
behaviour.

A few of the research findings about self esteem are:

(i) Self esteem is directly related to the expectations for success. High self
esteem people believe that they possess the ability they need to succeed at work.

(ii) Individuals with high self esteem will take more risks in job selection. They
are more likely to choose unconventional jobs than people with low self esteem.

(iii) People with low self esteem are more susceptible to external influence than
are those with high self esteems. Low esteems are dependent on the receipt of
positive evaluations from others. As a result they are more likely to seek
approval from others and more prone to conform to the beliefs and behaviours
of those they respect than are the high esteem.

(iv) In managerial positions, the low esteems tend to be concerned with pleasing
others and, therefore, less likely to take unpopular stands than are high esteems.

(v) High esteems are more satisfied with their job than the low esteems.

(vi) High self esteem people are very friendly, affectionate, find it easy to form
interpersonal attachments and find good in other people. Low self esteem people
are usually critical of others, are generally depressed and blame others for their
own failures.

(vii) High esteem people are high performers while low esteem people
contribute to poor performance which in turn reinforces low self esteem.

9. Self Monitoring:

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Self monitoring is a personality trait that measures an individuals ability to

adjust his or her behaviour to external situational factors. Self monitoring is a
personality trait which has recently received attention. The research on self
monitoring is in infancy, so predictions must be guarded.

However, prime evidence suggests the following points:

(i) As self monitoring refers to the individuals ability to adjust his or her
behaviour to external factors, individuals with high self monitoring can show
considerable adaptability in adjusting their behaviour to external, situational
factors.

(ii) High self monitors can behave differently in different situations. They are
capable of presenting striking contradictions between their public, personal and
private selves. Low self monitors cannot deviate their behaviour. They tend to
display their true dispositions and attitudes in every situation; hence, there is
high behavioural consistency between who they are and what they do.

(iii) The high self monitors tend to pay closer attention to the behaviour of
others and are more capable of conforming than are low self monitors.

(iv) We can also hypothesize that high self monitors will be more successful in
managerial positions where individuals are required to play multiple and even
contradictory roles. The high self monitor is capable of putting different faces
for different audiences.

10. Risk Taking:

The propensity of people to assume risks or avoid risks varies from person to
person depending upon the willingness of the people to take chances. This
human trait will affect the decision making capability of a manager. This
individual personality trait will determine how long will it take a person to take
a decision or how much information will be needed before he takes a decision.

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Some people are very conscious in nature, while the others are impulsive. An
impulsive person is a high risk taking manager; he will make rapid decisions and
use less information in making their choices than a very conscious and low risk
taking manager. But the research shows that the decision accuracy is generally
the same in both the groups.

Research has concluded that managers in organisations are risk aversive, but still
there are individual differences on this point. Some jobs specifically demand
high risk taking persons e.g. the job of a broker in a brokerage firm. Because in
this job for effective performance rapid decisions are required. On the other
hand, some jobs are such where risk taking may prove a major obstacle e.g. the
job of an accountant who performs auditing activities. This job should be filled
by, someone, with low risk taking trait.

11. Type A and Type B Personality:

People who are impatient, aggressive and highly competitive are termed as
Type A personality. But those who are easy going, laid back and non-
competitive are termed as Type B personality. Type A people tend to be very
productive as they work very hard. Their negative side is that they are very
impatient, good team players, more irritable and have poor judgment. Type B
people do better on complex tasks involving judgment and accuracy rather than
speed and hard work.

Despite Type As hard work, the Type B people are the ones who appear to
make it to the top. Great sales persons are usually Type As while senior
executives are generally Type Bs. The reason is that promotions in corporate
and professional organisations usually go to those who are wise rather than to
those who are merely hasty, to those who are tactful, rather than to those who
are hostile and to those who are creative rather than to those who are merely
agile in competitive stride.

12. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI):

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The personality theory proposed by Carl Jung identified the way people
preferred to perceive their environment. Almost Twenty years later, Briggs and
Myers developed the Myers Briggs type indicator (MBTI) a personality test
that measured each of the traits in Carl Jungs model. MBTI is in-fact, one of the
most widely used personality tests. It is used by many organisations to select
people for a particular position.

It measures how people focus their attention (extrovert or introvert), collect

information (sensing or intuition), process the same (thinking or feeling) and
finally direct themselves to the other world (judging or perceiving) MBTI then
combines the four classifications into 16 personality types.

