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ORGANISATIONAL
BEHAVIOUR
MGT 1201
Centre for Professional Development and Lifelong Learning UNIVERSITY OF MAURITIUS
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ORGANISATIONAL
BEHAVIOUR
MGT 1201
SUPPORT MATERIALS
Centre for Professional Development and Lifelong Learning
UNIVERSITY OF MAURITIUS
iii
CONTRIBUTORS Organisational Behaviour - MGT 1201 was prepared for the Centre for Professional
Development & Lifelong Learning, University of Mauritius. The Pro-Vice Chancellor -Teaching
& Learning - acknowledges the contribution of the following course authors:
Assoc. Prof. M Boolaky - Faculty of Law and Management Assoc. Prof. D. Gokhool The course authors are also grateful for the suggestions of Ms M. Gungaphul from the Faculty of Law and Management 2001-2008
All rights reserved. No part of the work may be reproduced in any form, without the written permission from the University of Mauritius, Réduit, Mauritius.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
About the Course
Unit 1 Organisational Behaviour: An Introduction
Unit 2 The Individuals in Organisation: Personality, Perception and Decision
Making
Unit 3 The Individuals in Organisation: Values, Attitudes and Job Satisfaction
Unit 4 Learning and Learning Organisations
Unit 5 Motivation
Unit 6 Work Groups and Work Teams
Unit 7 Leadership
Unit 8 Conflict in Organisations
Unit 9 Communication
Unit 10 Organisational Behaviour and Organisational Context
References
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ABOUT THE COURSE
ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR MGT 1201 The aims of this module are to help you: ♦ analyse, understand and explain the behaviour and interactions of individuals as well as
groups within organisational settings.
♦ understand the nature of organisations, their structure, their functioning and their outputs; ♦ acquire analytical tools to explain, to predict and to influence organisational behaviour in
order to improve organisational effectiveness. LEARNING OBJECTIVES FOR THE COURSE By the end of the course, you will be able to do the following: Unit 1 State the importance of organisational behaviour.
Unit 2 Predict individuals’ behaviour in organisation from a knowledge of
personality, perception and decision making.
Unit 3 Predict individuals’ behaviour in organisation from a knowledge of values, attitudes and job satisfaction.
Unit 4 Describe how individuals and organisations learn.
Unit 5 Compare and contrast the different theories of motivation.
Unit 6 Relate the importance of work groups and work teams in organisations.
Unit 7 Compare and contrast the different theories of leadership.
Unit 8 Assess the importance of conflict in organisations.
Unit 9 Describe the process of communication in organisations.
Unit 10 Relate organisational context and behaviour.
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HOW TO PROCEED
COURSE MATERIALS
This document can be used as support materials. However, you are strongly encouraged to do
some research work to further deepen your understanding of Organisational Behaviour concepts.
Reading of additional materials will also help you answer the unit activities, prepare the
assignments and provide revision materials for the class test and examination.
Here is a list of Essential Reference Materials:-
1. Luthans F., (1999), Organisational Behaviour, Irwin McGraw Hill, International Edition,
Singapore.
2. Mullins L., (1999), Management and Organisational Behaviour, Pitman Publishing.
3. Robbins S. P., (1999), Organisational Behaviour: Concepts, Controversies and
Applications, Prentice Hall of India.
4. Robbins S. P., Bergman R., Stagg I., (1997) Management, Prentice Hall, Sydney.
5. Stoner J. A. F., Freeman, R.E, (1995), Management, Prentice Hall, Inc.
HOW DO I USE THE SUPPORT MATERIALS?
Take a few minutes now to glance through the entire document to get an idea of its structure.
Notice that the format of the different units is fairly consistent. For example, each unit begins
with an OVERVIEW, and LEARNING OBJECTIVES sections.
The OVERVIEW provides a brief introduction to the unit and provides perquisite skills and
knowledge you will have to possess to proceed successfully with the unit.
You should then read the LEARNING OBJECTIVES. These objectives identify the knowledge
and skills you will have acquired once you have successfully completed the study of a particular
unit. They also show the steps that will eventually lead to the successful completion of the
course. The learning objectives also provide a useful guide for review.
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WHERE DO I BEGIN?
You should begin by taking a look at the TABLE OF CONTENTS. The table provides you
with a framework for the entire course and outlines the organisation and structure of the material
you will be covering. The Suggested Course Map indicates how you should allocate your
workload and what you should be working on in each week to be ready for the respective
tutorial. You should stick to the Course Schedule to ensure that you are working at a steady
space and that your workload does not pile up.
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SUGGESTED COURSE MAP Week
Unit Topic
Assignment
1
1 Organisational Behaviour: An Introduction
2 2 The Individuals in Organisation: Personality, Perception and Decision Making
3
3 The Individuals in Organisation: Values, Attitudes and Job Satisfaction
4 4 Learning and Learning Organisations
5 Revision and Consolidation 6 5 Motivation Submission of
Assignment I 7
CLASS TEST* 8 6 Work Groups and Work Teams
9 7 Leadership
10 8 Conflict in Organisations 11 Revision and Consolidation 12 Submission of
Assignment II 13 9 Communication
14 10 Organisational Behaviour and Organisational Context
15 Wrap up session * Week/Date for classtest to be confirmed during the semester.
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SUGGESTED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA → COURSE GRADING SCHEME:
Continuous Assessment: 30 marks (15 for Class Test and 15 for Assignment) Examinations: 70 marks
→ CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT:
Class Test – Scheduled in Week 7 → FINAL EXAMINATIONS:
Scheduled and administered by the Registrar’s Office
A two-hour paper at the end of the Semester.
STUDY TIPS 1. Organise your time. It is best to complete each assigned reading in one sitting. The
logical progression of thought in a chapter/unit can be lost if it is interrupted. 2. Be an active reader. Use question marks to flag difficult or confusing passages. Put
exclamation marks beside passages you find particularly important. Write short comments in the margins as you go. For example, if you disagree with an author’s argument or if you think of examples which counter the position presented, note your opinions in the margin.
If you prefer to leave your book pages unmarked, you can make your notations on “post-
it-notes”. 3. Read critically. You must evaluate, as well as appreciate and understand, what you read.
Ask questions. Is the author’s argument logical? Are there alternatives to the author’s explanations or to the conclusions drawn? Does the information fit with your experience?
4. Take notes. If you make notes on an article or chapter right after finishing it, you reap a
number of benefits. First, note-taking allows you an immediate review of what you have just read. (You will find that this review helps you recall information). Second, it gives you an opportunity to reassess your flagged or margin comments. Finally, it gives you a second shot at deciphering any confusing passages.
5. Review your scribbling! Whether or not you make separate notes on your readings,
review your flags, underlining and marginalia. Study closely those passages you considered significant or difficult.
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6. Write down your ideas in a course journal. As you progress through the course, the new information you absorb will stimulate new thoughts, questions, ideas, and insights. These may not be directly related to the subject matter, but may be of great interest to you. Use these ideas to focus your personal involvement in this and other courses.
7. Your ability to explain the subject matter to others is a good test of your true
comprehension of the material. Try explaining the material you are learning to others, classmates or friends, without resorting to jargon. Even if some of them are not directly involved with the techniques discussed in this course, many of the concepts may be of interest to them.
8. Activities found in units will not be marked. We strongly recommend that you do not
skip any of them. They will help you prepare for the graded assignments.
Now, it’s time to get to work. Good luck and enjoy the course!
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UNIT 1 ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR: AN INTRODUCTION
Unit Structure
1.0 Overview
1.1 Learning Objectives
1.2 Organisations and Organisational Behaviour
1.3 Definitions of Organisational Behaviour
1.4 Origins and Developments of OB
1.5 Frameworks for the Study of OB
1.6 One Best Model? The Contingency Approach
1.7 Importance of OB to Managers
1.8 The Work of the Manager: An OB Perspective
1.8.1 Management: An Introduction
1.8.2 Management and Managers
1.8.3 What Do Managers Do?
1.8.4 The Essential Nature of Managerial Work
1.8.5 Managerial Roles and Skills
1.9 Key Concepts
1.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit introduces and explores the nature and scope of Organisational Behaviour (OB) and
the various frameworks for its study. It also explains how knowledge of OB can help managers
to improve their effectiveness.
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1.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1 Define OB.
2 Discuss the origins and development of OB.
3 Identify the analytical levels for the study of OB.
4 Compare and contrast the various frameworks for the study of OB.
5 Explain the need for a contingency approach in the study of OB.
6 Explain the meaning and importance of management.
7 State who managers are and explain what they do.
8 Discuss the essential nature of managerial work and the importance for managers'
awareness of human nature.
Warm-Up Activity
(i) List the different kinds of employee behaviours that one can come across in work
organisations.
(ii) Classify these behaviours into two categories: those that an organisation should support
and those that it should not. Explain briefly your answer.
1.2 ORGANISATIONS AND ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR
Organisations are social units, made up of two or more people who come together to pursue
some common goals. They involve the co-ordination of human efforts to transform resources
into outputs. Organisations have existed since the earliest days of human civilisation. In our
modern world, they have become indispensable to human life because it would be difficult to
imagine our existence without organisations. From birth to death, and even before birth and after
death, we remain connected with all kinds of organisations.
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Activity 1
(i) Why would it be difficult to imagine a world without organisations? Give a few reasons.
(ii) Do organisations constitute a constraint to one's freedom? Discuss
Organisations represent one of mankind’s greatest achievements and constitute the engine of
much of human progress. In areas where there are weaknesses and problems, the causes can be
traced back to ineffective organisations.
Organisations utilise various inputs, engage in various processes and provide a variety of
outputs. However, if we remove the human resources---the people---from any organisational
context, the inputs will remain unutilised or underutilised; no transformation will take place and
there will be no outputs. It is people, individually, in groups or in team, who make organisations
function and make things happen. How they behave and perform, and what are their attitudes
and motivations, are critical factors in determining the success or the failure of organisations.
Activity 2
(i) Organisations use various resources to achieve their goals and objectives. List as many
resources you think organisations make use of.
(ii) In what ways do physical/material/and financial resources differ from human resources?
Work organisations are of special interest because people invariably spend up to two thirds of the
active hours either working, preparing to go to work, coming home from work, reflecting upon
problems and issues connected with work, or even, continuing to work outside the workplace.
Since people are not similar in all aspects, there are numerous occasions where their efforts may
not always point in the same direction. Unless there are deliberate attempts to analyse,
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understand, mobilise and combine these efforts constantly towards the same goals, organisations
may lose their effectiveness, and eventually their very raison-d’être.
Better and More Effective Work Organisations
In today’s context, it is essential to develop and manage organisations which are better and more
effective. This is certainly possible through the application of new technologies including IT,
new organisational designs, better education, more information and a better utilisation of
financial and material resources. However, the contribution of people, through their motivation
and commitment, and dedicated behaviour towards the goals and objectives of the organisations,
remain the single most important factor in making organisations better and more effective.
There is greater recognition of the fact that people constitute the most important constituent of
organisations. Much of the progress achieved, as well as many of the shortcomings in achieving
progress, can be attributed to how well managers have been able to mobilise human imagination
and energies in realising organisational goals and objectives. Where results have been achieved,
much of the credit can be attributed to the managers’ capacity to create organisational systems
and to use sophisticated knowledge to influence human behaviour in the right direction.
Activity 3
(i) List some of the indicators for determining whether organisations are effective or not.
(ii) Suggest some of the factors that can explain why certain organisations are not effective.
(iii) Suggest some of the ways in which the contributions of employees can be improved.
(iv) State some of the characteristics of modern work organisations?
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1.3 DEFINITIONS OF ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR
Understanding people’s perceptions, attitudes, motivations and behaviours is extremely
important for achieving both managerial and organisational effectiveness. To get the very best
out of people in work settings, managers constantly need knowledge about the behaviour of
individuals and groups in organisations; they also need to be aware of the organisational and
environmental variables that can potentially affect human behaviour. They need to understand,
anticipate, modify and improve behaviours that are organisationally meaningful and relevant.
Organisational Behaviour (OB) is the field that provides managers with such specialised
knowledge.
OB is a discipline that helps us to acquire valuable knowledge about the behaviour of individuals
and groups in organisational settings. It also helps us to be aware of environmental
developments that affect the behaviours of people in organisations. Such knowledge enables
managers to better understand the reasons behind human behaviour, to explain and influence
such behaviour, so that organisations respond to the changing needs of societies in a more
effective manner. The application of OB knowledge contributes towards the productive use of
human resources at work.
Robbins (1999) has defined OB as,
a field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups and structure
have on behaviour within organisations for the purpose of applying such
knowledge toward improving an organisation's effectiveness.
To Luthans (1999), OB is:
the understanding, prediction, and control of human behaviour in organisations.
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According to Mullins (1999),
Organisational behaviour is concerned with the study of the behaviour of people
within an organisation setting. It involves the understanding, prediction, and
control of human behaviour and the factors which influence the performance of
people as members of an organisation.
Activity 4
One of the aims of OB is to predict and influence behaviour of employees. To what extent is it
always possible to do so? Explain your answer.
1.4 ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENTS OF OB
According to Lawrence (1987), the origins of OB can be traced back to the 1940’s. The work of
Kurt Lewin and his associates, in 1943, in the field of group climate experiments, represent a
landmark. They found that climate (the psychological state resulting out of organisational
conditions) impacts on human attitude and behaviours.
Robbins and Coulter (1999) however argue that the origins go as far back as the 18th century.
They refer to the pioneering works of Robert Owen, in favour of humanising working conditions.
The subsequent contributions of Hugo Munsterberg, Mary Parker Follett and Chester Barnard,
towards adopting a people-oriented approach in motivating employees and improving
performance, bear testimony of early interests in issues of a psychological nature in the
workplace.
According to Nelson and Quick (1977), “Organisational Behaviour addresses ageless topics
concerning how we live, work and thrive in organisations”.
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Today, OB is well-established, drawing from a range of disciplines: anthropology, political
science, economics and management (operations research, business policy and industrial
relations). In dealing with the behaviour of people, managers also draw from such disciplines
like engineering, physics, quantitative analysis and statistics and medicine.
According to Schein (1977):
If managers are able to understand, predict, and direct change and control
behaviour, they are essentially applied behavioural scientists.
The behavioural science orientation of OB is founded on the premise that knowledge and
insights from any area or discipline can be tapped for a better understanding and management of
the behaviour of people in organisations.
OB is, therefore, both applied and eclectic in nature,
with indefinite boundaries and overlapping sister disciplines.
Within organisations, OB is closely related to such areas like Organisation Development (OD),
Organisation Theory (OT) and Personnel/Human Resource Management (P/HRM). OB provides
useful insights about human behaviour from a micro-level perspective whereas OD, OT and
P/HRM adopt a more macro-level approach of organisational issues. A knowledge of OB can be
useful to any manager dealing with people because "all managers, regardless of their technical
function, are human resource managers" (Luthans, 1999)
According to Kolb et al., (1995) the application of OB is not limited to industrial-business
contexts; it now has a wider application in other professional fields - health care management,
law, public administration, education and international development.
Irrespective of the expansion and application of OB into a wider organisational context, its
primary focus concerns the WHYS and HOWS of human behaviour in organisational settings. It
involves at least four levels of analysis: individual, group, organisational and environmental.
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Such analytical knowledge is useful for managers to understand behaviour in organisations. The
challenge for managers, therefore, is to develop a set of social and human skills for managing
human behaviour, as it occurs within organisations, in a more effective manner.
1.5 FRAMEWORKS FOR THE STUDY OF OB
Knowledge in the area of OB has been growing rapidly and new perspectives have been put
forward to understand and manage human behaviour in work organisations in a more productive
way.
One of the tasks of managers has been to create and develop frameworks or conceptual models
for a better understanding of human motivation and behaviour. These frameworks or models
constitute a form of an unconscious guide to each manager’s behaviour.
According to Davis (1967), many frameworks have been put forward to guide the manager’s
work. He has referred to four of them that he has considered as significant:
1. Autocratic
2. Custodial
3. Supportive
4. Collegial
These models can be placed in a historical perspective. The earliest model was termed Autocratic
and the latest is the Collegial one.
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The distinctive features of the four models are presented in Table 1.1.
TABLE 1.1
FOUR MODELS OF ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR
Autocratic Custodial Supportive Collegial Depends on:
Power
Economic Resources
Leadership
Mutual Contribution
Managerial orientation:
Authority Material rewards Support Integration and teamwork
Employee orientation:
Obedience Security Performance Responsibility
Employee psychological result:
Personal dependency
Organisational dependency
Participation Self-discipline
Employee needs met:
Subsistence Maintenance Higher-order Self-realisation
Performance result:
Minimum Passive cooperation
Awaken drives
Enthusiasm
Moral measure: Compliance Satisfaction Motivation Commitment to task and team
Source: Adapted from Keith Davis, Human Relations at Work:
The Dynamics of Organisational Behaviour (3rd ed..: New York: McGraw-Hill, 1967), 480.
1. The Autocratic Model
The Autocratic model is based on power, authority and dependency on the manager. The
worker’s role is to execute the instructions of the manager in an obedient manner. The
assumptions of the manager are that workers are incapable of assuming responsibilities
by themselves and have to be closely controlled. Failure to follow instructions invites
punishment and involves deprivation of pay and other benefits. The workers contend
themselves doing the strict minimum and adopt an attitude of compliance.
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The Autocratic Model is generally described as being inhuman and exploitative. This
model was prevalent in the early years of the 20th century. However, in certain specific
circumstances, the model can be effective if “the role expectation of employees is
autocratic”. For example, employees who subscribe to the assumptions under
McGregor's Theory X would find an autocratic system of management acceptable.
