Organizational Structure &

Culture
Organizational Culture
Structure
& Climate z
z The formal system of task and reporting
relationships that controls, coordinates, and
Chapter 14: motivates employees to work together to achieve
organizational goals.
Modules 14.1 & 14.2
z Culture
z The informal set of values, norms, and beliefs that
control that way people and groups in an
organization interact with each other and with
people outside the organization.
• From George & Jones (2002)

Next week – Organizational Culture & Climate

last week of classes!
z Culture
z Tuesday: z Shared set of attitudes, beliefs, and values that
z Lecture on Stress & Workplace Health exist among individuals in a group, unit, team, or
z Plan to return Case Study 2 organization
z Influences workplace practices and norms for
z Thursday: appropriate behavior
z Exam 2 in class z Climate
z Study guide is posted online z Shared perception among employees regarding
z E-mail me any questions their work group, unit, team, or organization
z Influenced by how an organization treats its members

Culture of Psychology Dep’t? The big debate:

z Culture z Climate
z From our website: Shared values developed
z z Environmental
“The tendency to ask critical questions, to challenge across time characteristics
unquestioned assumptions, and, perhaps most z Less easily changed z More changeable
characteristically, to press for quantification and z Perceptions of underlying z Perceptions of
measurement is now, as always, the hallmark of the values observable practices
Minnesota psychologist.” z More dynamic z More static
z Created z Experienced
z Empiricism, empiricism, empiricism! z Sociology and z Psychology
anthropology

1
How do we differentiate? Culture helps us make sense of
(According to Landy…) organizational behavior
z Climate: z Schein (1996)
z Created at lower levels of the organization—the context in z A narrow description of behavior, divorced from the cultural
which action occurs context in which it occurs, is of limited value for
z Culture: understanding the organization.
z Created and communicated from higher levels in the
organization (e.g. senior execs)—the meaning intended z Pratt & Rafaeli (1997)
by and inferred from the actions
z Examined the types of clothes worn by members of a
hospital staff to understand how the hospital views itself
z Found: manner of dress among staff was symbolic of their
sense of organizational identity

Communicating Culture Quotation 1

z Through Socialization & Tradition z Head nurse of a rehab unit:
z “Patients who wear pajamas and see hospital
garb around them think of themselves as sick. If
z Formally communicated they and their caretakers wear street clothes,
z Leaders, symbols, vision, ideals, norms for behavior, patients will think of themselves as moving out of
memos, dress code, rewards.
the sick role and into rehabilitation. They will be
ready for life outside the hospital. This is the
z Informally communicated rehab philosophy, and this is what makes this unit
z Stories, rumors, customs, rituals, jokes, role models, unique.”
peers, office layout.

3 stages of socialization Quotation 2

z Nurse on the evening shift of the same unit:
z “We are medical and health professionals. We do
professional work. We take care of sick patients,
we deal with their bodily fluids and get their slime
all over us. So we should all look like medical
professionals; we should be dressed in scrubs.”

(Pratt & Rafaeli, 1997, p. 862)

2
To yourself…
z Think about either your current job or one
that you held previously.
z How would you describe the organizational
culture?
z What types of values, beliefs, and traditions
were there?
z What type of climate existed?
In small groups…
z Compare the culture of your job to that of
another student.
z How do the organizations differ in terms of:
z Leadership facilitation and support.
z Work group cooperation, friendliness, warmth.
z Role stress and lack of harmony.
z Job challenge and autonomy.
Culture Strength
z Strong Cultures
z Organizations have a cohesive set of values and
norms that bind individuals together and foster
commitment from employees to achieve
organizational goals.
z Examples: Dell Computer, Microsoft, GAP
z Weak Cultures
z Organizational members do not agree on shared
values and beliefs
z Measuring culture strength
Person-Organization Fit
z The fit between an individual and the
organization depends on many factors:
z KSAOs required by the job
z Rewards desired by the individual and rewards
offered by the organization
z Stress level on the job
z Opportunities for social interaction
z “Fit” is judged by the individual and the
organization – 2 way process
Higgins & Judge (2004)
z Study of applicant influence tactics and
recruiter perceptions of fit
z Influence tactics examined:
z Ingratiation
z Self-promotion
z Asked whether these tactics would affect
perceived fit and recruiter hiring
recommendations
Attraction-selection-attrition
(ASA)
z Schneider (1987)
z ASA cycle
z People with similar personalities are drawn to
(attraction)
z Certain organizations and hired into these
organizations (selection)
z And people who don’t fit into the pattern of shared
values eventually leave the org (attrition)
Process occurs over time, not immediately
z Schneider et al (1998)
3
Importance of Culture
z Organizational culture is the context within
which many of the other OB processes take
place
z It becomes especially important during
organizational restructuring or mergers
z There is a general belief that culture is very
difficult to change.
z In a recent survey of 500 corporations, 70% stated
that they did not have the knowledge to address
issues of corporate culture.

Evaluations—they are VERY

helpful!
z Respond to questions 1-4 about both Hannah and I
as co-instructors.
z Additional questions (exceptional = 7; satisfactory = 4;
very poor = 1)
6. Degree to which our teaching, activities, and guidance, etc.,
contributed the amount you learned.
7. Degree to which the instructors conveyed the topic content in
a way you could understand.
8. Degree to which the workload was appropriate.
9. Degree to which the curriculum was balanced.
10. Emily’s overall job performance as an instructor.
11. Hannah’s overall job performance as an instructor.