The alphabet (E) denotes extrovert, (I) stands for introvert, (S) for sensing, (N)
for institution, (T) for thinking, (F) is feeling, (J) judging and (P) perceiving. For
example if we say marketing people tend to be ESTJ, this means that they are
extrovert, sensing, thinking and judging types. MBTI as a test of personality
type is so popular, that many organisations encourage their employees to reveal
their four letter type so that others in the organisation can better understand their
personality.

From the above mentioned personality traits, it becomes very clear that
understanding of personality is of immense help in the selection of right lands of
people for different jobs. Analysis of an individuals personality wills reveals his
strong and weak points. A person may be unfit for one job but may be fit for
another because job requirements may be different, Understanding the
personality will also help in designing the training programmes for the personnel
in the organisation.

Personality helps the managers in understanding why do workers behave as they

do and what incentive schemes are to be designed to motivate the workers.
Further, personality has a great influence on work performance, particularly, in a

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job with high human relations content, where most of the working day is spent
interacting with other people.

Personality is the major determinant of the person holding the key job. Each
mans personality reveals itself in the way he works with his superior, his
subordinates and other people. As a result, when one person on a job changes,
everyone has to adjust to a whole series of changes in the way the work is
accomplished. All this will affect the individual performance as well as the
organisational performance.

Probably the best statement on personality was made many years ago by
Kluckhohn and Murray who said that to some extent, a persons personality is
like all other people, like some other peoples and like no other peoples.

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3. What is matching personalities and jobs? Discuss.

Answer:
Throughout any organization, different roles require different skill sets and
aptitudes, which are tied to personality. Not every temperament can be a
motivating leader, an engaging front-line customer contact or a micromanaging
organizational specialist. Even an entry-level position suitable for minimal skills
is better filled by a compatible personality such as one tolerant of repetition and
mundane occupation. Organizations are recognizing more and more the
importance of personality when looking for candidates to fill job openings.
Personality Testing
Personality testing is more widely used in business than ever. As of the year
2009, the $500-million industry of assessing an individual's disposition has been
growing by 10 percent each year. With over 2,500 personality questionnaires to
choose from, employers have ample tools at their disposal to assess the
compatibility of a candidate's personality with a particular job. Testing is done to
give employers a defense against legal dispute over the allocation of a position;
companies using formalized testing have a quantifiable measurement to justify
hiring decisions that carries more legal weight than the intangible preference of
a hiring manager.
Personality Types
There are four basic personality types. Combinations and subtypes exist as well,
but generally most people fit primarily in one of the four main categories.
Action-oriented, objective-focused types get to the point. They sometimes
appear cold as they justify their methods with their results, but are usually
successful. Social personalities are dynamic and friendly, with strengths in
motivation and communication rather than actual task completion. Supportive
types shy away from conflict and decision making, but adapt to change well and
are dependable. Detail-oriented analytical personalities love facts, excel at
perception and processing information, but can be critical and pessimistic. Each
basic personality type has strengths and weaknesses. Keeping personality in
mind when assigning a staffer to a certain role allows strengths to shine while
making weaknesses less relevant and impacting.
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is also important in the workplace, and can affect the
manifestation of an individual's personality. While personality is an inborn
behavior inclination possessed by an individual, emotional intelligence is a skill
used by that individual to recognize self behaviors and manage them
appropriately according to each situation. For example, a socially-oriented
personality with good emotional intelligence will recognize when to step back

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from motivational behavior to allow for productive work-flow and task

completion, rather than being overly communicative and disruptive.
Successful Staffing
When building your team or filling a vacancy within your organization, paying
attention to personality traits that will shine in job roles is not only prudent; it is
as important as considering training and previously acquired skill sets.
Information and skills can be learned, whereas personality is ingrained and
harder to change. Matching the right personality, along with the right skills, to
each job improves your chance of success.
Matching Personalities and Jobs

In the previous discussion of personality attributes, our conclusions were

often qualities to recognize that the requirements of the job moderated the
relationship between possession of the personality characteristic and job
performance. This concern with matching the job requirements with personality
characteristics has recently received increased attention. It is best articulated in
John Hollands personality job fit theory. The theory is based on the notion of fit
between a persons personality characteristics and his or her occupational
environment. Holland presents six personality types and proposes that
satisfaction and the propensity to leave a job depend on the degree to which
individuals successfully match their personalities to a congruent occupational
environment.
Each one of the six personality tips has a congruent occupational
environment. Table 5 describes the six types and their personality
characteristics, and gives examples of congruent occupations.