In many cases, the Autocratic model would not incite workers to develop a positive
attitude either to work or to their work organisation because of a number of limitations.
Under this model, employees are not allowed to take any initiative.
They mostly obey orders and execute instructions. Fear is an important factor to obtain
compliance.
There would be more dislike and hatred, combined with a feeling of frustration and
insecurity. Today, such a model can be encountered in fewer organisations.
2. The Custodial Model
To overcome the limitations of the Autocratic model, it was argued that if conditions
could be created to provide some degree of satisfaction to employees, the organisations
could obtain better contributions from their workforce.
In this respect, employee welfare programs were developed, especially during the
depression of the 1930’s. Economic and material rewards and fringe benefits became
prominent. Under this model, organisational dependence replaced dependency on the
boss. There were improvements in the material welfare of employees. One key
assumption was that a happy employee would be a better employee.
According to research findings, the assumption is questionable, for happy employees are
not necessarily motivated employees (Likert, 1961). Even if the pay and fringe benefits
are attractive, the work may be monotonous and boring. The employee may have very
little scope for self-fulfilment and personal growth. Organisational dependency is not
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always compatible with “the great desire of man to stand on his own, and his life is one
great fight against dependency” (Brown, 1966).
3. The Supportive Model
The limitations of the Custodial model were addressed by the Supportive model. In the
1930’s and 1940’s, the work of Mayo and Roethlisberger at Western Electric Company in
the USA, demonstrated that workers perform better if they are trusted, and external
control is replaced by leadership and self-control. Psychological support assumes
precedence over economic support. Employee performance is linked to intrinsic
motivation in the job situation and the employees higher order needs are taken care of.
There is a sense of involvement and commitment among employees. The 'we' feeling is
stronger than the 'they' feeling.
The Supportive model is thus a major step towards improving the state of organisational
behaviour.
4. The Collegial Model
During the 1960’s and 1970’s researchers like Likert, Katz, Kahn and Herzberg
developed the Collegial Model. In the context of a work environment characterised by
unprogrammed activities requiring teamwork and greater flexibility, managers and
employees work as partners. Managers perform more of an integrating than a
commanding role.
Employees enjoy considerable autonomy and are encouraged to take initiatives. They
experience a sense of fulfilment and self-realisation.
The Collegial Model is well suited for organisations that are flexible, engaged in
activities that require expertise and skills of a higher order and that are not rigidly
prescribed.
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The four models reflect different underlying assumptions that managers may hold about human
nature and the behaviour of people in organisations but they are not mutually exclusive. While
they indicate a general tendency towards more democratic forms of organisational behaviour,
there is no suggestion about one particular model being the best. Many factors, like role
expectations of employees, historical, cultural and economic conditions and level of
technological development will determine the predominance of any particular model.
Activity 5
According to Davis (1967),
"The long-term tendency will be toward more supportive and collegial models because they
better serve the higher-level needs of employees".
(i) Would you agree with this view? Explain your answer.
(ii) Is this a development that is taking place in Mauritian business organisations?
You may wish to interview a few managers and workers to obtain their opinions.
Luthans (1998) has presented three frameworks that, according to him, can contribute to develop
an overall, comprehensive approach for understanding and dealing with behaviour in
organisations.
They are the:
(1) The Cognitive Framework
(2) The Behaviourist Framework
(3) The Social-Learning Framework
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1. The Cognitive Framework
Cognition is the act of knowing an item of information and giving some meaning to it.
Cognitions precede behaviours and " constitute input into the person's thinking,
perception, problem solving and processing information." (Luthans,1998)
The Cognitive framework is built around the idea that people always think ahead of their
acts and are aware of their consequences. They engage in a learning process which
influence their behaviours.
Thus, the cognitive framework provides a basis for understanding and making sense of
the behaviour of people in organisations.
2. The Behaviourist Framework
The promoters of this approach for understanding human behaviour were Ivan Pavlov
and John B Watson. They used a series of Classical Conditioning experiments to
demonstrate the link between a stimulus (an environmental input) and response (a
behaviour).
S = Stimulus
R = Response
B. F. Skinner, on his part, undertook a series of Operant Conditioning experiments to
demonstrate that it is the response that should be the starting point for understanding and
modifying behaviour. A particular response should be the basis for determining the
appropriate stimulus to use in order either to sustain the behaviour or to discourage it.
R S R
S R
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Both the Classical Conditioning and Operant Conditioning approaches are
environmentally based, i.e, behaviour is determined by stimulus (an environmental
input). Cognition, which is an internal process, does not play a role in determining
behaviour.
3. The Social Learning Framework
Albert Bandura was the main promoter of this framework for the understanding of human
behaviour. He has argued that while the cognitive approach is mentalistic (a mental,
internal process) and the behaviourist approach is deterministic (an environmental,
external process), the social learning framework tries to bring together both the cognitive
and the behaviourist models. Behaviour is the product of both internal and external
processes. There is a constant interaction between the mental and the environmental
determinants.
According to Luthans (1999), each model has its own merits, although there is much
controversy and debates about cognitive and the behavioural approaches. The current
position is summarised by Luthans as follows:
The time seems to have come to recognise the contributions of both approaches
and to begin to synthesise and integrate both into a comprehensive framework for
organisational behaviour. The social learning approach provides a good
foundation for such an eclectic organisational behaviour framework.
1.6 ONE BEST MODEL? THE CONTINGENCY APPROACH
As a society’s achievements and aspirations evolve, human needs and aspirations are also
modified. Accordingly, the relevance of a particular model is subject to re-assessment.
Generally, according to Davis (1967), “advancing industrialisation leads to more advanced
models of organisational behaviour” which are more participative and democratic.
15
As the business context is increasingly becoming "global", cultural factors have also emerged as
an important element in managerial practices. They exercise considerable influence in shaping
attitudes and behaviours.
History, culture, technology, resource allocation, environmental factors will always make for the
use of different management practices or a blending of different styles and philosophies within
the same organisation although there will inevitably be a dominant texture in all that takes place
by way of managerial practice. While the process of democratisation and economic liberalisation
will impact upon the content of organisational behaviour, it is not likely to trap the complexity of
human motivations and behaviours into a monolithic mould.
According to Robbins (1999), the study of OB will have to take into account a wide range of
both dependent and independent variables that affect behaviour. In a context of change it will
also be necessary to take into account a number of contingency variables. In such circumstances,
a contingency approach to OB would help to cope in “a world of temporariness”.
A contingency perspective which is also referred to as situational approach “underscores and
emphasizes the fact that organisations are different, face different circumstances
(contingencies), and thus may require different ways of managing – that is different
managerial decisions and actions”
(Robbins and Coulter, 1999)
(According to Davis, 1967)
In the final analysis, each manager's behaviour will be determined by his
underlying theory of organisational behaviour, so it is essential for him to
understand the different results achieved by different models of organisational
behaviour.
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Activity 6
(i) Review the various models for the study of OB. Discuss why a contingency approach
would be desirable to study OB.
(ii) "Managers need to develop their interpersonal skills if they're going to be effective in
their job" Robbins (1998). Discuss.
1.7 IMPORTANCE OF OB TO MANAGERS
Attitudes and behaviours are changing. There are new values in societies. For example,
increasingly, there will be more emphasis on quality of products and services as well as on the
quality of work life. Economic and material needs will no more be the only factors to motivate
employees. Organisations will have to cope with the problem of balance between work and life.
Authority relations between managers and their immediate subordinates and other employees
will have to be adapted to meet growing needs for involvement, participation and sharing in
decision -making. Working with people from different nationalities and backgrounds will
become more common. Already, in many sectors of the Mauritian economy, foreign workers and
Mauritian workers have to work together. Working within a diverse workforce will increase with
globalisation. Cross-cultural and multicultural realities will exert a strong influence in
managerial practices.
These are both challenges and opportunities for managers. Understanding people will be an
important requirement for all managers. In this respect, OB can provide valuable support. To be
effective, managers can benefit considerably from the principles, concepts and theories that make
up the domain of OB.
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Activity 7
In the past, employees worked on the basis of long-term employment, job security and stable
wages and salaries. Today there are new forms of work arrangements that are changing the old
employer -employee relationships.
Identify some of the major changes taking place in the world of work and suggest how managers
can deal with them.
1.8 THE WORK OF THE MANAGER: AN OB PERSPECTIVE
You are strongly advised to read units 1 and 2, Organisation and Management (MGT 1111)
support materials, which relate to this section.
1.8.1 Management: An Introduction
The practice of management is as old as human civilisation. Throughout history, mankind has
developed and applied knowledge and skills to ensure its survival, growth and development in
societies. In ancient history there are numerous examples of how people have used their
imagination, intuition and experience to face the challenges of their environment. But it was in
the early 1800’s, with the progress of the industrial revolution and the expansion of factories,
that the need for managing people and their activities in a more organised and systematic manner
became an important social preoccupation.
According to Kast and Rosenzweig (1974),
The study of management is relatively new in our society, stemming primarily from the
growth in size and complexity of business and other large-scale organisations since the
industrial revolution.
Throughout the nineteenth and the twentieth centuries, the impetus to develop and to experiment
with new theories and concepts of managing human efforts in organisations reinforced one of the
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most fundamental principles of human civilisation that links our present to our past. It was the
recognition “that the knowledge and skills of one generation must be transmitted to the next if
the species were to survive” (Wren, 1979).
To achieve this purpose, the creation and management of organisations according to certain
observed or tested ideas and principles became essential. In consequence, at different stages of
society’s development, theories of management have been put forward to help managers improve
their work and achieve better results. All along, there has been a progressive and consistent
evolution in managerial assumptions and ideas about human nature and human behaviour. From
a hunter-gatherer, mankind has successively gone through the stage of the rational-economic
being, a social being, a self-actualising being to a complex being.
We are now in a new century. The domain of management is increasingly characterised by the
process of change and innovation and managers are faced with new problems and challenges in
dealing with human beings.
Activity 8
List some of the problems and challenges facing managers today.
For example, there may be a problem about the quality of the products or services and
managers will have to initiate actions to improve quality or face the prospect of
decreasing sales and profits.
Illustrate your answer with suitable examples.
Managerial effectiveness has always been very closely linked to the ability of managers to secure
the best contributions from their employees in achieving organisational goals and objectives.
While the practice of management goes back to the early days of human civilisation, over time,
management, as a body of accumulated knowledge, or a collection of theories, that can be
19
studied, applied, and passed on to future generations has evolved significantly. Today,
management has acquired a status and an importance which is well-established in most societies
and it would be difficult to imagine organisations without managers.
Management is the primary force within organisations which coordinates the activities of
the subsystems and relates them to their environment.
(Kast and Rosenzweig, 1974)
The context in which managers are evolving is characterised by constant change and the nature
of problems confronting managers require new expertise and new perspectives.
Activity 9
Review the various theories of management (Scientific Management Movement, The Hawthorne
Studies, Human Relations School, Human Resource Management Movement and the
contemporary school) and summarise the different sets of assumptions and attitudes about people
and their motivations, in work situations, that might be held by managers.
1.8.2 Management and Managers
There are numerous definitions of management that have been provided by writers, researchers
and practitioners. Many of them refer to management as a process that involves such activities
like planning, organising, directing, co-ordinating and controlling organisational activities in
order to achieve certain predetermined objectives.
20
To Robbins and Coulter (1999), management is:
The process of co-ordinating and integrating work activities so that they are completed
efficiently and effectively with and through people.
Stoner et al., (1994) define management as:
The process of planning, organising, leading, and controlling the efforts of organisation
members and of using all other organisational resources to achieve specific
organisational goals.
Activity 10 : Brainstorming
(i) Review the resources that managers utilise to get work done and to achieve
organisational objectives. (Refer to Activity 2)
(ii) What, according to you, is the key resource utilised by managers? Explain your answer.
While the context and the knowledge base of management have been evolving, the quest for the
betterment of human conditions and existence continue to be main theme in management, as it
used to be for our ancestors. The novelty lies in the complexity and the dynamism of today’s
environment and the changing and expanding expectations and aspirations of mankind.
Modern managers have to handle a new set of priorities that are determined by competition,
technological developments and radical changes in value systems. To deal with this constant
flux of changes and transformations, managers require new attitudes, knowledge and skills to
deal with the work and the employees.
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Activity 11
What qualities would you expect a modern manager to possess?
1.8.3 What Do Managers Do?
Various definitions about what management is all about and what managers do, indicate that
there is a consistent attempt to highlight the importance of human beings or people as being the
critical resource. Without this resource there will be no organisation, no products or services.
As early as the 1900’s, Mary Parker Follett, one of the early management writers and theorists,
advocated the recognition of the human factor in management. She defined management as “the
art of getting things done through people”.
She advocated the need for people-oriented, humanist ideas in management thinking and
practice. She argued that people are a unique and specific resource and require special qualities
and skills to be handled effectively.
The Hawthorne Studies of Elton Mayo and his associates of the Harvard Business School
emphasised the social and behavioural aspects in work situation. The attention of managers was
drawn to the fact that, among all the resources that were available to organisations, human
resources constituted a key resource in the successful management of organisations.
Behavioural scientists like Maslow, Herzberg, Likert, Argyris and McGregor have argued that
the psychological aspects of human behaviour in work situations constitute the very foundation
of any successful system of management.
Contemporary writers (Drucker, Ouchi, Mintzberg, Deming and Juran, Peters and Waterman,
Bennis, Schein, Porter, Covey, Kanter, Pascale and Athos, Prahalad and Hamel, Handy,
22
Hammer, Senge and Ohmae) have all underlined, in their own ways, the need to build and
deploy knowledge-workers to face the transformations that are driving the twenty-first century.
Once again, the focus of attention and interest is on how organisations mobilise their human
assets to achieve competitive advantage in a world where competition is on a global scale.
Managing people for productivity has become an important challenge for managers.
The main sources of competitive advantage in the past decades may have been access to
financial resources or the use of technology; these resources are now viewed as
necessary but not sufficient. For many companies the sources of sustained competitive
advantage rest not only with access to finance or capital but within the organisation, with
people capable of delivering the 'customer delight' or rapid innovations that will place a
company ahead of its competitors.
(Financial Times Mastering Management, 1997)
To be a successful manager, understanding human nature, the expectations and aspirations of
people as employees is crucial. In all their analytical, decision-making and problem solving
activities, managers will need to focus on human-oriented problems, to analyse and interpret
both human actions and their motivations.
1.8.4 The Essential Nature of Managerial Work
According to Drucker (1989),
The manager is the dynamic, life-giving element in every business. Without his
leadership, the “resources of production” remain resources and never become
production.
All managers perform certain functions to achieve the effective acquisition, allocation, and
utilisation of human and physical resources to accomplish some goal.
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In a context of increasing focus on quality, price, service and value, the work of managers is
becoming more and more complex, organisation - specific and subject to rapid changes.
To achieve results, effective organisation and utilisation of human resources is an indispensable
condition. Managers have to co-ordinate and integrate the activities, and tasks of others; they
have to get work done by working with and through others. Processes like perception,
communication, motivation, and leadership, involved in social interactions and exchanges within
the workplace, need careful handling.
Managers need to recognise and align ‘the technical-economic-security-working condition’
aspects with the psychosocial factors inherent in organisations.
1.8.5 Managerial Roles and Skills
According to Mintzberg (1973), managers perform 10 managerial roles that can be grouped “as
those primarily concerned with interpersonal relationships, the transfer of information, and
decision making”.
To perform the roles, managers are expected to possess a number of key skills, which can be
classified under four categories:
1. Conceptual
2. Technical
3. Human
4. Systemic
Technical skills refer to the expertise or proficiency in a discipline, method, process or procedure
one needs to carry out one’s work relating to a particular area of activity or business. Some of
the skills that are required in organisations are: accounting, computing, engineering and
marketing. These skills can be acquired through formal education, training and job experience.
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Conceptual, human and systemic skills are concerned with the exploration of complex and
dynamic issues; the determination of goals, objectives and strategies and priorities; the ordering
and arrangement of the organisational resources and the handling of such critical activities as:
communication, motivation, leading, team-building and organisation development.
While formal education and training can contribute towards building these skills among
managers, much depends on the value systems, beliefs and assumptions of managers themselves.
Managerial assumptions always influence managerial decisions and actions. For example, if a
manager assumes that people are responsible, he will entrust them with important tasks. Such
decisions and actions, in turn will influence attitudes and behaviours of employees.
The emphasis on human or people skills was considered an important aspect of management and
the manager's work in the past; to-day, it is "the single most important skill of an executive in his
or her ability to get along with people." (Hersey and Blanchard, 1977)
To deal with the human aspects involved in their work, managers will need "a broad behavioural
repertoire and the analytical skill to know what behaviours are appropriate for each situation".
(Hersey and Blanchard, 1977).
A behavioural approach to management is not restricted to managers who hold the positions of
either personnel managers or human resource managers. According to Luthans (1998), all
managers manage people and “all managers, regardless of their technical function, are human
resource managers in this view because they deal with human behaviour in organisations”.
Mullins (1999) has expressed a similar opinion:
There are many aspects to management in work organisations, but the one
essential ingredient of any successful manager is the ability to handle people
effectively. The manager needs to be conversant with social and human skills,
and have the ability to work with and through other people.
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In 1966, John D. Rockefeller, one of the great American entrepreneurs, had stated:
I will pay more for the ability to deal with people than any other ability under the
sun.
These words of Rockefeller are still very relevant. Understanding human nature and developing
insights about human motivations constitute a fundamental requirement for effective
management at all levels of the organisations. OB is the discipline which can help managers to
improve their performance.
Activity 12
In many organisations today, life-long employment and job security are becoming things of the
past. Employee loyalty is eroding.
(i) Do you agree? Explain your answer.
(ii) What new forms of employment relationships are likely to develop and how will
managers deal with such situations?
(iii) What, according to you, would be the key "people skills" that managers will have to
develop?
1.9 KEY CONCEPTS
Autocratic
Behaviourist
Behavioural Scientist
Cognitive
Collegial
Contingency
Cultural Diversity
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Custodial
Frameworks
Human Behaviour
Human Resource
Organisation
Organisational Behaviour
Social Learning
Supportive
Management
Managers
Managerial Work
Managerial Roles
Skills
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UNIT 2 THE INDIVIDUALS IN ORGANISATION: PERSONALITY, PERCEPTION AND DECISION MAKING
Unit Structure
2.0 Overview
2.1 Learning Objectives
2.2 Introduction
2.3 Biographical Characteristics
2.3.1 Age
2.3.2 Gender
2.4 Personality
2.4.1 Personality Types
2.4.1.1 Extroversion Versus Introversion
2.4.1.2 Becoming Aware – Sensing Versus Intuition
2.4.1.3 Ways of Deciding - Thinking Versus Feeling
2.4.1.4 The Amount of Control – Judgement Versus Perception
2.4.2 Using Personality Attributes to Predict Behaviour in Organisation
2.4.3 Understand People by Understanding Behaviour
2.4.3.1 Personality: Situation Versus Heredity
2.4.3.2 Personality and Social Reputation
2.4.4 Measuring Personality
2.4.4.1 Methods of Personality Assessment
2.4.4.2 Construction Based on Personality Theories Test
2.4.4.2.1 Myers - Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
2.4.4.2.2 The Big Five Model
2.5 Perception
2.5.1 Attribution Theory
2.5.2 Making Judgement on Others
2.6 Decision Making
2.6.1 Individual Decision Making Versus Organisational Decision Making
2.6.2 Rational Decision Making Model
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2.6.3 The Bounded Rational Decision Making Model
2.6.4 Other Models of Decision Making
2.7 Key Concepts
2.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit introduces you to a number of concepts that are associated with individuals in
organisations. For example, you will learn about such terms as personality, perceptions and
decision making with special reference to an individual. You will also learn how these
characteristics influence behaviour and help to predict the behaviour of organisational members.
2.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1. Explain the following terms and concepts: biographical characteristics such as age and
gender associated with individuals, Personality and personality types, Perceptions, the
decision making process.
2. Analyse how behaviour is influenced by the above concepts.
2.2 INTRODUCTION
Human Behaviour is somewhat shaped by our personalities and experiences (Robbins, 1999). In
describing the individual level of organisational behaviour, Robbins et al. (1999) highlight
biographical characteristics, ability, personality, values and attitudes, perception, motivation,
learning and individual decision-making. These characteristics lead to outcomes associated with
employee productivity, absence, turnover, and job satisfaction. In Units 3 and 4, we shall briefly
explore these dimensions.
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In this unit, we shall examine three individual-level variables: biographical characteristics,
personality and perception and explain how these affect performance and satisfaction.
Warm – Up Activity
List the issues that come to your mind when the terms personality, perception and job
satisfaction are mentioned to you.
Let us start with the biographical characteristics of an individual and see how they influence
his/her behaviour in an organisational context.
2.3 BIOGRAPHICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Biographical characteristics refer to personal attributes (characteristics) such as age, gender and
marital status. Let us discuss how age and gender influence organisational behaviour.
2.3.1 Age
Age has several incidences at the workplace. At one extreme of the spectrum, we have
legislation now that sets a minimum age limit for employability – this varies from 16-18 year age
group. At the other end of the spectrum, it is quite open and there is no set limit for
employability – except that officially, organisations have to take into account the retirement age
limit that varies from 55 - 60 years old.
Within this spectrum, we are witnessing these days a workforce diversity of no precedence
where there is a good blend of the younger employees and the elder ones in organisations. Very
often, we find the younger ones are more academically qualified. While age has critical
repercussions a decade ago, gradually the younger employees are finding better acceptance in
organisations, and occupying the top jobs.
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Numerous studies have been carried out on the issue of age in organisation. It has generally been
found that:
Older workers bring a number of positive qualities to their job: experience, judgement,
sharing work ethic and commitment to quality. On the negative side, they are seen to be
less flexible and more resistant to change.
It is generally seen that as one grows older, one has a tendency to stay in one’s job, and is
less likely to quit. Indeed, as a person gets older, there are lesser opportunities available
elsewhere for him or her. As a person ages in a particular job, he or she becomes more
attached to the job - in the first place because of the retirement benefits that the person is
not quite willing to forego and also because there is a lower inclination for a person of a
particular age to adventure elsewhere. The person may have also reached a stage where
he or she is at the top of the salary scale. Another factor that is increasingly refraining
older employees to leave their organisations for others is the practice of most
organisations to reward their loyal employees – sometimes organisations publicly reward
such employees with the aim of attracting the younger ones and consolidating their public
image. The special treatment given to the older employees by the particularly successful
organisations is positively seen by society and many organisations capitalise on this as a
PR tool.
It has also been shown that age is inversely related to absenteeism. As one grows older,
one tends not to absent oneself from work for minor excuses. However, this does not
hold true in many cases. People do fall sick and have to absent themselves from work.
Age also brings with it lesser resistance to diseases and longer periods of convalescence,
so that the older employees may stay away from work more often and for longer periods.
On the productivity side, it is believed that age and productivity are inversely related.
The premise for this belief is that as one grows older, one’s skills in terms of speed,
agility, strength and co-ordination lessen over time, thus affecting productivity
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negatively. People who have been involved with routine work all the time tend to feel
the effect of job boredom. This again affects productivity negatively.
It must be appreciated that these findings are not general and definitely not applicable in
all cases. In fact, there are other research works that have established that there can be a
positive correlation between age and productivity. Researchers suggest that age and job
performances are unrelated. Job performance depends upon the situation. For example,
in situations where the working environment is supportive of various age groups working
together without any kind of misunderstanding, people of different age categories work
together in harmony. In some circumstances, though there may be some losses placed on
account of decreased ability for the aged employees, there are gains that are obtained
thanks to their experience (lesser wastage, more discipline, better time management, less
absenteeism, etc) hence offsetting the losses.
As far as job satisfaction is concerned, there is mixed evidence about the relationship
between age and job satisfaction. Studies have shown that age and job satisfaction are
positively related up to the age of 60. Other studies have shown a U-shaped relationship
– that is, job satisfaction decreases over a period of time until a minimum is reached and
then increases again.
2.3.2 Gender
The best way to address the gender issue in organisations is to ask the question “do men and
women perform equally at work?” Obviously, this is a tricky question to answer. It is a fact that
there are differences in the amount and extent of physical work that can be performed by men
and women. There is evidence that the managerial style adopted by men and women may be
different. It is difficult to state in absolute terms which style is more efficient and effective.
32
Activity 1
(i) From your observations and experience of elder people around you, what are your
conclusions regarding the performance of these people at work? What could be their
contributions to the labour market?
(ii) Think of certain jobs which are considered more suitable for
(a) Men (b) Women
Suggest reasons for such a classification.
(iii) Give examples of jobs that can be performed by both men and women.
Let us now see personality influences behaviour in organisations.
2.4 PERSONALITY
Vecchio (1992) defines personality as the relatively enduring individual traits and dispositions
that form a pattern distinguishing one person from another.
To, Robbins, et al., (1998), personality is seen to be “the consistent psychological patterns
within an individual that affect the way he or she interacts with others and situations”.
In trying to explain the concept of personality, psychologists dissect personality into personality
states, traits and types.
- A personality state represents the transitory exhibition of some personality trait and is a
relatively temporary predisposition. Mood swings are examples of personality states.
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Measuring personality states amounts to a search for and an assessment of the strength of
traits that are relatively transitory in nature and/or fairly situation-specific.
- A Personality Trait is any distinguishable, relatively enduring way in which one
individual varies from another. Personality traits are often formed in early childhood and
can include curiosity, indifference, talkativeness, etc.
Labelling of a trait depends on both the behaviour itself and the context in which the
behaviour appeared.
- Personality Type is usually a collection of traits that are grouped together. It is a
constellation of traits and states that is similar in pattern to one identified category of
personality within a classification of personalities.
Types are only descriptions of people – not something presumed inherent in them.
Let us look at these in more details.
2.4.1 Personality Types
As mentioned earlier a personality type is usually a collection of traits that are grouped together.
It is a constellation of traits and states that is similar in pattern to one identified category of
personality within a classification of personalities. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is
widely used to assess personality types in connection with recruitment, selection, promotion,
motivation and learning style, etc in organisation. We distinguish among the following types or
categories of personality:
(i) Extroversion versus introversion the way in which we relate to the world. One can be
very talkative and outgoing, while others may be
very quiet and reserved.
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(ii) Sensing versus intuition the way in which we perceive and take in
information and ideas
(iii) Thinking versus feeling the way in which we prefer to make judgements or
decisions. Some people prefer to think first before
making a decision, while others may be ready to
make decision fast or on an impulse.
(iv) Judgement versus perception the way in which we control and organise people or
events. Some people take the trouble to make
judgement on others whereas some rely on the
perception they have on others.
Let us examine these in more details.
2.4.1.1 Extroversion Versus Introversion
Extroversion is the psychological flow of energy and attention to the outer world of objects,
people and ideas. Extroverts are usually active and sociable and enjoy variety and stimulation.
They are talkative and assertive.
Introversion is the inward flow of psychological energy to thoughts, feelings and ideas.
Introverts enjoy quiet reflection, can concentrate on an idea or thought far longer than an
extrovert can and are less active and prone to change. They are quite reserved and quiet.
2.4.1.2 Becoming Aware - Sensing Versus Intuition
Sensing involves a focus on the practical, tangible and specific through the five senses. The
sensing person mainly perceives the physical or material reality of the world and is likely to
provide practical solutions to problems.
Intuition involves the immediate integration of ideas, situations and information into deeper
ideas and possibilities. An intuitive person quickly sees beyond the obvious and is likely to be
creative, adaptable and open to new ideas.
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2.4.1.3 Ways of Deciding -Thinking Versus Feeling
Thinking is the decision aspect of the mind based on logical relationships and evaluation. The
thinking type person tends to be objective, analytical and impersonal in making decisions and
judgements.
Feeling is the decision aspect of the mind that uses values, past experience and a sense of
harmony. The feeling type person is more likely to be empathetic, loyal, appreciative and tactful.
2.4.1.4 The Amount of Control - Judgement Versus Perception
Judgement represents the preference for control, order and decisiveness. Judgement-orientated
people tend to live in a planned, decided and orderly manner, wanting to regulate their life
circumstances and to control events.
Perception refers to a preference to take in information, to adapt and be spontaneous. Perceptive
people tend to live in a flexible, spontaneous manner, wanting to understand life and adapting to
it.
Activity 2
(i) How would you define your personality type? In which category/categories do you fall
when you refer to what has been discussed above?
(ii) Observe two or three friends or relatives. In which personality type would you situate
them?
(iii) Discuss how important is the understanding of personality types to managers.
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2.4.2 Using Personality Attributes to Predict Behaviour in Organisation
A number of personality attributes have been seen to influence organisational behaviour. Many
of these attributes are quite helpful to assist managers to predict the behaviour of individuals in
organisations. Robbins et al. (1998) have identified the following attributes as being the most
useful ones to predict behaviour:
1. Locus of Control
2. Machiavellianism
3. Self-esteem
4. Self-monitoring
5. Self-efficiency
6. Risk Taking
7. Type A and Type B
Let us try to understand what these attributes mean and in what way they enable us to make
predictions about organisational behaviour.
1. Locus of control is defined as the degree to which people believe that they are in charge of
their own fate. Individuals with an internal locus of control believe that they control what
happens to them, whilst individuals with an external locus of control believe that outside
forces control them.
In other words, the locus of control is the extent to which individuals believe that they have
control over their lives.
We distinguish between two types of people – the internal and the external.
If you believe you have control over events in your life, you have a high internal locus of
control and you will be referred to as an internal.
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If you believe you are at the mercy of fate, you have a high external locus of control and you
will be referred to as an external.
Research has shown that when internals are compared to externals on the three factors - job
satisfaction, absenteeism, and job performance - people who rate high in externality tend to
be less satisfied with their job, show a higher rate of absenteeism, and have lower
performance at work.
Activity 3
To check your understanding of internals and externals, jot down some characteristics that you
feel each of them can have.
Internal External
2. Machiavellianism refers to the degree to which an individual is pragmatic, maintains
emotional distance and believes that the ends can justify the means.
Robbins (1998) reports that individuals who exhibit high-Mach usually manipulate people
more, win more, are less persuaded by others but are more capable to persuade others
compared to those who are of low-Mach type.
Activity 4
Given the above research findings regarding high and low Mach individuals, would you consider
high Mach employees to be good or bad? Record your conclusion.
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3. Self-esteem refers to an individual’s degree of self-like or dislike. It is a question of how
much you like yourself as an individual and person.
It has been observed that individuals with high self esteem trust that they have the potential
and ability required to succeed at work. These individuals usually accept to take more risk
when taking decision (e.g., moving from one job to the another) and are less influenced by
others. In responsible positions, individuals with low self-esteem tend to be more concerned
with pleasing others and have a lesser inclination to take unpopular decisions.
4. Self-monitoring is a personality trait that determines an individual’s ability to adjust his or
her behaviour to external situational factors.
Individuals who rate high in self-monitoring are capable of showing different behaviours in
different circumstances. They have a marked capacity to adapt to situations and disguise
behaviour and feelings. They are thus in a better disposition to conform to situations and play
multiple, including contradictory, roles (a function that is often required from managers).
5. Self-efficacy refers to people’s belief that they are capable of performing a task. In other
words, self-efficacy represents the belief that an individual places in estimating his/her ability
and skill. In a way, efficacy enables individuals to judge which jobs suit them best.
6. Risk-taking represents an individual’s willingness to take chances. All people do not have
the same inclinations about taking risk - some try to avoid risky situations while others like to
venture. Research has shown that high-risk taking managers are more rapid decision makers
and are less dependent on information search before they actually make decisions.
7. Type A and B Personality
Friedman and Rosenman (1974) define a person with a Type A personality as being
“aggressively involved in a chronic, incessant struggle to achieve more and more in less and
less time, and, if required to do so, against the opposing efforts of other things or other
persons”. In contrast, Type B is “rarely hurried by the desire to obtain a wildly increasing
39
number of things or participate in an endless growing series of events in an ever-decreasing
amount of time”.
Robbins (1998) summarises the following characteristics of Type A and Type B personality:
TYPE A’S
(1) Are always moving, walking, and eating rapidly.
(2) Feel impatient with the rate at which most events take place.
(3) Strive to think or do two or more things at once.
(4) Cannot cope with leisure time.
(5) Are obsessed with numbers, measuring their success in terms of how many or how much
of everything they acquire.
TYPE B’S
(1) Never suffer from a sense of time urgency with its accompanying impatience.
(2) Feel no need to display or discuss either their achievements or accomplishments unless
such exposure is demanded by the situation.
(3) Play for fun and relaxation, rather than to exhibit their superiority at any cost.
(4) Can relax without guilt.
In essence, Type A personality is in a rush all the time as they take more responsibilities they can
actually shoulder in the span of time available to them. They are aggressive and quick to
hostility. They complete their ongoing tasks rapidly and seek new ones sooner that can be
expected. They enjoy dominating others. They have no patience to wait in queues and go out of
their senses when confronted with traffic jams and other such situations where waiting is
involved. This is an indication of their worries about time wasting and performance.
People with Type B personality are more relaxed, with no sense of urgency or worry about time
that is wasted. They often stop to reflect on and review performance or what they have been
doing. They think high of themselves and approach life more calmly.
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Activity 5
(i) Reflect on the seven attributes of behaviour that have been discussed above.
(ii) How do you situate yourself?
2.4.3 Understand People by Understanding Behaviour
From the foregoing, it is quite clear that personality can play an important role to explain
differences among individuals and predict behaviour. How does one acquire personality of a
certain kind? The following factors are in some way responsible for the personality that a person
acquires:
Situation versus Heredity
Social Reputation
2.4.3.1 Personality: Situation Versus Heredity
An ongoing debate centres on whether personality is inherited or learnt. The first point of view
argues that personality is determined genetically. The extroverted persons are considered to be
born with a nervous system that requires more external stimulation, and hence these people seek
and respond more positively to stimulations provided by others. The evidence used to support
the heredity argument comes from the twin studies, where twins separated from an early age are
studied in order to see what similarities in behaviour existed among them. These studies indicate
that genetic factors do influence personality. However, it has also been found that the
correlations are small, which means that most of the variances still need to be explained by non-
genetic factors. It is not uncommon to see members of the same family earning academic
distinctions one after the other, from generation to generation. Gene must be for something in
such circumstances.
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The counterpoint to the heredity argument is the environmental argument. Environmentalists
argue that the results of experience can shape and change a person’s personality. Everyone starts
off in life in practically the same way and conditions. For instance, most of us start off with
almost the same slate. However, there are visible differences among individuals with the passage
of time. Some individuals are quick to learn and grasp, while others may find it more difficult to
cope with what they are taught. In other words, individual differences are the outcomes of the
human organism adapting to and learning from the unique set of experiences that are peculiar to
each individual. A classic example of this is that children in the same family normally have
uniquely different experiences that will shape them in different ways. We may have within the
same family a member who passes all his/her examinations in flying colours and another
member who finds it difficult to clear examinations at the very first attempt or in successive
attempts for that matter.
However, it often happens in life that some of these environmental factors are not that random.
Important environmental factors include the physical environment, socio-cultural factors, social
class, early parental deprivation and child rearing practices. For instance, it is acknowledged that
one important factor that determines personality is birth order. First-born children are normally
seen to be more independent, more ambitious and, more influenced by social pressures than
those born after.