Holland has developed a Vocational Preference Inventory questionnaire

that contains 1760 occupational titles. Respondents indicate which of these
occupations they like or dislike, and these answers are used to form personality
profiles.

The theory argues that satisfaction is highest and turnover lowest where
personality and occupation are in agreement. Social individuals should be in
social jobs, conventional people in conventional jobs, and so forth. A realistic
person in a realistic job is in a more congruent situation than is a realistic person
in an investigative job. A realistic person in a social job is in the most congruent

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situation possible. The key points of this model are that (1) there do appear to be
intrinsic differences in personality among individuals, (2) there are different
types of jobs, and (3) people in job environments congruent with their
personality types should be more satisfied and less likely to voluntarily resign
than should, people in congruent jobs.
TABLE 5 Hollands Typology of Personality and Congruent Occupations

Type Personality Characteristics Congruent Occupations

Realistic: Prefers physical
activities that requires skill,
strength, and coordination
Investigative: Prefers activities
that involve thinking,
organizing, and understanding
Social: Prefers activities that
Involve helping and
developing others
Conventional: Prefers rule-regula-
ted, orderly, and unambiguous
activities
Enterprising: Prefers verbal
activities where there are
opportunities to influence
others and attain power
Artistic: Prefers ambiguous
and unsystematic activities
that allow creative expression
Shy, genuine, persistent,
stable, conforming,
practical
Analytical, original, curious,
independent
Sociable, friendly, cooperative,
understanding
Conforming, efficient, practical,
unimaginative, inflexible
Self confident, ambitious,
energetic, domineering
Imaginative, disorderly, idealistic, Painter, musician, writer,
emotional, impractical
Mechanic, drill press operator,
assembly line worker, farmer
Biologist, economist,
mathematician, news reporter
Social worker, teacher,
counselor, clinical psychologist
Accountant, corporate manager,
bank teller, file clerk
Lawyer, real estate agent,
public relations specialist,
small business manager
interior decorator

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4. How do we learn? Three theories have been offered to explain the process by
which we acquire patterns of behavior. Explain each theory.
Answer:
What is learning? A psychological definition is considerably broader
than the laypersons view that its what we did when we went to school. In
actuality, each of us is continuously going to school. Learning occurs all of the
time. A generally accepted definition of learning is, therefore, any relatively
permanent change in behavior that occurs as a result of experience. Ironically,
we can say that changes in behavior indicates that learning has taken place and
that learning is a change in behavior.

Obviously, the foregoing definition suggests that we shall never see

someone learning. We can see changes taking place, but not the learning itself.
The concept is theoretical and, hence, not directly observable:

You have seen people in the process of learning, you have seen people
who behave in a particular way as a result of learning and some of you have
learned at some time in your life. In other words, we infer that learning has
taken place if an individual behaves, reacts, responds as a result of experience in
a manner different from the way he formerly behaved.

Our definition has several components that deserve clarification. First,

learning involves change. This may be good or bad from an organizational point
of view. Secondly people can learn unfavorable behaviors as well as favorable
behaviors. The change must be relatively permanent. Temporary changes may
be only reflexive and fail to represent any learning. Third, our definition is
concerned with behavior. Learning takes place where there is a change in
actions. A change in an individuals thought processes or attitudes if
accompanied by no charge in behavior, would not be learning. Some form of
experience is necessary for learning. This may be acquired directly through
observation or practice. Or it may result from an indirect experience, such as
that acquired through reading.

Theories of Learning
 How do we learn? Three theories have been offered to explain the
process by which we acquire patterns of behavior. These are classical
conditioning and social learning.

Classical Conditioning:

Classical conditioning grew out of experiments to teach dogs to salivate

in response to the ringing of a bell, conducted at the turn of the century by a
Russian psychologist, Ivan Pavlov.

A simple surgical procedure allowed Pavlov to measure accurately the

amount of saliva secreted by a dog. When Pavlov presented the dog with a piece
of meat, the dog exhibited a noticeable increase in salivation. The Pavlov
proceeded to link the meat and the ringing of bell to salivate as soon as the bell
rang. After a while the dog would salivate merely at the sound of the bell, even
if no food was offered. In effect, the dog had learned to respond- that is, to
salivate- to the bell. Lets review this experiment to introduce the key concepts
in classical conditioning.