This heredity versus environment distinction is revisited quite often in psychology, and is often
referred to as the nature versus nurture debate. It has been observed that the debate is usually
settled by believing that one needs to take into account both dimensions in order to provide a
complete picture of individual differences.
Activity 6
Observe some members of your family and friends. What conclusions can you draw on the
question of heredity and situation in as far as their personality is concerned?
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2.4.3.2 Personality and Social Reputation
People are born with basic needs that direct the way in which they interact with the world. Over
time they change according to their surrounding and in fact many try to fit in or match with this
surrounding. It is not uncommon to see neighbours competing each other on basis of clothing,
food, cars, means etc. showing how the personality of an individual is closely associated with
social status.
2.4.4 Measuring Personality
Why measure personality? The measurement of personality is finding increasing importance
these days in organisations. Various methods have been developed to assess the personality of a
person and therefore many possibilities exist for that purpose.
Let us first find out what are the main benefits of personality tests to managers. Research has
shown that personality tests enable managers:
To identify the problem areas of an individual.
To identify strengths and weaknesses of an individual for deciding what would be his or
her ideal occupation.
To identify factors that may be impeding work performance.
2.4.4.1 Methods of Personality Assessment
The following are the various methods that are commonly used to assess personality:
Construction based on theories of personality or empirical methods. For example,
the Myers Briggs Test, the Big Five model, etc. These are briefly explained below.
Basic test that involves making the person write a self-report, behavioural observation,
measuring of verbal, non-verbal, and physiological responses.
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Paper-and-pencil-type tests. These tests have the advantage of being objective or
projective.
The paper and pencil test has the following main advantages:
Questions can be answered quickly.
Items require little explanation.
Items are amenable to quick and reliable scoring by machine, by hand, or by computer.
2.4.4.2 Construction Based on Personality Theories Test
It is possible to design tests to determine the personality that a person exhibits from the theories
that have been expressed on personality. These personality tests identify a set of factors that are
associated with a person and that constitute a personality inventory. Personality inventory
comprises items that logically, intuitively or rationally belong in the test. Personality tests
normally appeal to test takers since their content is straightforward and directly related to the
objective of the test. Test takers feel more in control of the information they are revealing.
The Woodworth Psychoneurotic Inventory was the first effort to measure personality. It
screened World War I recruits for personality and adjustment problems. Test items included:
self-report of fears, sleep disorders and other psycho-neuroticism disorders.
Let us look at two of these tests in more details, that is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
(MBTI) and the Big Five
2.4.4.2.1 Myers - Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a good example of a tool for measuring personality
types. Although there is no hard evidence that the MBTI is a valid measure of personality, it is
quite popular and is widely used.
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Technically, the test involves requesting respondents to answer a questionnaire containing 100
questions, which ask a person how he or she feels or acts in specific situations. Based on the
answers respondents give to the test, they are classified as extroverted or introverted (E or I),
sensing or intuitive (S or N), thinking or feeling (T or F), and perceiving or judging (P or J). The
classifications are then combined into sixteen personality types, such as INTJ, ESTP, ISTJ, and
ESTJ. For example, Robbins (1998) views INTJs as being visionaries, with original minds and
great drive for their own ideas and purposes and characterised as skeptical, critical,
independent, determined, and often stubborn. ESTJs are organisers. They are realistic, logical,
analytical, decisive and have a natural head for business or mechanics. They like to organise
and run activities. ENTPs are viewed as conceptualisers who are innovative, individualistic,
versatile, and attracted to entrepreneurial ideas. They tend to be resourceful in solving
challenging problems but may neglect routine assignments
Please note that factors measured by the full-length MBTI test are:
u Originality
u Rule Consciousness
u Openness to change
u Assertiveness
u Social Confidence
u Empathy
u Communicativeness
u Independence
u Rationality
u Competitiveness
u Conscientiousness
u Perfectionism
u Decisiveness
u Apprehension
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Activity 7
Of what use would a personality test be to managers? Record your conclusions.
2.4.4.2.2 The Big Five Model
Psychological research has found five recurring factors in terms of how the world judges
personality. (McCrae and Oliver, 1992, Journal of Personality 60 175-215). Five basic
personality dimensions have been acknowledged to underlie all others.
The Big Five factors are:
1. Emotional stability
2. Extraversion
3. Agreeableness
4. Conscientiousness
5. Openness to experience
• A person with high Emotional stability is calm, relaxed and feels secure and the one who
has low emotional stability experiences distress, has nervous tension, feels frustration, guilt,
anxiety, and is emotional, worried and insecure.
• A high Extraversion person is energetic, outgoing, fun loving, talkative, venturesome, and a
low E person is quiet, reserved, retiring, sober, and shy.
• A high Agreeableness person is courteous, flexible, trusting, good-natured, considerate,
caring, warm compassionate and arouses the appreciation of others.
• A high Conscientiousness person is dependable, responsible, careful, thorough, productive,
hardworking and is able to delay gratification.
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• A high Openness person is imaginative, curious, insightful, original and broadminded,
whereas somehow low in O persons favour values that are more conservative and are simple,
incurious, and unimaginative.
Activity 8
Reflect on yourself regarding the traits listed above. Do any of these describe your personality?
Please explain.
Activity 9
Personality is a broad label for a range of behavioural, cognitive and emotional patterns. Think
of suitable situations and explore the personality factors that will best match the situation.
Let us now discuss perception and its influences on organisational behaviour.
2.5 PERCEPTION
Robbins, et al. (1994: 163) define perception as,
a process by which individuals organise and interpret their sensory impressions
in order to give meaning to their environment.
Perception is thus a process of interpreting the messages received from our senses of sight, smell,
touch, taste and hearing to provide meaning to the environment. For example, a person (the
perceiver) makes certain decisions regarding something (the target, may be anything about a
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person or an object) in the environment surrounding him or her under some given circumstances
(the situation).
Perception can be affected by a variety of factors within the situation, the target and the
perceiver. Within the perceiver, perception can be affected by attitudes, motives, interests,
experience and expectations. Within the situation, perception can be affected by time, the work
setting and the social setting. Within the target, perception can be affected by novelty, motion,
sounds, size, background and proximity. These factors explain why, for example, two people
can view the same scene and yet see them differently, or more correctly, they perceive the scene
differently.
Exhibit 3.1 provides a list of the main factors that can influence perception
Exhibit 3-1 Factors that Influence Perception
Source: Robbins (1998: 94)
Factors in the perceiver � Attitudes � Motives � Interests � Experience � Expectations
Factors in the situation � Time � Work setting � Social setting
Perception
Factors in the target � Novelty � Motion � Sounds � Size � Background � Proximity
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In workplace settings, the employees normally perceive the work environment differently,
although there may exist common perceptions. Perception plays a crucial role in our judgement
of people. We make full use of perception in employment interviews, in performance appraisal,
and in evaluating employees’ commitment and loyalty, etc.
2.5.1 Attribution Theory
We often form impressions about people and their behaviour. Attribution is the process by
which we place judgements on people’s behaviour, more specifically what really causes a
person to behave in a certain manner.
The Attribution theory is based on our perception of causes of behaviour. It suggests that we
judge people differently depending upon the degree to which the behaviour is perceived as
internally or externally caused. Internally caused behaviour is judged to be within the person’s
control, whilst externally caused behaviour is not within the person’s control.
Research suggests that in order to determine whether the behaviour of a person is internally or
externally caused, the three factors, distinctiveness, consensus and consistency can prove useful.
In other words, the determination of causation is achieved through judgement on the three
factors:
(1) Distinctiveness whether an individual displays different behaviours in different
situations. In other words, it answers the question: does the person
engage in the behaviour in many instances or is the behaviour
distinct to one situation?
(2) Consensus the degree to which people behave in the same way in a given
situation. That is: Are all other people engaging in the same
pattern of behaviour or is the behaviour unique to the person?
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(3) Consistency the degree to which an individual responds in the same way over
time. It answers the question: does the person exhibit or engage in
the behaviour regularly and consistently?
2.5.2 Making Judgement on Others
No doubt, you will share the opinion that for most people we know, we have at hand information
about consistency, consensus and distinctiveness; in which circumstances it is not difficult to
place judgement on people we know. However, while judging the behaviour of others, we often
have a tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors (fundamental attribution
error) and when judging our behaviour, we tend to attribute our success to internal causes and
failures to external causes (self serving bias). Quite often, we also have recourse to shortcuts in
judging others.
Shortcuts in judging others include the following:
(1) Selective perception selective interpretation is based upon an individual’s interests,
background, experience and attitudes.
(2) Projection involves attributing one’s own characteristics to others.
(3) Stereotyping involves judging someone based on one’s perception of the group
to which that person belongs.
(4) Halo effect means drawing a general impression about an individual based
upon a single characteristic.
(5) Contrast effects involves the evaluation of a person’s characteristics that are
affected by comparisons with other people recently encountered
who rank higher or lower on the same characteristics. For example,
one often compares oneself to a movie star or football player, etc.
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Perception is also an important aspect of decision-making. Indeed, perception can be regarded as
a decision-making process since perception involves deciding on the need to make a decision, on
the type of information needed, on the analysis of information and on the judgement of the
degree to which a solution is satisfactory. In the next section, we explore some aspects of
individual decision-making.
Activity 9
Is it common for people to use shortcuts in judging others? Explain your answer.
Mention the shortcuts that you commonly use and explain why.
2.6 DECISION MAKING
Decision-making is one of the most important tasks that both the individuals and organisations
have to carry out in every day life. Decision-making happens because alternative courses of
action exist to solve a particular problem or clarify a situation. We have recourse to decision
making both at the level of the individual and as a member of a group or organisation whenever
a problem arises or there is anticipation that a problem will occur. Robbins (1998) defines a
problem as being a discrepancy between some current state of affairs and some desired state.
Let us discuss some of the most important issues that are related to decision-making.
Decision-making is regarded as a process and as such, there is a sequence to follow in order to
actually make the decision.
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Generally, decision-making has been described to involve:
1. Definition of the problem
2. Analysis of the problem
3. Development of alternate solutions
4. Deciding on the best solution through an evaluation of alternate solutions developed
5. Converting decisions into effective actions
In other words, in decision-making, the problem is first defined and analysed. Alternative
solutions are developed to solve the problem. Each alternative solution is examined further to
assess their implication on the organisation and its resources. The best or optimum solution is
chosen and action taken to implement the decision. It will be noted that information is required
in each one of these phases. Decision making models differ on the extent of search of
information; for example the rational decision model requires extensive information, while the
bounded rational model requires lesser information and the intuitive or impulsive decision
making requires relatively the least amount of information (although this is compensated by the
experience of the decision maker), before a decision is made.
Further, decision-making usually results in the need to review decisions to be made, in the light
of changing circumstances. Feedback and circular loops are normally incorporated into the
model. Whenever there are changes in the environment and context in which the initial decision
was made, the decision is reviewed and modified accordingly. Decision-making becomes thus
iterative, flexible and dynamic.
2.6.1 Individual Decision Making Versus Organisational Decision Making
In studying organisations, we have to acknowledge that decision-making takes place at both the
individual and organisational levels. The quality of organisational decision making largely
depends on the choices that managers and administrators make concerning how decisions should
be made. Researchers have identified several models of decision-making. A few of these
models are discussed in this section.
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2.6.2 Rational Decision Making Model
The rational decision making model describes what individuals must do in order to maximise
some outcome. Rational decision-making is an orderly rational process in which the steps in the
process follow each other in an orderly, sequential way. Robbins (1998) proposes six steps in the
rational decision-making model. They are:
1. Define the problem.
2. Identify the decision criteria.
3. Allocate weights to the criteria.
4. Develop the alternatives.
5. Evaluate the alternatives.
6. Select the best alternative.
The steps are more or less self-explanatory. In case of difficulty, please refer to the relevant
Chapter on decision making in the recommended textbook or any other textbook on Management
or Organisational Behaviour. We shall look at some other important aspects in connection with
the rational model.
In case the decision-making is to be assigned to a group of individuals, it is first important to
decide on who should participate in the decision-making process or who should be the members
of the group to which the responsibility is entrusted. In so doing, it is important to check
whether potential participants desire to participate or to be involved. Possibilities exist that
people may be indifferent or insensitive about the decision that is being taken. These people
would not fit well in a rational decision-making process. For better outcomes, people should be
involved in decisions about which they are likely to be sensitive and have a high personal stake
in the outcomes. The challenge for managers becomes one of deciding wisely when to involve
others and when to make decisions themselves.
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Participation can vary from:
(1) Discussion members are involved in discussion but the manager
decides.
(2) Information seeking manager seeks information to facilitate the decision-making
of members.
(3) Democratic centralist members are actively involved in discussion and the
manager makes the decision that will reflect members’
interests.
(4) Parliamentarian members are fully involved and vote on decision.
(5) Participant-determining decision is made through group consensus.
The first two methods are useful when the decisions fall within the participants’ zone of
indifference.
Note that participative decision-making requires high levels of interpersonal skills. For the most
involving methods, trust-building, conflict management, problem solving and open
communication form a minimal set of skills required by individual participants.
2.6.3 The Bounded Rational Decision Making Model
The Bounded Rational Decision Making Model assumes that decision makers have a number of
constraints and limitations in their search for complete information before a decision is taken.
For instance, such constraints may be costs involved, time availability, and one cannot have
complete information about alternative solutions and their implications, etc.
Because of these limitations, decision makers do not consider all possible alternatives and
therefore do not choose an alternative that maximises a goal. Instead they may choose an
alternative that is good enough to reach the goal.
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The Bounded Rationality Model is both open and dynamic – decision makers act on changes
taking place in the environment. Whenever new information comes in, decision makers take
necessary actions such as the aim of the decision problem and the set of alternatives.
Let us now review some other models of decision-making.
2.6.4 Other Models of Decision Making
1. Participative decision-making
Rationality in decision-making fits well with a bureaucratic view of organisations where
there are established rules, regulations and procedures and decision-making relates more
to routine and structured problems. An alternative view is a human resource or
participative decision making model, which takes into account such aspects as the beliefs
and motivations of people in organisations, and the influence and interaction between
organisational environment and people. Owens (1995) notes.
Whereas those who choose to use classical bureaucratic perspectives on
organisation continue to push hard for reducing ambiguity through
increasing use of rules and close surveillance, striving for greater logic
and predictability through more planning, increased specification of
objectives, and tighter hierarchical control, contemporary best thinking in
management emphasises tapping the inner motivations and abilities of
participants while recognising that disorder and illogic are often ordinary
characteristics of effective organisations. Taken together, the
assumptions of human resource development constitute a theory of
decision-making, the centrepiece of which is participative methods.
Participative decision-making relies on a different view of power relationships to that of a
traditional bureaucracy. The participative model is based on the premise that the
manager and others in the organisation have more or less equal power and influence. The
influence of the manager in the decision-making process diminishes as we move from an
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autocratic to a group process view. In participative decision-making, the way decisions
are to be made needs to be explicitly stated and agreed upon by members (e.g. consensus,
democratic, administrator). Moreover, it must be established who is/are the person/s
who is/are to be entrusted with the responsibility of identifying problems. Obviously, it
must be appreciated that not all problems have to be solved in a participative way.
Routine problems that are relatively unambiguous, with clear elements and boundaries,
and manageable by one person, are often best solved by an experienced and
knowledgeable person. The opposite of routine problems are emergent problems, and
these are readily amenable to the use of participative decision-making methods.
In deciding who should participate, Owens argues for three tests:
I. The test of relevance personal stake of participants is high
II. The test of expertise personal expertise in area is high
III. The test of jurisdiction person has formal jurisdiction in area
This is a rational model that assumes that there is a clear goal, that all options are known,
that preferences are clear and constant, and that the final choice will maximise the
outcome.
2. Satisficing Model
In the satisficing model of decision-making, the first solution that is “good enough” is
chosen. Thus a satisfactory and sufficient solution is chosen. This model results in a
solution that emerges from an incomplete review of all possibilities. It is a rational
process, but one that has boundaries and does not consider all possibilities. Experience
and judgement play a significant role in this model.
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3. Implicit Favourite Model
Here a preferred alternative is implicitly selected early in the decision process. However,
there may be biases in the evaluation of other choices. This model involves the early
closure of the evaluation of alternative solutions and, is thus not a rational or objective
process.
4. Intuitive Model
An unconscious process created out of experience. Rational analysis may still be
involved. This model is seen to work well in situations where there is little or minimal
information, high uncertainty, new situations and/or little time available in which to make
decisions.
Activity 10
(i) Imagine a situation where you have to take a major decision as
(a) An individual
(b) A member of a group
(ii) Jot down the processes or steps that you followed in making the decision.
(iii) Of what relevance have the models discussed above been to the decision making
process in each case.
(iv) What approach to decision making would you recommend? Justify your choice.
Individual and Group Decision Making
There are many factors that can explain individual versus group decision making.
They are: type of decision; knowledge and experience of people involved and the type of
decision process involved.
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Both situations involve problems as well as benefits. The degree of participation by employees
remains an important consideration. People, as individuals, like to have a say in what affects
them.
2.7 KEY CONCEPTS
Age – Biographical Characteristics
Birth – Order, Decision-Making
Gender
Nature
Nurture
Personality and Personality Theories
Perception
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UNIT 3 THE INDIVIDUALS IN ORGANISATION: VALUES, ATTITUDES AND JOB SATISFACTION
Unit Structure
3.0 Overview
3.1 Learning Objectives
3.2 Introduction to Core Concepts
3.3 Defining Values
3.3.1 Development of Values and Value Systems
3.3.1.1 Changes in Individual Values Over Time
3.3.1.2 Changes in Social Values Over Time
3.4 Attitudes
3.4.1 The Components of Attitudes
3.4.2 Attitudes and Consistency
3.4.3 Types of Attitudes
3.5 Job Satisfaction
3.5.1 Job Satisfaction as a Dependent Variable
3.5.2 Job Satisfaction as an Independent Variable
3.6 Key Concepts
3.0 OVERVIEW
In this Unit, you will learn how values, attitudes and job satisfaction influence individuals. The
importance of each one of these attributes to both the individuals and managers of organisations
is stressed. You will notice that your own experience of life (both past and present) will help
you to understand the Unit better. In fact, a number of activities will require you to relate to such
experience. You are strongly advised to spend the necessary time to complete each activity.
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3.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1. Explain the source of an individual’s value system.
2. List the dominant values in today’s workforce.
3. Describe the three primary job-related attitudes.
4. Understand the relationship between attitudes and behaviour.
5. Identify the role consistency plays in attitudes.
6. Clarify how individuals reconcile inconsistencies.
7. Explain what determines job satisfaction.
8. Appreciate the relationship between job satisfaction and behaviour.
9. Identify employee responses to dissatisfaction.
3.2 INTRODUCTION TO CORE CONCEPTS
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
ATTITUDES: evaluative statements or judgements concerning objects, people or
events
JOB SATISFACTION: a feeling of comfort experienced by the employee with both the
content and the conditions of work.
Warm – Up Activity
(i) Jot down what comes to your mind when the terms values and attitudes are mentioned to
you.
(ii) Compare your list with that of your friends. What conclusion can you draw?
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3.3 DEFINING VALUES
Is it right or wrong to take the life of someone who has cold-bloodedly killed someone else?
While it is clear for some that it is a perfect thing to do, others argue that no one has the right to
take anyone’s life. Along the same argument is it okay for someone to be autocratic and make
an abuse of power? These examples are related to values.
Robbins (1998) explains values as representing:
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.
In other words, values contain a judgemental element in that they carry an individual’s ideas as
to what is right, wrong, good, bad, or desirable and undesirable. Values reflect both content and
intensity attributes. The content attribute assumes that a mode of conduct or end-state of
existence is important. The intensity attribute specifies how important it is. The value system of
a person represents the rank of an individual’s values in terms of their intensity. We all have a set
and hierarchy of values that reflects our value system. The relative importance we assign to such
values as peace, honesty, ethics, freedom, pleasure, trust, and equality is an example of our value
system. For instance, one may give great importance to peaceful living, honesty, hates to have
complete freedom, and is not happy to trust someone blindly.
Importance of Values
Values help us to understand the attitudes and motivation of an individual. This is important for
managers as both attitudes and motivation assist in predicting the behaviour of the individual at
work. For example, any person who values honesty and hard work may be placed in a position
of responsibility with minimum fear about any kind of theft or malpractices. On the other hand,
if it is known that someone is not ethical and is likely to accept bribes or ask for commissions
from customers to provide service to them and yet the organisation has to retain the service of
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that person for some reason; the manager would be well advised to ensure that this person is duly
supervised and not allowed to take decisions on his or her own. A person who values work and
responsibility may be appointed in positions where initiative is required. Further, it must be
appreciated that when an individual joins an organisation he or she has his or her own values.
The organisation also has a set of values and norms. If the values of both (the individual and the
organisation) match each other, then harmony results or else if there is a mismatch, this may
result in frustration and or dissatisfaction.
Values also influence our perceptions. Perception and its influence in organisation have been
discussed in Unit 2. Revise the section on perception to understand why it is important for
managers to know about values and its relation with perception.
The origin of our value system
A good part of our value system comes from our genes, while the rest is attributable to a number
of factors such as the national culture, parental influences as well as those of our teachers,
friends, neighbours, and other similar factors.
It has been shown that twins who have grown up separately from one another exhibit the same
value pattern at work, thus showing that genetics have some role to play in explaining the value
system of individuals. However, it has also been demonstrated that a good part of this value
system is not explained by genetics, implying that most of the variation in values is due to
environmental factors.
When we were children, we were often told, “You should always eat everything that is in your
dinner plate.” We have developed this habit and to many of us this still prevails: we make sure
that we finish our plate completely to avoid wasting food. This shows that certain values develop
over time. These values are either continuously reinforced or if circumstances change, they also
change. For example, as you grow richer and improve your means, you tend to forget about the
necessity of not wasting food. There are also several societal values that many of us consider
important and desirable; for example, growth and self-development, peace, cooperation, equity,
62
and democracy. These values do not remain fixed although when they change, they do so quite
slowly.
It remains without doubt that many of the values that we hold have been established in our early
days from parents, teachers, friends, neighbours, and others. For example, for many of us the
scare of electrical shocks and fire has its roots from our early warnings of what is right and
wrong as formulated from the fears expressed by your parents.
Activity 1
Take some time to reflect on your value system.
(i) What are its main elements, that is, what are the things that you value the most? Jot them
down.
(ii) What are the origins of some of the elements that you have jotted down?
(iii) What values managers need to have? Explain your answer.
3.3.1 Development of Values and Value Systems
Milton Rokeach created the Rokeach Value Survey (RVS). The RVS consists of two sets of
values, with each set containing 18 individual value items.
One set, called terminal values, refers to desirable end-states of existence. These are the goals
that a person would like to achieve during his or her lifetime.
The other set, called instrumental values, refers to preferable modes of behaviour, or means of
achieving the terminal values. Exhibit 3-1 gives common examples for each of these sets.
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Exhibit 3.1:
Terminal and Instrumental Values in Rokeach Value Survey
Terminal Values Instrumental Values
A comfortable life (a prosperous life) Ambitious (hardworking, aspiring)
An exciting life (a stimulating, active life) Broad-minded (open-minded)
A sense of accomplishment (lasting contribution) Capable (competent, effective)
A world at peace (free of war and conflict) Cheerful (light-hearted, joyful)
A world of beauty (beauty of nature and the arts) Clean (neat, tidy)
Equality (brotherhood, equal opportunity for all) Courageous (standing up for your beliefs)
Family security (taking care of loved ones) Forgiving (willing to pardon others)
Freedom (independence, free choice) Helpful (working for the welfare of others)
Happiness (contentedness) Honest (sincere, truthful)
Inner harmony (freedom from inner conflict) Imaginative (daring, creative)
Mature love (sexual and spiritual intimacy) Independent (self-reliant, self-sufficient)
National security (protection from attack) Intellectual (intelligent, reflective)
Pleasure (an enjoyable, leisurely life) Logical (consistent, rational)
Salvation (saved, eternal life) Loving (affectionate, tender)
Self-respect (self-esteem) Obedient (dutiful, respectful)
Social recognition (respect, admiration) Polite (courteous, well-mannered)
True friendship (close companionship) Responsible (dependable, reliable)
Wisdom (a mature understanding of life) Self-controlled (restrained, self-disciplined)
Source: M. Rokeach, The Nature of Human Values (New York: The Free Press, 1973).
Several studies confirm that the RVS values vary among groups, although people in the same
occupations or categories (e.g., executive managers, union members, parents, students) tend to
hold similar values.
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Activity 2
Refer to Exhibit 3.1 on value systems.
1. Give at least five examples of your
(a) terminal values
(b) instrumental values.
2. Compare your answers with those of your friends. Comment on your findings.
3.3.1.1 Changes in Individual Values Over Time
Values change over time. Several factors occasion such changes.
Some of these are the influence of:
Parents
Relatives
Teachers
Friends
Peer Groups
You have your own experience on how the influence of each of the above has changed or
reinforced your values over time. It is important to note that at any point in time these influences
may have important bearings on our values. When you are exposed to other value systems (as
reflected by the value system of each of the above as well as the others in your environment,
including the organisational one), your own value system may remain same, reinforce or alter.
This is why it is desirable that we remain alert about such influences, for the value system may
be changed for the better or for the worse. Whenever it is for the better, then there is nothing to
worry about, while if it is for the worse then you have to be very careful. Remember, managers
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do refer to your value system or would want to know about it at work. Your value system also
leads the way to success or downfall.
Activity 3
Think back to your early views on such topics as education, sex, politics and work.
(i) Where did these values come from?
(ii) How do you think they have changed over time? Record your conclusion.
(iii) What have occasioned these changes?
Research has shown that values are relatively stable and enduring. This has been explained
because of both their genetic component and the way in which they have been inculcated in our
mind – for instance from the days of our childhood, we were told that certain behaviours or
outcomes were always desirable or always undesirable. They were expressed in simple terms,
that were easily understood and towards which we make our own interpretation and effort to
abide. For example, when we were told that we should not tell lies, we did try not to tell lies in
certain circumstances while we did have recourse to lies in other circumstances (even if we kept
our fingers crossed behind our back). This is to say that values do change over time, depending
on circumstances.
We also often put into question our values. Often this may result in a change. We may decide
that the underlying convictions we had about certain things do not hold anymore or are no longer
acceptable. However, more often than not our questioning helps in fact to reinforce those values
we hold. Values become thus relatively stable and enduring.
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3.3.1.2 Changes in Social Values Over Time
The following provides examples of the changes that have taken place on the value system of
certain population over the years.
Protestant Work Ethic (40s - 50s)
hard working, conservative (they probably could not afford to act differently)
loyalty to the organisation
Existentialism (60s - mid 70s)
non-conforming, concerned with quality of life, autonomy
loyalty to self
Pragmatism (mid70s - 90s)
concerned with success and achievement
loyalty to career
Symmetry (mid80s - present)
concerned with flexibility, job satisfaction, leisure time
loyalty to relationships
It is important for managers to understand that individuals’ values differ from each other but they
tend to reflect the societal values of the period in which the individuals grew up as it assists in
explaining and particularly predicting behaviour. For instance, employees who are in their
thirties and sixties are more likely to be conservative and accepting authority than their existing
co-workers in their forties. Employees under 30 are more likely than the other groups to grumble
at having to work over weekends and are more prone to leave a job in mid-career to pursue
another one that provides more leisure time.
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Values Across Cultures
As organisations pursue their journey across national boundaries and become global, managers
will have to have increased interactions with people from different cultures. As values differ
across cultures, an understanding of these differences is a pre requirement if not a prerequisite
for managers to be able to predict the behaviour of employees from different countries. Robbins
(1998) provides a useful comparison of American and Japanese cultures and explains the
importance of this comparison to managers.
“American children are taught early the values of individuality and uniqueness. In contrast,
Japanese children are indoctrinated to be “team players,” to work within the group, and to
conform. A significant part of an American student’s education is to learn to think, analyse, and
question. Their Japanese counterparts are rewarded for recounting facts. These different
socialisation practices reflect different cultures and, not surprisingly, result in different types of
employees. The average U.S. worker is more competitive and self-focused than the Japanese
worker. Predictions of employee behaviour, based on U.S. workers, are likely to be off-target
when they are applied to a population of employees — such as the Japanese — who prefer and
perform better in standardised tasks, as part of a work team, with group-based decisions and
rewards”.
Activity 4
(i) Reflect on some of your values you had some five years back. Record them.
(ii) Have they undergone any change during the recent-past? What have occasioned these
changes? Record your conclusion.
Let us now try to understand “attitude” and its importance and relevance in organisational
behaviour.
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3.4 ATTITUDES
Although the meaning of the term attitude may not indicate anything to you, yet you must be
aware that you do hold attitude towards many people, issues and events, etc. For instance you
have attitude towards tea, milk, coffee, your teachers, your neighbours etc.
Robbins (1998) explains the term attitude as:
Attitudes are evaluative statements - either favourable or unfavourable- concerning
objects, people and events. They reflect how one feels about something.
An attitude is a fairly stable emotional tendency or an individual’s feelings, thoughts and
predispositions to act toward some aspect of his or her environment. It is stable or regular in that
we tend to act towards the same stimuli in much the same way over time. We do not change our
attitude very rapidly. For example, if we have been refusing to taste tea for sometime, we are not
likely to change our attitude towards tea, although this does not mean that we will never change
this attitude – we may or we may not. Attitudes are more likely to be focused on specific things
and events. We all make judgements about people, issues and events in certain specific
circumstances.
Characteristics of Attitudes
Attitudes convey feelings, thoughts and behavioural tendency towards other people, concepts
and situations in the environment. They are usually learned or acquired from family, friends and
groups to which we belong. In principle attitudes are hypothetical constructs (made up of a
belief component and a value component) and tend to influence us in an automatic, unconscious
way. In many circumstances, judgement that we make on others comes through spontaneously,
often on an impulse and without a real wish to make such judgement. In other cases, we have
predispositions on behaviours that we wish to show or judgements that we have made about
certain people and events and these remain anchored in us to guide or determine our behaviour.
We may have for example very strong attitude about a particular brand or an event that is about
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to take place (a meeting for instance) and we decide firmly how we wish to behave or the stand
we wish to take about them.
Activity 5
Reflect on your attitude towards a person or an event close or known to you.
What comes to your mind? Please record your answer.
3.4.1 The Components of Attitudes
An attitude has three separate but related parts. They are the: cognitive, affective and
behavioural components.
These are briefly explained here:
• Cognitive
This represents the perceptions and beliefs that we have towards the object or person for
which we express an attitude. For example we may perceive tea to have a disgusting
colour and taste and we may believe that tea does not have anything to do with good
health.
• Affective
The affective component represents the evaluation and feelings we have about the object
or person, for instance a feeling of like and dislike. For example, I dislike tea because it
has a bad taste and it does not do anything to improve my health or keep me in good
health.
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• Behavioural
The behavioural component determines how the person forming the attitude intends to
behave and what opinion he or she has about the object or person towards which an
attitude is being developed. For example, I prefer not to be offered tea or be in the
presence of tea because I dislike tea and I would not want to be tempted to actually have
tea.
Attitude Formation and change
From the above, it is clear that attitude that we form about someone or something is the result of
the beliefs and knowledge (amount and type of information) that we have about it. For example,
if we have negative beliefs about an object, we normally form a negative attitude about it.
However, if we feel that the object has positive attributes, the emerging attitude may be positive.
The beliefs that we have about an object are derived from several sources, such as family
upbringing, our own direct experience, social and work groups as well as other social
experiences. Information about the object for which we form the attitude can come from
primary sources such as observations and experiences and or secondary sources such as
newspapers, magazines, radio, television, movies etc. If the information we have about the
object associates positive attributes with it, then we may form a positive attitude towards the
object.
Attitudes are dynamic and do change over time, although the change may not be that quick. In
everyday life we often try to change the attitude of others and we also change our own attitude.
Changes in attitude best occur through a communicator who tries to make use of persuasion of
some form to change the beliefs, values or information of a person who supports a presently held
attitude. For example, marketing managers have recourse to promotional tools such as
advertising and personal selling to persuade people to change their attitudes towards their
brands or products. Quite often we cause attitudes to change by changing our own behaviour.
Management by example provides one good illustration for this: if the manager comes early to
work or does not throw litter on the floor, subordinates will tend to adopt the same attitude; even
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if prior to observing such attitudes, they were used to come to work late or throw things here and
there.
Activity 6
(i) Think of some organisational circumstances where attitudes need to be changed. List
them.
(ii) How would you bring about the changes?
3.4.2 Attitudes and Consistency
People have a tendency to behave in such manners that are seen to conform to what they say.
For instance, if a person says that he/she does not smoke, the person will try not to smoke in
public or at least in front of those to whom he has admitted such a thing. Or if you have been
saying that green is not an appropriate colour for a shirt and you are presented with a green shirt,
you may change your attitude about green shirt and start arguing that it is nice.
This suggests that people do try to show or seek consistency in as far as their attitudes and
behaviours are concerned. Thus, the consistency principle:
The Consistency Principle individuals seek to reconcile divergent attitudes and align their
attitudes and behaviour so they appear rational and consistent
However, it must be appreciated that an individual’s behaviour towards an object or person may
and do change. Consistency principle does not apply then and instead there is cognitive
dissonance.
Cognitive Dissonance any incompatibility between two or more attitudes or between
behaviour and attitudes
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For example, it may happen that after wearing the green shirt two or three times, you change
your mind again and start feeling uncomfortable in a green shirt. This brings dissonance – that is
an inconsistency between what you feel and what you do. Cognitive dissonance reflects the
incompatibility between your attitude towards green shirts and the behaviour (you are wearing
one).
In most cases, individuals try to minimise the effects of dissonance – please note that it is not
possible to completely avoid dissonance. There are many things that we do for which we have
regrets afterwards. What we try to do is to find explanations or some kind of comforts so as to
minimise the dissonance.
3.4.3 Types of Attitudes
We all have numerous attitudes towards numerous people and objects. In the study of
organisational behaviour, we are mainly concerned with three types of attitudes, namely:
1. Job Satisfaction
2. Job Involvement
3. Organisational Commitment
Let us have a closer look on these.
Job Satisfaction
Job satisfaction refers to a collection of attitudes that employees have and form towards
their jobs. For example, someone who derives a high level of satisfaction from his or her
job normally holds positive attitude towards it. However, it must be noted that there are
several facets that are associated with a job and an organisation. For example, an
employee may have a very positive attitude towards his or her job but then holds negative
attitudes towards a manager or supervisor or the organisation itself.
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Because of the importance of job satisfaction in today’s working environment, the topic
is discussed in some more details in the next Section.
Job Involvement
Robbins (1998) defines job involvement as
The degree to which a person identifies with his or her job, actively participates
in it, and considers his or her performance important to self- worth.
In other words, job involvement represents the level of participation and commitment a
person has towards his or her job. High levels of involvement would be reflected by a
person really caring for the work he or she does.