The meat was an unconditioned stimulus; it invariably caused the dog to

react in a specific way. The reaction that took place whenever the unconditioned
stimulus occurred was called the unconditioned response (or the noticeable
increase in salivation, in this case). The bell was an artificial stimulus, or what
we call the conditioned stimulus. While it was originally neutral, after the bell
was paired with the meat (an unconditioned stimulus), it eventually produced a
response. This describes the behavior of the dog salivating in reaction to the bell
alone.

Using these concepts, we can summarize classical conditioning.

Essentially, learning a conditioned response involves building up an association
between a conditioned stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus. Using the paired
stimuli, one compelling and the other one neutral, the neutral one becomes a
conditioned stimulus and hence, takes on the properties of the unconditioned
stimulus.

Classical conditioning can be used to explain why Deepavali often bring

back pleasant memories of childhood- the sweets being associated with the
festive Deepavali spirit and initiating fond memories and feelings of euphoria.
In an organizational setting, we can also see classical conditioning operating.
For example, at one manufacturing plant, every time the top executives from the
head office were scheduled to make a visit, the plant management would clean
up the administrative offices and wash the windows. This went on for years.
Eventually, employees would turn on their best behavior and look prim and
proper whenever the windows were cleaned even in those occasional instances
when the cleaning was not paired with the visit from the top brass. People had
learned to associate the cleaning of the windows with the visit from the head
office.

Operant Conditioning:

Operant conditioning argues that behavior is a function of its

consequences. People learn to behave to get something they want or avoid
something they dont want. Operant behavior means voluntary or learned
behavior in contrast to reflexive or unlearned behavior. The tendency to repeat
such behavior is influenced by the reinforcement or lack of reinforcement
brought about by the consequences of the behavior. Reinforcement, therefore,
strengthens a behavior and increases the likelihood that it will be repeated.

What Pavlov did for classical conditioning, the late Harvard psychologist
B.F.Skinner did for operant conditioning. Building on earlier work in the field,
Skinners research extensively expanded our knowledge of operant
conditioning. Even his staunchest critics, who represent a sizable group, admit
that his operant concepts work.

Behavior is assumed to be determined from without- that is, learned-

rather than from within-reflexive or unlearned. Skinner argued that by creating
pleasing consequences to follow specific forms of behavior, the frequency of
that behavior will increase. People will most likely engage in desired behaviors
if they are positively reinforced for doing so. Rewards, for example, are most
effective if they immediately follow the desired response. Additionally, behavior
that is not rewarded, or is punished, is less likely to be repeated.
 You see illustrations of operant conditioning everywhere. For example
any situation in which it is either explicitly stated or implicitly suggested that
reinforcements are contingent on some action on your part involves the use of
operant learning. Your instructor says that if you want a high grade in the course
you must supply correct answers on the test. A commissioned salesperson
wanting to earn a sizable income finds that this is contingent on generating high
sales in her territory. Of course, the linkage can also work to teach the individual
to engage in behaviors that work against the best interests of the organization.
Assume your boss tells you that if you will work overtime during the next three-
week busy season, you will be compensated for it at the next performance
appraisal. However, when performance appraisal time comes, you find that you
are given no positive reinforcement for your overtime work. The next time your
boss asks you to work overtime, what will you do? You will probably decline!
Your behavior can be explained by operant conditioning: If a behavior fails to be
positively reinforced, the probability that the behavior will be repeated declines.

Social Learning :

Individuals can also learn by observing what happens to other people

and just by being told about something, as well as by direct experiences. So, for
example, much of what we have learned come from watching models-parents,
teachers, peers, motion picture and television performers, bosses, and so forth.
This view that we can learn through both observation and direct experience has
been called social-learning theory.
While social-learning theory is an extension of operant conditioning that
is, it assumes that behavior is a function of consequences it also acknowledges
the existence of observational learning and the importance of perception in
learning.

The influence of models is central to the social-learning viewpoint. Four

processes have been found to determine the influence that a model will have on
an individual.

1. Attentional processes. People only learn from a model when they

recognize and pay attention to its critical features. We tend to be most influenced
by models that are attractive, repeatedly available, important to us, or similar to
us in our estimation.
2. Retention processes. A models influence will depend on how well the
individual remembers the models action after the model is no longer readily
available.
3. Motor reproduction processes. After a person has seen a new behavior by
observing the model, the watching must be converted to doing. This process
then demonstrates that the individuals can perform the modeled activities.
4. Reinforcement processes. Individuals will be motivated to exhibit the
modeled behavior if positive incentives or rewards are provided. Behavior that
are reinforcement will be given more attention, learned better, and performed
more often.