Organisational Commitment
Organisational commitment reflects the degree to which a person is committed to a
particular organisation. The person does not hesitate to identify himself/herself with the
organisation (I work for MCB, instead of saying I work in a bank or as a manager).
Further the person is committed to work towards the organisational’s goals and objectives
and desires to continue being associated with the organisation. However, this does not
necessarily mean that the person is entirely satisfied with his or her job. There may be
differences in as far as the job and job satisfaction is concerned, but the person is happy
to be committed to the cause of the organisation.
Activity 7
(i) Discuss how the attitude adopted by individuals at work could positively or negatively
influence the following parameters at work:
1. Job satisfaction
2. Job involvement
3. Organisational commitment.
(ii) From your discussion, what general conclusions can you draw about attitude at work?
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3.5 JOB SATISFACTION
Job satisfaction has become such a buzzword lately that much attention has been devoted to
address the issue. Among these are the several attempts that have been made to find the relation
between job satisfaction and a number of other parameters.
For instance, research has been carried out to determine the following relationship:
Job Satisfaction as a Dependent Variable, meaning what work-related variables
determines or influences job satisfaction
Job Satisfaction as an Independent Variable implying the impact or influence of job
satisfaction on other work-related variables
3.5.1 Job Satisfaction as a Dependent Variable
Robbins (1998) reports that job satisfaction has been seen to be dependent on the following
parameters.
Mentally Challenging Work
People normally find increased satisfaction in work that presents some challenges to
them. Work that does not offer any challenge leads to boredom and work that are too
challenging may lead to frustration and sometimes fear of not being able to accomplish.
Managers have to strike the right balance.
Equitable Rewards
You will study in the Unit on Motivation the importance of the equity theory in
organisation. Briefly, individuals derive increased satisfaction when they are rewarded
equitably for the work that they perform and when they are treated equitably vis-a-vis
others in the organisation.
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Supportive Working Conditions
Working conditions have been qualified as a hygiene factor by Herzberg, meaning that
people attach much importance to them and they could be factors that may not cause
motivation and satisfaction. People expect to have good working conditions: nice and
adequate office space, flexibility, incentives, lesser supervision, etc.
Supportive Fellow Employees
It has been shown that one of the basic needs of people is socialisation. The work place
provides ample opportunity for socialisation. Accordingly, if colleagues support, help
and befriend one another, it is expected that this would lead to enhanced job satisfaction.
Personality-Job Fit
It is important to match people to jobs. In other words, people must feel at ease in
performing their tasks. They have to have the skills and the appropriate personality that is
required for the job. If not training must be provided. It is expected that the matching of
personality and job would result in improved job satisfaction.
Activity 8
(i) Define job satisfaction. Provide suitable illustrations to exemplify how the parameters
listed above influence job satisfaction.
(ii) Discuss these with your classmates and draw some conclusions.
3.5.2 Job Satisfaction as an Independent Variable
Satisfaction & Productivity
Most research reveals a positive relationship between job satisfaction and productivity.
This may be summed up by the common saying: a happy worker is a productive one.
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Satisfaction & Absenteeism
Research also shows that increased job satisfaction leads to lesser absenteeism. When
people are happy with their jobs, they tend to make “going to work” as a normal routine
of their life and therefore they will look forward to it. In fact they fell something missing
if they do not attend work.
Satisfaction & Turnover
Satisfied employees tend to stay longer in their job as compared to those who are not
satisfied. In other words there is a negative relationship between job satisfaction and
turnover.
3.6 KEY CONCEPTS
Attitude and Attitude Formation
Attributes
Cultures
Job Satisfaction, Motivation, Norms
Productivity
Role
Values and Value System
Pragmatism
Affective, Cognitive, Behavioural
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UNIT 4 LEARNING AND LEARNING ORGANISATIONS
Unit Structure
4.0 Overview
4.1 Learning Objectives
4.2 Introduction to Learning
4.2.1 Meaning of Learning
4.2.2 Definition of Learning
4.3 Learning Theories
4.3.1 The Behaviourist Approach
4.3.2 The Cognitive Approach
4.3.3 The Social Learning Approach
4.3.4 The Organisational Learning
4.4 Learning Styles
4.5 Effective Learning
4.6 Learning Organisations
4.6.1 Organisation Learning Theories
4.7 The Organisational Learning Context
4.7.1 Creating a Learning Culture
4.7.2 Organisational Vision
4.7.3 Structuring for Learning and Knowledge Management
4.8 Key Concepts
4.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit will introduce you to the concept of learning and its importance for organisations. You
will learn the different theories put forward to explain how individuals and organisations learn.
You will also learn about knowledge management and its implications for organisations.
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4.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1. Define learning.
2. State the importance of learning.
3. Explain the learning theories and styles.
4. Explain how organisations learn.
5. Develop an understanding of knowledge management.
6. Explain how to structure organisations for learning and knowledge management.
Warm-Up Activity
What does learning convey to your mind and imagination?
4.2 INTRODUCTION TO LEARNING
At every moment of our life, we are directly or indirectly a player or a spectator in life’s drama.
Learning occupies a significant place in our life to enable us to cope with the roles that we have
to play. To be able to interpret and predict behaviour of people, we need to understand how they
learn. This Unit will explain to you the concept of learning as well as the learning process.
As far as learning is concerned, we unanimously acknowledge that:
Learning is living; learning is “growing”.
When we stop learning, we stop growing and we stop living.
We all learn differently, the effects of learning are also different on us; but there are some
basic models or forms of learning that are common to all of us.
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4.2.1 Meaning of Learning
Learning is the process of modifying our knowledge, its amount, and structure; it also involves
alteration in our values, emotions, attitudes, and skills. It may be regarded as the process
whereby individuals acquire knowledge, skills through experience, reflection, study and
instruction. The learning process is crucial to all organisms, including people, since it helps us
adapt to changing conditions in the world.
Expressed briefly, learning involves:
1. An intellectual/cognitive process (Greek philosophers: Plato and Aristotle).
2. An emotional process (J. J. Rousseau).
3. Storing or remembering, forgetting & applying knowledge.
4.2.2 Definition of Learning
Specifically, Cole (1998) defines learning as:
Learning is a process by which people acquire knowledge, understanding, skills and
values, and apply them to solve problems throughout their daily life. The learning
process engages an individual’s emotional as well as intellectual dimensions, and
enables him or her to control, or adapt to the environment. Whilst much individual
learning is put into store, most learning leads to behaviour, which can be recognised and
assessed.
Other definitions have been given by different authors, namely:
Learning is a relatively permanent change in behaviour that occurs as a result of
practice or experience.
(Bass and Vaughan, 1967).
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Learning is defined as a relatively permanent change in a person as a result of
experience.
(Wood, 1998).
The definitions suggest the following about learning:
• Learning as a natural, normal process (acquired by experience).
• Learning as a formal, deliberate process (acquired from lectures, courses, etc).
• It is both a personal and a social process.
• It is an internal process with external factors influencing it.
• Learning brings relatively permanent change in a person.
Activity 1
Recall the early days of your life.
(i) When did you start learning? How did you learn? Could you recall situations when you
stopped learning?
(ii) What conclusions can you draw about learning in general?
4.3 LEARNING THEORIES
Several theories have been proposed to explain the process by which we learn and acquire
patterns of behaviour.
Some of these theories are:
(1) Classical conditioning theory (I. Pavlov, 1927; E. L. Thornedike, 1911).
(2) Operant conditioning theory (B. F. Skinner, 1969).
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(3) Cognitive theories (C. Rogers, 1979)
(4) Social learning theories (I. Bandura, 1977)
Before examining organisational learning further, let us discuss these theories briefly.
The notion of learning requires elaboration, with two fundamentally conflicting theories existing
(Jackson, 1993): the behaviourist and the cognitive.
4.3.1 The Behaviourist Approach
The behaviourist or stimulus response approach is based on the view that learning takes place in
response to changing stimuli in the competitive environment. The Classical conditioning theory
(I. Pavlov; E. L. Thornedike) and the Operant conditioning theory (B. F. Skinner) are the main
ones that have been developed under this school of thought to explain learning.
It must be noted that most of the experiments of these behaviourists were carried out on animals
(for example, dogs, cats, rats, pigeons, etc). For instance, the Classical conditioning theory came
forward from experiments carried out by a Russian physiologist, Ivan Pavlov to teach dogs to
salivate in response to the ringing of a bell. When Pavlov showed the dogs a piece of meat, the
dogs responded by a noticeable increase in salivation. When Pavlov withheld the presentation of
meat and merely rang a bell, the dogs did not salivate. Pavlov then linked the meat and the
ringing of the bell. After repeatedly hearing the bell before getting the meat, the dogs began to
salivate as soon as the bell rang. After a few sessions, the dogs would salivate merely at the
sound of the bell, even when no food was presented. The experiment showed that the dog had
learned to respond (salivation being the indicator) to the ringing of bell. Effectively, the dogs
have made a conditioned response to the bell (that represents a conditioned stimulus).
Thorndike carried out his experiment with cats, whereby a hungry cat was put in a cage that
contained only one exit point. A plate of food was placed outside the cage. The cat struggled to
get out of the cage to reach the food. Initially, it took the cat time to get to know the exact
location of the escape mechanism to reach the food, but gradually the cat got closer until it went
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straight to the escape mechanism. This experiment showed that the cat was more concerned with
the response (escape behaviour) than the stimulus, as was the case in classical conditioning. The
process was called operant conditioning. Thorndike also came forward with the Law of Effect,
which states that when a response is followed by a reward, the response is likely to be repeated
in similar circumstances. This suggests that reinforcement (measures applied or taken in order
to strengthen a response) helps the learning process positively.
The contribution of Skinner, an American psychologist, to human learning must also be
mentioned here. In fact, Skinner carried out experiments on rats, pigeons and eventually human
beings, on the reinforcement aspect of operant conditioning. He viewed reinforcement in terms
of providing positive rewards (expression of satisfaction, recognition, etc) and eliminating
negative rewards (punishment, criticism, etc). Skinner concluded that punishment did not
reinforce, as it tends to weaken responses rather than strengthen them. Skinner also introduced
the concept of programmed learning, which is an essentially step-by-step approach to learning
based on a logically constructed programme composed of small, discrete elements (Cole 1998).
In a way, Skinner recommends that learning objectives be well defined so that one knows
precisely what to learn and prompt feedback would ensure whether learning is occurring.
4.3.2 The Cognitive Approach
The cognitive approach implies that the learning process is complex, based on reasoning and
draws on experience, experimentation, activity and analysis. In this approach, organisations
accelerate the learning that takes place by developing their understanding of learning and by
taking steps which expedite the process.
In other words, the cognitive approach views learning as “making sense of issues and situations,
of developing insight and understanding, and of seeing patterns in their environment” (Cole
1998). To the cognitive school of thought, learning involves skills such as mind mapping, use of
intuition and judgement as well as problem solving and decision-making.
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Rogers (1979) was among those who criticised the ideas of the behavioural approach to learning,
which to remind you, views learning as being controlled by factors that are outside the influence
of the individuals and that it is only the result of external stimuli. To Rogers, learning is centred
within the individual and not on the external environment and he views the role of teachers as
facilitating learning rather than directing it.
Cole (1995) reports the following conclusions of Rogers (1979) on learning. These conclusions
were drawn inductively from the observations of people in many different situations.
1. Human beings have a natural potentiality for learning i.e. they are curious.
2. Significant learning takes place when the subject matter is perceived as relevant to the
learner.
3. Learning which involves change in oneself is seen as a threatening and tends to be
resisted.
4. Learning which appears to be threatening is more easily assimilated when the external
threats are at a minimum.
5. Much significant learning is acquired through doing.
6. Learning is facilitated when the learner participates responsibly in the learning process.
7. Self-initiated learning, involving the whole person (feeling as well as intellect), is the
most lasting and pervasive form of learning.
8. Independence, creativity and self-evaluation are in place rather than external assessment.
9. Learning about the process learning, being open to experiences and being comfortable
with change is the most socially useful kind of learning.
10. The role of facilitators in learning is to provide an encouraging climate for learning, to
help people to clarify their purposes and build on their own motivation, to make a wide
range learning resources available (including themselves), to accept feelings as well as
relationalising in the learning process, and, finally to share in the learning process with
their students.
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Activity 2
Reflect on the conclusions drawn on learning by Rogers (1979), listed above.
What deductions can you make about these conclusions from your own personal experience?
Your conclusions Your deductions
Learning takes place in a variety of environments, at different levels and utilises many
approaches. Hilgard and Bower (1967) argue that learning is most effective when a cognitive
approach is adopted, especially where:
Learners see relationships between all the elements in a situation; it starts from related
elements and builds into a more complex whole;
Learning involves understanding rather than rote learning;
Learning tests assumptions;
There are clear goals to learning so that the process is not erratic;
Both convergent and divergent thinking are encouraged so that radical, logical as well as
creative and inventive answers are achieved.
Kolb et al. (1991) support the cognitive viewpoint suggesting that learning is based on concrete
experiences, observation and reflection, formation of concepts and generalisations and testing of
concepts, all of which shape future actions.
4.3.3 The Social Learning Approach
The social learning approach reckons that individuals also learn by observing what happens in
their surrounding, to other people and just by being told about something, as well as by direct
experiences. For example, much of what we have learned comes from watching models -
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parents, teachers, friends, motion pictures, bosses, colleagues, etc. This view that we can learn
through both observations and direct experience has been called social learning theory.
You will note that the social-learning theory is an extension of operant conditioning, in that it
assumes that behaviour is a function of consequences and acknowledges the existence of
observational learning and the importance of perception in learning. People respond to how they
perceive and define consequences not to the objective consequences themselves. (Robbins 1998)
Social learning is very much influenced by the models from which one learns. Robbins (1998)
proposes the following four processes to determine the influence that a model will have on an
individual.
• Attentional Processes People learn from a model only when they
recognise 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.
• Retention Processes A model’s influence will depend on how well the
individual remembers the model’s action after the
model is no longer readily available.
• Motor Reproduction Processes After a person has seen a new behaviour by
observing the model, the watching must be
converted to doing. This process then demonstrates
that the individual can perform the modelled
activities.
• Reinforcement Processes Individuals will be keen to exhibit the modelled
behaviour if positive incentives or rewards are
provided. Behaviours that are positively reinforced
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will be given more attention, learned better, and
performed more often.
4.3.4 The Organisational Learning
In any organisational environment, learning can be both organisational and individual, the former
relying heavily on the latter, meaning that organisations learn through the individuals that
constitute them. However, individual learning is in turn dependent on the learning arrangements
and facilities that exist within the organisation, either accelerating or slowing the learning
processes. Stonehouse and Pemberton (1999) refer to the arrangements for learning as the
“organisational context”, a crucial element of both individual and organisational learning and
facilitating knowledge management within the business.
Managers also have to learn how to manage organisations. As you must be aware, management
education encompasses a broad range of philosophies, techniques, and tools concerned with
enhancing the skills of managers to run their organisations more effectively and efficiently.
Management education sometimes focuses on specific skills (e.g., negotiation, budgeting,
technical), general abilities (e.g., communication, planning, organising, controlling), or personal
development (e.g., leadership, handling stress, time management).
The double-loop learning theory of Argyris is especially relevant to management education.
According to this theory, individuals must learn to make the difference between their perceptions
or intentions and reality. Such learning takes place primarily through interaction with others.
Because of the importance of human interaction in management, social learning theory
(particularly modelling and role playing) provides a general framework for many aspects of
management education. Coaching and mentoring are commonly used management development
techniques that attempt to harness social learning in the workplace.
Theories of adult learning (e.g., Rogers) that emphasise the importance of building upon or
reinforcing the learner's experience are also quite relevant to management education. The
experiential theory of Kolb (1984) suggests that the learning cycle consists of four primary
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stages: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualisation, and active
experimentation. According to Kolb, individual differences in these stages give rise to learning
styles. Learning styles are discussed later in this Unit.
The theoretical framework of action learning has been widely applied to management education.
Action learning is based principally on structured projects in organisations rather than the kind of
instruction received in the classrooms or lecture halls.
The key elements of action learning are:
Commitment to learning (not much can be achieved without commitment and
involvement)
Social interaction (social interaction is important to acquire experience and develop
interpersonal skills)
Action plans (to put into practice what has been learned)
Assessing the results of actions (particularly to get feedback on how things are going and
what must be changed etc)
Creativity and problem solving are considered to be among the most important topics in
management education. A major focus of the lateral thinking approach is to teach managers how
to be more flexible in solving problems. Flexibility in problem solving is necessary because of
the changing environment that brings with it new elements that must always be considered
before a final decision is made; in fact the final decision keeps on changing with changing
circumstances. Thus decision-making is also a critical skill that managers must develop.
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4.4 LEARNING STYLES
Kolb et al (1979) identified four learning styles or preferences. They are:
1. Accommodators
2. Divergers
3. Assimilators
4. Convergers
1. Accommodators
They represent individuals who have strong preferences for concrete experiences and
active experimentation. These people prefer an action-oriented approach to learning.
They would not fit well in circumstances where spoon feeding, etc is involved.
2. Divergers
They are individuals who prefer to make use of their imagination to see things under
different perspectives. They take time to generate ideas and puzzle things out. They are
people who would not accept the first feasible solution to a problem. Rather, they would
try to understand the problem further and they have the patience to generate and examine
alternative solutions and hence improve their knowledge in the process.
3. Assimilators
They are people who like to think and conceptualise. They are motivated to develop
theoretical models and excel in inductive reasoning. They develop experience and
knowledge as they indulge in such activities.
4. Convergers
The convergers are people who lie between abstract conceptualising and active
experimentation. Their greatest strengths lie in putting ideas into practice. They prefer
deductive reasoning and find motivation in testing ideas that have been put into practice.
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The British researchers Honey & Mumford (1982) developed a framework for identifying
learning styles. They collected data from an 80-statement questionnaire, plotted these on a two-
dimensional grid to produce four different styles, as follows:
1. Activists
2. Reflectors
3. Theorists
4. Pragmatists
1. Activists
These persons learn through activity and challenge, and get bored with implementation
and consolidation.
2. Reflectors
These are the thoughtful, cautious types who tend to have a low profile in the
organisation.
3. Theorists
These are the logical thinkers who revel in theories, and are detached and rational in their
problem solving.
4. Pragmatists
These are action-oriented persons who like putting ideas into practice.
Activity 3
How would you define your predominant learning style? Explain your answer.
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4.5 EFFECTIVE LEARNING
One of the most important objectives of learning is to ensure that it results in performance of
observationally learned responses. This can be termed as effective learning. The role of
cognition and interactivity feedback, reinforcements, is extremely important for learning to take
place effectively. Further, it is important that a person engages himself or herself completely in
learning. Confucius said:
“I HEAR AND I FORGET
I SEE AND I REMEMBER
I DO AND I UNDERSTAND”
When you tell your employees what, you get their hands and may be their head; but when you
tell them why, you get their hearts (Dutch Chief Executive officer).
Another reflection that has been made on learning comes from a well-known philosopher John
Dewey:
What avail is it to win prescribed amount of information about geography and history, to
win ability to read and write, if in the process, the individual loses his own sense, loses
his appreciation of things worthwhile, of the values to which these are relative; if he loses
desire to apply what he has learned and, above all, loses the ability to extract meaning
from his future experiences as they occur?
Essentially, the message that is being conveyed from these reflections is that there is no point in
accumulating information and knowledge if they do not serve any purpose and are not applied.
Engaging ourselves fully and making use of all our senses is also important for effective
learning.
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Many of the principles of the way we learn effectively are very much the same. The following
are some considerations to make the learning process effective:
Relevance, Motivation and Interest (be interested and motivated, restrict to what is
relevant)
Learning Objectives And Content (define the purpose of learning, what outcome is
expected)
Guidance And Support (particularly to clear obstacles and frustration)
Methods And Techniques (how to learn, which methodology)
Involvement (commitment and involvement very important for obtaining results, you
must spare time)
Feedback, Reinforcement and Satisfaction (important to follow up to see what is working
and what is not with a view to further up what is being learned)
Activity 4
(i) Use your experience to provide suitable illustrations to exemplify how the factors listed
above can make the learning process more effective. Record your answer for discussions.
The learning theories have provided some insight into the way we learn, emphasising the
importance of reinforcement. Let us now discuss the role of reinforcement in the learning
process.
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Reinforcement
Implicit in all of the learning theories is the concept of reinforcement as a powerful tool in
facilitating learning. The reinforcement comes in the form of feedback to the learner - which
provides knowledge of the consequences of the behaviour. In other words, they are meant to
increase the likelihood that a desired response will be repeated. As a manager, you may wish to
minimise or eliminate certain behaviour in the work place. There are four possible intervention
strategies: positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, extinction and punishment.
Schedule of Reinforcement
Reinforcement may be given at different intervals and times. Managers may wish to have in
place a schedule for the purpose.
Schedules of reinforcement may be on the basis of:
Fixed Interval give reinforcer after specific time passes.
Fixed Ratio give reinforcer after specific number of responses.
Variable Interval give reinforcer at random times.
Variable Ratio give reinforcer after a random number of responses.
The type of activity through which someone learns affects learning. Three main types of activity
are possible. They are:
1. Cognitive Learning That is the learning of knowledge and how to apply it. This
involves problem solving and decision-making.
2. Psychomotor Learning Involving physical skills such as driving a car, giving an
oral presentation. This requires hands on approaches to
learning.
3. Affective Learning That is related to attitudes, values and interests.
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Activity 5
(i) Write short notes on cognitive, psychomotor, and affective learning.
(ii) What can you deduce about these?
As you may be aware, learning organisations is a subject matter that is gathering momentum in
management education. Let us now devote some time to learning organisations.
4.6 LEARNING ORGANISATIONS
Organisational learning is fast becoming the number one tool to achieve and sustain competitive
advantage. However, for this to be effective, organisations need to focus on the essential
elements of the learning process. This Section presents the main features of organisational
learning.
Increasingly, organisations are acknowledging that the role of the manager is expanding in an
increasingly diverse workforce and competition. Initiatives taken by organisations to respond to
the challenge of everyday life and environment indicate that organisations do learn.
According to Wood et al, (1998: 224), to create a learning organisation we have to:
Build a shared vision;
Develop strategies and action plans which will inspire commitment to achieve goals;
Consult continuously to achieve consensus and unity of thought;
Employ systems thinking to ensure the organisation focuses on internal and external
factors that are driving change;
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Create self-directed teams of employees that are supported to make decisions at
appropriate levels.
Activity 6
From examples of your experience, explain how the recommendations proposed by Wood et al,
listed above, can assist the learning process of organisations.
4.6.1 Organisation Learning Theories
Theories of organisational learning owe much to the work of Argyris, Schön and Senge. Argyris
and Schon introduced the concepts of “single-” and “double-”loop learning, while Senge
developed the ideas of “adaptive” and “generative” learning (Argyris, 1977, 1992; Argyris and
Schön, 1978; Senge, 1992).
Single-loop learning simply involves the correction of errors through a feedback loop. This is
very similar to Senge’s concept of adaptive learning which centres on evolutionary changes in
response to developments in the business environment and which are necessary for survival of an
organisation. Such learning does not deliver competitive advantage but is essential to survival.
Double-loop learning is cognitive and goes beyond the immediate solution of problems by
developing principles that may inform and determine future organisational behaviour, and lead to
new ways of doing business (Argyris and Schön, 1978; Argyris, 1992). Generative learning is
concerned with building new competences, or identifying and creating opportunities based on
leveraging existing competences, to generate new business opportunities (Senge, 1992).
An important implication of both double-loop and generative learning is that learning, while
initially highly specific, may be generalised to apply in other circumstances. Here, core
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competences developed in one line of business may be deployed in another competitive arena.
For example, the companies Marlboro and Camel have used their competences developed in
creating and building tobacco brands to step into the fashion clothing market by capitalising on
existing competences in brand building and generating new competences centred on learning
about the nature of design and the fashion industry.
However, the nature of today’s competitive environment demands that a learning organisation
must go beyond single and double-loop learning, adaptive and generative learning, placing
emphasis on “learning about learning” itself (Stonehouse and Pemberton, 1999). In this way, a
learning organisation, by learning about learning, creates an organisational context that both
nurtures new knowledge and exploits its existing knowledge assets.
In this world of rapid technological changes and communications, knowledge plays a vital role to
remain competitive. Organisational learning and knowledge management must play the role of
ensuring that individual learning leads to organisational knowledge. Linked with these are the
concepts of competences and core competences. Most organisations that compete in the same
area or within a specific industry usually possess more or less the same competences. However,
core competences are features of individual organisations that reflect their competitive
advantage. To Stonehouse et al, (2000) generic knowledge is the basis of the competences
possessed by all organisations in an industry whilst specific knowledge is particular to the
individual organisation, resulting in core competences and potential competitive advantage. It is
mostly organisations whose performance is above the industry average, which possess specific
knowledge and core competences unique to them.
Knowledge is acquired from information, which means that one must have access to what is
available as information or develop an information database in order to build knowledge. It must
be remembered that information and data are available to most companies in more or less the
same extent. It is only companies that utilise the information in the most effective and efficient
way that develop superior knowledge and are thus more competitive. In other words,
organisations must strive to find workable ways of deriving knowledge from their vast
information resources in order to achieve superior performance.
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Successful learning organisations create an organisational environment that combines
organisational learning with knowledge management. Moreover, whereas organisational learning
is primarily concerned with the continuous generation of new knowledge to add to existing
stocks of assets, knowledge management is primarily centred on the formalisation, storage,
sharing and distribution and co-ordination of existing knowledge assets throughout the
organisation, building and exploiting core competences that yield superior performance. An
inherent feature of both is the sharing of ideas to create and develop new knowledge, enhanced
by conducive organisational structures and culture and supported by effective knowledge
management systems.
4.7 THE ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING CONTEXT
The organisational learning context consists of three elements – namely, organisational culture,
structure, and infrastructure – and is the means by which an organisation continuously increases
the effectiveness and the efficiency of its learning and knowledge management processes and
systems (Stonehouse and Pemberton, 1999). Here, learning is treated as a cognitive process,
with the organisation “learning about learning” and developing conditions that foster individual
and organisational learning with emphasis placed on its knowledge assets and the supporting
knowledge management systems.
4.7.1 Creating a Learning Culture
Arguably, the most important component of the organisational learning context is its culture,
consisting of the values, attitudes and beliefs that steer the actions and behaviour of the
individuals making up the organisation (Stonehouse and Pemberton, 1999).
As Senge (1992) notes:
The organisations that will truly excel in the future will be the organisations that discover
how to tap people’s commitment and capacity to learn at all levels in an organisation.
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The culture existing within the learning organisation places great emphasis on learning and
knowledge, creating an atmosphere of trust within which individuals feel empowered to
experiment with new approaches to business, often resulting in the development of new core
competences.
Broadly speaking, a learning culture embodies most of the following:
A clear organisational vision; leaders who are “designers, teachers and stewards” (Senge,
1992);
A desire for continuous improvement;
Attaches a high value to knowledge;
Encourages questioning and experimentation through empowerment of individuals;
Creativity, risk taking and tolerance of mistakes;
Builds trust to encourage sharing of knowledge within the organisation and with selected
partners;
Emphasises frequent contact and good communication;
Encourages socialisation and the development of a concept of community;
Experiential learning of tacit knowledge;
External vision to learn from the environment in which the business operates.
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These views are strengthened by the work of Mintzberg et al. (1998) who proposed celebration
of success, absence of complacency, tolerance of mistakes, belief in human potential, recognition
of tacit knowledge, openness, trust, and being outward looking as vital features of a successful
organisation.
Harvey and Denton (1999) lend further support to the importance of culture quoting the chief
executive of Mayflower as saying:
To compete globally in our business you need to be rich in technology, and to be rich in
technology you need knowledge and a culture that prizes knowledge.
Activity 7
Reflect on the above regarding the creation of a learning culture to enable organisations to learn.
(i) What conclusions can you draw about learning culture?
(ii) What precautions would you take to ensure that you do succeed in creating this learning
culture?
4.7.2 Organisational Vision
Organisational vision also plays an important role in the context of learning and learning-related
activities, with leadership at the forefront in emphasising learning within the organisation and
encouraging a philosophy of continuous improvement based on sharing ideas, trust,
experimentation and external vision. A balance between sharing and confidentiality is also
needed. Knowledge sharing is vital to the creation of new knowledge and competences, as well
as in the dissemination of new knowledge throughout the organisation and between the
organisation and collaborating businesses. Conversely, as knowledge is often the principal
source of competitive advantage, it is important that it does not fall into the hands of competitors.
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4.7.3 Structuring for Learning and Knowledge Management
Culture, structure, and infrastructure are interdependent in creating an organisational learning
context. Conflicts must be addressed when designing organisational structures that support
effective learning and knowledge management. There is ample evidence that traditional
hierarchical and bureaucratic organisational structures, which depend on rules and procedures,
act as barriers to the development and transfer of knowledge by discouraging initiative, risk
taking and innovation and on the reward side, length of service rather than inventiveness plays a
more important role. Moreover, the different levels and rigid horizontal and vertical divisions in
a hierarchical structure hamper the building, diffusion, co-ordination, and control of knowledge.
Communication of knowledge is also distorted by passage through levels in a hierarchy.
The solution to many of these problems comes in the form of flatter organisational structures
with reduced cross-functional boundaries. As the development of new knowledge is dependent
on the sharing of ideas among specialists in the same field, there is also the need to establish
various functional groupings. Organisational knowledge must be holistic to ensure that specialist
knowledge from related areas is fully integrated. A matrix structure is one way of
accommodating this, which, while blurring lines of responsibility, assists the promotion of a
holistic view of knowledge. Alternatively, cross-functional project teams or task groups can be
established within a more conventional organisation structure.
Ultimately, network organisational structures are perhaps the most appropriate for supporting a
learning culture, having fewer hierarchical features and existing in a variety of forms (Quinn,
1992). While there is no single structure that uniquely supports learning, empowerment of the
individual together with flat network structures, which foster cross-functional communication
and where functional barriers are low, appear to facilitate knowledge management more
effectively. Network structures also enable cross over of organisational boundaries and may
often include collaborating businesses. Such partnerships allow the sharing of organisational
knowledge and, at the same time, assist in building new knowledge.
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Organisational structure is discussed in Unit 10 of this support materials and Unit 5 of
Organisation and Management support materials (MGT 1111).
Developments in technology, and particularly those in information and communications
technology (ICT), have played a vital role in providing the infrastructure needed to support
network structures and organisational learning within and between collaborating companies. The
media and channels of communication that assist in the creation, storage, sharing and transfer of
knowledge are an integral part of building the learning organisation, but are not the only
resources required to create a learning context. Arguably, the culture and structure of the
organisation have the most significant bearing on knowledge management, but ongoing
technological developments have helped make possible organisational configurations that were
previously unconceivable.
Activity 8
Write short notes on
(i) knowledge management
(ii) organisational culture
In brief, management has to be aware of the way people learn and acquire knowledge. In fact, the
workplace should be a place of continual learning if the organisation is to succeed in the
competitive market place. Unfortunately, learning and the training of staff are not always given
the priority they should be. The scientific management approach is still prevalent in some
organisations where workers are expected to perform tasks without any involvement in decision-
making and problem solving. Training is often seen as an expendable item and consequently
when budgetary cuts are mooted, training is often the first function to go. This approach does not
lead to the healthy development of staff and capability. From the previous units, we have learnt
the various factors that can influence the behaviour of people at work. It is important to secure a
match between jobs and people.
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Job-person fit requires consideration of:
Biographical Details (such as age, gender, educational level and maybe marital status),
as these provide some clue to behaviour on the job;
Ability Differing levels.
Personality Difficult to measure but some personalities are suited to some
positions more than others. Also, need to recognise that job
satisfaction more like to occur with positive characteristics.
Values and Attitudes Necessary to have compatibility with job requirements otherwise
cognitive dissonance can occur.
Motivation Depends on the individual but may be a factor of the above factors
Learning - can be necessary when there are changes in the job or
indeed the fit is not quite right.
Wood et al, (1998: 254) have suggested that organisations can be more proactive in learning to
cope with their employee’s needs by adopting a number of alternative working arrangements,
these being:
Compressed working week, for example, 40 hours being worked over 4 days;
Flexible working hours.
Flexi-year or annual hours approach where workers work the required hours over a year
as they see fit.
Job sharing.
Part time work.
Voluntary reduced work time where workers trade income for additional leisure time.
Activity 9
Explain in what way can the recommendations made by Wood et al, listed above, be helpful for
employees in as far as learning is concerned.
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4.9 KEY CONCEPTS
Effective Learning
Active Learning
Learning and Learning Theories
Learning Styles
Reinforcement
Behaviourist Approach
Classical Conditioning
Cognitive Theories
Operant Conditioning
Social Learning
Organisational Learning
Organisational Vision
Learning Culture
Competences
Knowledge
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UNIT 5 MOTIVATION
Unit Structure
5.0 Overview
5.1 Learning Objectives
5.2 Motivation: Introduction
5.2.1 The Nature and Meaning of Motivation
5.2.2 Definitions of Motivation
5.2.3 Motivation, Behaviour and Performance
5.3 The Theories of Motivation
5.3.1 The Early Views on Motivation
5.3.2 The Content Theories of Motivation
5.3.3 The Process Theories of Motivation
5.3.4 The Social Learning Theory of Motivation
5.4 Key Concepts
5.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit deals with the concept of motivation, its nature and importance in relation to human
attitudes, behaviours and performance. It also presents the various ways in which the concept
has been studied and the principles that have been developed to help managers deal with
problems of improving motivation.
This Unit provides useful insights to managers in developing and implementing motivational
policies and programmes.
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5.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1. Define motivation.
2. Outline the motivation process.
3. State the importance of motivation in work settings and its relevance to managers.
4. Compare and contrast the major theories of motivation.
5. Identify, eventually, some of the current issues facing managers in the area of motivation.
5.2 MOTIVATION: INTRODUCTION
The issue of motivation, which is directly linked to the level of interest, the degree of enthusiasm
and commitment with which people perform work, is a central preoccupation for managers,
policy makers as writers and researchers. Where motivation is present, performance is usually
high and the organisations are profitable. Where motivation is low or absent, performance is poor
and organisations very often face difficulties and make losses.
Managers have a direct responsibility for ensuring that the workforce is highly motivated.
According to Moorhead and Griffin (1992),
One of the manager’s primary tasks is to motivate people in the organisation to
perform at high levels.
If managers fail in this role, the consequences for the organisation can be very severe.
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The concept of motivation can be viewed from two perspectives:
(a) From the point of view of human behaviour (i.e. what makes a person invest a given
amount of effort and enthusiasm while doing a piece of work).
(b) From the point of view of managing human behaviour (i.e. as a management concept to
be understood and applied by managers to achieve efficiency and effectiveness in
working with employees).
Put in a simple and straightforward way, motivation is concerned with the following issues:
(a) Employees would try to find answers to questions like: What are my needs and wants?
How strong are they? What actions do I need to take to satisfy my needs and wants?
What rewards are available if I make efforts to satisfy my needs and wants? How
attractive are they?