Shaping: A Managerial Tool

Because learning takes place on the job as well as prior to it, managers
will be concerned with how they can teach employees to behave in ways that
most benefit the organization. When we attempt to mould individuals by guiding
their learning in graduated steps, we are shaping behavior.

Consider the situation in which an employees behavior is significantly

different from that sought by management. If management only reinforced the
individual when he or she showed desirable responses, there might be very little
reinforcement taking place. In such a case, shaping offers a logical approach
toward achieving the desired behavior.

We shape behavior by systematically reinforcing each successive step

that moves the, individual closer to the desired response. If an employee who
has chronically been half-four late for work comes in only twenty minutes late,
we can reinforce this improvement. Reinforcement would increase as responses
more closely approximate the desired behavior.

Methods of Shaping Behavior:

There are four ways in which to shape behavior: through positive

reinforcement, negative reinforcement, punishment, and extinction.
 When a response is followed with something pleasant, it is called
positive reinforcement. This would describe, for instance, the boss who praises
an employee for a job well done. When a
response is followed by the termination or withdrawal of something unpleasant,
it is called negative reinforcement. If your college instructor asks a question and
you dont know the answer, looking through your lecture notes is likely to
preclude your being called on. This is a negative reinforcement because you
have learned that looking busily through your notes prevents the instructor from
calling on you. Punishment is causing an unpleasant condition in an attempt to
eliminate an undesirable behavior. Giving an employee a two-day suspension
from work without pay for showing up drunk in an example of punishment.
Eliminating any reinforcement that is maintaining a behavior is called
extinction. When the behavior is not reinforced, it tends to gradually be
extinguished. College instructors who wish to discourage students from asking
questions in class can eliminate this behavior in their students by ignoring those
who raise their hands to ask questions. Hand-raising will become extinct when it
is invariably met with an absence of reinforcement.

Both positive and negative reinforcement result in learning. They

strengthen a response and increase the probability of repetition. In the preceding
illustrations, praise strengthens and increases the behavior of doing a good job
because praise is desired. The behavior of looking busy is similarly
strengthened and increased by its terminating the undesirable consequences of
being called on by the teacher. Both punishment and extinction, however,
weaken behavior and tend to decrease its subsequent frequency.

Reinforcement, whether it is positive or negative, has an impressive

record as a shaping tool. Our interest, therefore, is in reinforcement rather than
in punishment or extinction. A review of research findings on the impact of
reinforcement upon behavior in organizations concluded that

1. Some type of reinforcement is necessary to produce a change in behavior.

2. Some types of rewards are more effective for use in organizations than
others.
3. The speed with which learning takes place and the permanence of its
effects will be determined by the timing of reinforcement.
Point 3 is extremely important and deserves considerable elaboration.
5. Explain the link between perception and individual decision-making.
Answer:
Individuals in organizations make decisions. That is, they make choices
from among two or more alternatives. Top managers, for instance, determine
their organizations goals, what products or services to offer, how best to
organize corporate headquarters, or where to locate a new manufacturing plant.
Middle and lower level managers determine production schedules, select new
employees, and decide how pay rises are to be allocated. Of course, making
decisions is not the sole province of managers. Non-managerial employees also
make decisions that affect their jobs and the organizations they work for. The
more obvious of these decisions might include whether to come to work or not
on any given day, how much effort to put forward once at work, and whether to
comply with a request made by the boss. Individual decision making, therefore,
is an important part of organizational behavior. But how individuals in
organizations make decisions, and the quality of their final choices, are largely
influenced by their perceptions.

Decision making occurs as a reaction to a problem. There is a

discrepancy between some current state of affairs and some desired state
requiring consideration of alternative courses of action. So if your car breaks
down and you rely on it to get to school, you have a problem that requires a
decision on your part. Unfortunately, most problems dont come neatly
packaged with a label problem clearly displayed on them. One persons
problem is another persons satisfactory state of affair. One manager may view
her divisions two percent decline in quarterly sales to be a serious problem
requiring immediate action on her part. In contrast, her counterpart in another
division of the same company, who also had a two percent sales decrease, many
consider that quite satisfactory. So the awareness that a problem exists and that a
decision needs to be made is a perceptual issue.
Moreover, every decision requires interpretation and evaluation of information.
Data is typically received from multiple sources and it needs to be screened,
processed and interpreted. What data, for instance, is relevant to the decision
and what isnt? The perceptions of the decision maker will answer this
question. Alternatives will be developed and the strengths and weaknesses of
each will need to be evaluated. Again, because alternatives dont come with
red flags identifying themselves as such or with their strengths and
weaknesses clearly marked, the individual decision makers perceptual process
will have a large bearing on the final outcome
 6. Describe Hierarchy of Needs Theory
Answer:

Its probably safe to say that the most well-known theory of motivation
is Abraham Maslows hierarchy of needs. He hypothesized that within every
human being there exists a hierarchy of five needs. These needs are:

1. Physiological: Includes hunger, thirst, shelter, sex, and other bodily needs
2. Safety: Includes security and protection from physical and emotional
harm
3. Social: Includes affection, belongingness, acceptance, and friendship
4. Self-esteem: Includes internal esteem factors such as self-respect,
autonomy, and achievement; and external esteem factors such as status,
recognition, and attention
5. Self-actualization: The drive to become what one is capable of becoming;
includes growth, achieving ones potential, and self-fulfillment
 As each of these needs becomes substantially satisfied, the next need
becomes dominant.
The individual moves up the steps of the hierarchy. From the standpoint of
motivation, the theory would say that although no need is ever fully gratified, a
substantially satisfied need no longer motivates. So if you want to motivate
someone, according to Maslow, you need to understand what level of the
hierarchy that person is currently on and focus on satisfying those needs at or
above that level.
Maslow separated the five needs into higher and lower orders.
Physiological and safety needs were described as lower-order and social,
esteem, and self-actualization as higher-order needs. The differentiation between
the two orders was made on the premise that higher-order needs are satisfied
internally (within the person), whereas lower-order needs are predominantly
satisfied externally (by such things as money, wages, union contracts, and
tenure). In fact, the natural conclusion to be drawn from Maslows classification
is that in times of economic plenty, almost all permanently employed workers
have their lower-order needs substantially met.

Maslows need theory has received wide recognition, particularly among

practicing managers. This can be attributed to the theorys intuitive logic and
ease of understanding. Unfortunately, however, research does not generally
validate the theory. Maslow provided no empirical substantiation, and several
studies that sought to validate the theory found no support for it.

Old theories, especially ones that are intuitively logical, apparently die-
hard. One researcher reviewed the evidence and concluded that although of great
societal popularity, need hierarchy as a theory continues to receive little
empirical support. Further, the researcher stated that the available research
should certainly generate a reluctance to accept unconditionally the implication
of Maslows hierarchy. Another review came to the same conclusion. Little
support was found for the prediction that need structures are organized along the
dimensions proposed by Maslow, that unsatisfied needs motivate, or that a
satisfied need activates motivation to a new need level.
Theory X and Theory Y

Douglas McGregor proposed two distinct views of human beings; one

basically negative, labeled Theory X, and the other basically positive, labeled
Theory Y. after viewing the way in which managers dealt with employees,
McGregor concluded that a managers view of the nature of human beings is
based on a certain grouping of assumptions and that he or she tends to mold his
or her behavior toward subordinates according to these assumptions.

Under Theory X, the four assumptions held by managers are;

1. Employees inherently dislike work and, whenever possible, will attempt

to avoid it.
2. Since employees dislike work, they must be coerced, controlled, or
threatened with punishment to achieve goals.
3. Employees will avoid responsibilities and seek formal direction whenever
possible.
4. Most workers place security above all other factors associated with work
and will display little ambition.
 In contrast to these negative views about the nature of human beings,
McGregor listed the
four positive assumptions that he called Theory Y.

1. Employees can view work as being as natural as rest or play.

2. People will exercise self-direction and self-control if they are committed to
the objectives.
3. The average person can learn to accept, even seek, responsibility.
4. The ability to make innovative decisions is widely dispersed throughout the
population and is not necessarily the sole province of those in management
positions

What are the motivational implications if you accept McGregors

analysis? The answer is best expressed in the framework presented by Maslow.
Theory X assumes that lower-order needs dominate individuals. Theory Y
assumes that higher-order needs dominate individuals. McGregor himself held to
the belief that Theory Y assumptions were more valid than Theory X. Therefore,
he proposed such ideas as participation in decision making, responsible and
challenging jobs, and good group relations as approaches that would maximize an
employees job motivation.

Unfortunately, there is no evidence to conform that either set of

assumptions is valid or that accepting Theory Y assumptions and altering ones
actions accordingly will lead to more motivated workers. Either Theory X or
Theory Y assumptions may be appropriate in a particular situation.