(b) Managers would try to find answers to issues like: What organisational objectives need
to be achieved? What are the required attitudes and behaviours from employees? What
can the organisation provide to make employees willing to perform at the required
levels? How can the process be sustained?
Activity 1
(i) List two activities that you enjoy doing and two that you do not enjoy doing.
Give the reasons why you made theses choices.
Activities I enjoy doing Reasons
1.
2.
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Activities I do not enjoy doing Reasons
1.
2.
(ii) Do the same exercise but this time, assume you are an employee. State what you, as an
employee may enjoy doing and may not enjoy doing. Provide suitable reasons.
(iii) If you were a manager, what are some of the attitudes and behaviours that you would
consider desirable from your employees? Give at least four examples of:
(a) Attitudes
(b) Behaviours
(Answer on a separate sheet of paper)
5.2.1 The Nature and Meaning of Motivation
Understanding motivation is part of the complex and perplexing search for answers about human
nature and human behaviour. It is not unusual to come across employees or groups of employees
who have the required level of education, skills and experience (the ‘can do’ attributes) and who
are performing at levels that are acceptable to the organisations. They are even willing to exceed
the current levels of performance. On the other hand, it is also possible to come across
employees or groups of employees who possess the ‘can do’ attributes but perform at levels that
are not satisfactory. There is a lack or an absence of the ‘will do’ attributes.
If the ‘can do’ and ‘will do’ factors are present, there are necessary conditions for the motivation
process to be triggered, but they are not sufficient. We need not forget that motivation will also
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depend upon favourable environmental conditions, like adequate resources, proper allocation of
work and good job design.
Levels of performance will, therefore, be dependent upon at least three variables: ability,
motivation and environmental factors and can be expressed as follows:
Performance = f {Ability, Motivation and Environmental factors}
The element of motivation constitutes a key element in determining performance.
According to Kast and Rosenzweig (1974),
Differences in motivation are undoubtedly the most important consideration in
understanding and predicting individual differences and behaviour.
Motivation is essentially an internal, psychological process. It is, perhaps, the single most
important cause of behaviour although, the causes of behaviour are much broader and more
complex than can be explained by motivation (Luthans, 1999).
Motivation is difficult to measure directly, but it can usually be inferred from behaviour.
5.2.2 Definitions of Motivation
According to Luthans (1999), the word motivation is derived from the Latin word “movere”,
meaning to move.
Robbins and Coulter (1999) have defined motivation
As the willingness to exert high levels of effort to reach organizational goals as
conditioned by that effort’s ability to satisfy some individual need
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Nelson and Quick (1997) have defined motivation as
The process of arousing and sustaining goal-directed behaviour.
The term motivation is often used in association with the following terms: desires, needs, wants,
motives, wishes, impulses, expectations, aims, goals, incentives, valence (attractiveness),
performance.
Let us define some of these terms in more details.
5.2.3 Motivation, Behaviour and Performance
Motives
Motives are the “whys” of behaviour, the mainsprings of action (Hersey and Blanchard, 1977).
They represent a state of deprivation, a deficiency or a scarcity; they can be both physiological or
psychological. Typical examples are the need for food, drink, sleep, friendship, achievement and
status.
Drives
A drive is “a deficiency with direction.Physiological and psychological drives are action-
oriented and provide an energising thrust toward reaching an incentive” (Luthans, 1999)
Goals
These are the rewards, both tangible and intangible, towards which the motives are directed.
They are also referred to as incentives.
Robbins and Coulter (1999) have represented the motivational process as follows:
Unsatisfied Need Tension Drives Search Behaviour Satisfied
Need Reduction of Tension
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Any person may experience a variety of needs at any given time and therefore go through
different levels of tension or deprivation that have to be satisfied. The needs that have the highest
strength will determine what the person will do.
The high strength needs can be classified into:
(a) goal-activity
(b) goal-directed activity.
Simple examples would be:
- Goal-activity
We feel thirsty and we drink a glass of juice
- Goal-directed activity
We want a car and to satisfy this need we have to work hard, save money, contract loan for
additional funds and then go to the car dealer to make the purchase.
Goal-activity and Goal-directed activity would be typical motivating situations and
diagramatically can be represented as follows:
Need or Motive Goal-activity
Behaviour
Goal Goal-directed activity
Goal-activity and goal-directed activity are not always mutually exclusive. Very often, one leads
to the other and vice-versa.
For example, a child is provided with food and engages in a goal-activity (eats the food) but does
not have to go out and earn a living to get the food. As the child grows up into an adult, it is
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expected that he/she will look for a job, earn money, buy food, prepare it and then consume it
(goal-directed activity).
Activity 2
Think of an employee, a manager and a customer.
(i) What are the different types of need each of these three persons are likely to experience?
(ii) Are there some needs that are common to all three?
(iii) Scrutinise the list that you have made and suggest which need is likely to be strongest for
each of the three individual.
5.3 THE THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
5.3.1 The Early Views on Motivation
Historically, there has always been an interest in the concept of motivation. Many of the early
ideas about motivation have not been very realistic and precise as they often lacked a scientific
basis. The later theories have attempted to improve the conceptual foundations of motivation.
One of the earliest views of motivation was related to the concept of hedonism: the notion that
people will usually seek pleasure and avoid pain.
Hedonism could not, however, provide explanations for many kinds of behaviour where people
would undergo pain and yet enjoy the experience. Athletes and soccer players are typical
examples of such cases.
Sigmund Freud was of the opinion that behind many of people’s behaviour, there are real
psychological forces at work. These forces are largely unconscious. William James, on his part
had argued that “instinctive behaviour and unconscious motivation are also important in human
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behaviour” (Moorhead and Griffin, 1992). To detect those forces or motives, projective
techniques were often used where people thoughts and feelings are analysed through the
interpretations they give to certain specific situations.
At the turn of the twentieth century, the works of Taylor, Gantt and Gilbreth, popularly known as
the Scientific movement, contained interesting propositions about how to obtain higher levels of
output from employees. These propositions were based on the assumption that employees were
rational and mainly interested in material and financial rewards—the concept of the
Rational/Economic Man. Wage incentive models (the use of piece-rate systems) were the main
tool used to reward employees. Those whose performances were below the required standards
were sanctioned (punishment or withholding of rewards was the practice). These ideas are now
popularly known as the “carrot and stick principle”.
The Human Relations Movement in the 1930s argued that people were not motivated by money,
material rewards or selfish gains only. Employees, being human beings, were also responsive to
the human environment at work. Attitudes of supervisors, work colleagues, interpersonal
communication, consultation and participation were considered to be responsible for the attitudes
employees will develop and their performance.
Both the Scientific and the Human Relations Movements presented very simplistic models of
human motivation and the manager was seen to be the one who decided what were the best
conditions for influencing employee behaviour towards higher levels of performance.
These earlier ideas, although limited, constituted the foundations of the contemporary thinking
on motivation.
Activity 3
(i) From your previous knowledge of the Scientific and the Human Relations Movements,
make a critical assessment of the merits and the demerits of each movement as far as their
ideas of motivation are concerned.
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(ii) Why do managers have to worry about employee motivation at work?
5.3.2 The Content Theories of Motivation
As mentioned earlier, the origins of the ideas about motivation go as far back as the beginning of
the twentieth century and even earlier. Motivation tries to explain what arouses, energises and
provides direction to behaviour. They are the foundations of what later came to be known as the
content or need theories of motivation.
The main contributors to this school of thought are: Abraham Maslow (The theory of the
Hierarchy of Needs), Clayton Alderfer (The ERG theory), David Mc Clelland (The Acquired-
Needs theory), Frederick Herzberg (The Motivation-Hygiene theory) and Douglas Mc Gregor
(Theory X and Theory Y).
Maslow and Alderfer are of the opinion that needs is inherent in human beings. According
to Maslow, human beings experience five needs: physiological or biological, safety or
security, social or relationship, self-esteem (need for self-image and self-respect) and self-
actualisation (need for realising our full potential and getting what we are capable of
becoming). [You must have come across these theories in the module MGT 1111].
Maslow argued that each need level must be satisfied before the person can try to satisfy
another level of need. This is where the concept of hierarchy is relevant.
Maslow’s theory has been very popular and has a lot of intuition, but it also has a number
of limitations. For example, the need structure of all individuals is not the same and the
level-wise approach to need satisfaction is not always the case.
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Needs Strength of needs
Nature High Low
Physiological (or biological) a
Safety (or security) a
Social (or relationship) a
Self-esteem (or self-image, self-respect) a
Self-actualisation (or achievement) a
The need-mix (experience more than are needed at a time) will depend upon the strength of
particular needs at particular times.
Figure 5.1: An Illustration of a Need-mix when social needs are strongest.
Aldefor’s ERG theory (E for Existence, R for relatedness and G for growth) extends and
refines Maslow’s theory. He argues that more than one kind of need could motivate a
Physiological (or biological)
Safety (or security)
Social (or relationship)
Self-esteem (or self-image, self-respect)
Self-actualisation(or achievement)
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person at the same time. The theory contains a satisfaction-progression and a frustration-
regression dimension.
Satisfaction-progression principle suggests that after an individual has satisfied one
category of need, he/she progresses to the next level. Frustration-regression suggests that if
a need is not satisfied, the individual will go back to the preceding level of the need.
Mc Clelland proposes that needs are not only inherent; they can also be acquired or learned
through our experiences in life.
There are three types of need:
1. Need for achievement (nAch): the desire to accomplish challenging work.
2. Need for affiliation (nAff): the desire to make friends and develop strong ties with
others.
3. Need for power (nPow): the desire to influence or control others.
Usually any individual experiences a blend of these three needs. The single most important
human need is considered to be the need for achievement. Different levels of activity
undertaken by individuals can reveal the individual’s need pattern.
On a comparative basis, Maslow, Alderfer and McClelland all agree on the importance of higher
order need as a powerful source of motivation.
Maslow’s Model Alderfer’s Model McClelland’s Model
Physiological Safety
Existence
Social Relatedness Need for affiliation Self-esteem Self-actualisation
Growth Need for achievement Need for power
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Herzberg’s theory suggests that there are two sets of factors that are likely to influence the
motivation of individuals. He concentrated on conditions that satisfied or dissatisfied
people’s needs in the work environment.
The first set of factors, known as the Hygiene factors, is concerned with working
conditions, pay, company policies and rules, supervision, status, and interpersonal
relations. They relate to the context of the work and can affect levels of motivation. They
do not by themselves lead to motivation but they can be a source of lack of motivation.
The second set factors known as the Motivation factors, are directly concerned with the
content of the work and how the employees feel about the job. They include such elements
as recognition, challenging and interesting work, growth and development and achievement
if these elements are not present, the work can be a source of lack of satisfaction as
opposed to dissatisfaction. When they are present, they can cause satisfaction and
motivation.
Mc Gregor’s Theory X and Theory Y relate to the assumptions that managers can make
about work and human beings. Theory Y is based on assumptions that people can be
trusted and they like working; Theory X, in contrast, takes the view that people cannot be
trusted and they normally would avoid work. Theory Y would encourage managers to give
employees more autonomy and help them towards self-fulfilment; Theory X would lead
managers to adopt a “carrot and stick” philosophy.
The content theories are essentially psychological theories and they focus on what arouses,
energises, directs and sustains behaviour.
Activity 4
(i) Identify the main differences between the Hierarchy of Needs and the ERG theories.
(ii) What would be your suggestions if you were to use the Hierarchy of needs theory to
motivate employees?
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(iii) How will you encourage the need for achievement among employees?
5.3.3 The Process Theories of Motivation
The process theories are also known as the cognitive theories. The main difference between
these theories and the content theories is that they emphasise the “how” of human behaviour and
motivation. They take into account the thought processes that are involved in deciding what to
do and why.
The main process or cognitive theories are:
1. The Expectancy Theory developed by Vroom, Lawler, Porter and others.
2. The Equity Theory of Stacy Adams.
3. The Goal Theory of Edwin Locke and Gary Latham.
4. The Attribution Theory of Harold Kelly
5. The Reinforcement Theory of B F Skinner
The Expectancy theory is based on three key concepts:
1. Expectancy (efforts will lead to a particular outcome);
2. Instrumentality (performance will be rewarded) and
3. Valence (value of rewards are attractive)
The effort that employees are willing to put in will be a function of (V, I and E), and the
performance itself will depend upon the available rewards, which can be either extrinsic (pay
rise, bonus, promotion, commissions, awards) or intrinsic (recognition, sense of
achievement, growth).
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Vroom’s theory has a multiplicative dimension:
P=V × I × E
This is not always the case as individual and environmental factors can also influence the
effort to be put in by the individuals. The other point that needs to be noted is that the model
is highly rational in its approach.
Activity 5
Using a concrete example, explain how an employee might use the theory of expectancy to
adjust his or her level of motivation?
Stacy Adams Equity theory is interesting as it has a lot of common sense. The central idea of
this theory is that people always make comparisons between their input-output ratio and
those of their colleagues and other members of the organisations.
Equity will be present if:
Persons’ Outcome = Other’s Outcome
Person’s Inputs Other’s Inputs
If an imbalance or unequal situation is perceived, there is an ‘equity tension’ which is relieved
through different types of behaviours, either positive or negative.
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The Equity Theory represents an extension of the Expectancy Theory. The Equity Theory is
useful for managers as they can systematically observe and analyse the equity perceptions of
their employees and take corrective measures.
Activity 6
Employees are interested not only in rewards as such, but also in the comparative nature of the
rewards. What are your views on this statement?
The Goal Theory suggests that the manner in which goals are set, their attributes and
characteristics, the participation of employees, feedback are all factors that are likely to
influence behaviour and performance. The basic premise of the theory is that a person’s own
objectives can have a powerful influence on performance.
The concept of Management by Objectives (MBO) is based on this approach to motivation.
Specific goals have more motivational impact than vague and unprecise ones; when they are
self-set, they lead to self-efficacy on the part of the individuals concerned i.e. the belief that
they are capable of doing the job.
It has also been argued that when specific goals are challenging, they are more likely to bring
about higher levels of performance.
Goal Theory and Expectancy Theory are closely related and the Expectancy Theory
components can be very useful in understanding and applying the Goal Theory.
Activity 7
(i) How can organisations secure the commitment of employees to achieve organisational
goals?
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(ii) Identify a few factors that can come in the way of employee commitment to
organisational goals.
The Attribution Theory is concerned with how people perceive their behaviours and what
meanings they associate with such behaviours i.e the attributions they make.
According to Myers (1990), Attribution Theory is based on the following assumptions:
1. We seek to make sense of our world.
2. We often attribute people’s actions either to internal or external causes.
3. We do so in fairly logical ways.
Internal factors causing behaviour will be under the control of the individuals; external
factors causing behaviour will be outside the control of individuals.
There are three criteria that can be used when applying the Attribution theory:
1. Distinctiveness: Is the behaviour a typical, distinct or different?
2. Consensus: How far is the behaviour similar to behaviours of others in similar
situations?
3. Consistency: Does the behaviour hold over time?
Analysing behaviour using these criteria enables individuals to decide the extent to which
they are extrinsically (through rewards, incentives) or intrinsically (through interesting,
creative work) motivated. The Attribution Theory is fundamentally concerned with
perception and interpersonal behaviour but it does provide an additional perspective for
understanding and influencing people’s behaviour.
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Activity 8
Explain in details the precautions you would take when adopting the attribution theory to
understand and modify behaviour?
The Reinforcement Theory of motivation is based on the law of effects. The argument here is
that behaviour can be explained in terms of the outcomes that they produce. For example, if
an employee is politely requested by the boss to help complete a piece of urgent work, and
the employee sacrifices his or her lunch-time to complete, and is thereafter warmly
congratulated by the boss, that employee is most likely to repeat the behaviour. On the
contrary, if after completion of the work, there is total ignorance or indifference on the part
of the boss, the employee will be hurt and will consider the whole experience as not being
worthwhile.
The Reinforcement Theory does not take account the cognitive or thought processes of
the individual performing a particular task to explain the behaviour. It is based on
environmental conditions or cues. A stimulus (a polite request from the boss) becomes
instrumental in eliciting a positive behaviour (sacrificing lunch-time and completing the
work). Another stimulus (the boss warmly congratulates the employee) becomes the
condition that brings the employee to engage in a repeat of the previous positive
behaviour. If this positive equation between the boss and the employee is maintained, the
positive employee behaviour will be sustained or reinforced.
The guiding principle of the reinforcement theory is that behaviour with pleasant
consequences are more likely to be repeated than behaviours with unpleasant consequences.
The concept of reinforcement can be used in a number of ways to obtain the desired
behaviours:
• Positive reinforcement: Use of praise, pay rise, increments, time-off, promotions.
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• Negative reinforcement: The prospect of having to bear a negative stimulus (no
recommendation for promotion from the immediate
supervisor if the employee fails to do some overtime).
• Extinction: Withholding of some privileges or facilities previously
available (time-off, leaving early to pick up children from
school) until the undesired behaviour is discontinued.
• Punishment: A direct sanction (transfer, disciplinary action, suspension)
whenever employee’s behaviour is undesirable.
Punitive reinforcement can provoke negative attitudes in employees whereby they can adopt
a ‘work-to rule’ tactic, doing what is the strict required minimum. It is advisable for
managers to be very cautious in using punitive reinforcements because of their potential for
triggering negative feelings among employees. The Reinforcement Theory recommends the
use of positive reinforcement in modifying behaviours.
There are two types of schedules that can be utilised when adopting positive reinforcement to
modify behaviours: the continuous and the partial schedules.
In the continuous schedule, the positive behaviour is rewarded every time it occurs.
In the partial schedule, the positive behaviour will be rewarded a fixed interval (every end of
month) or a fixed ratio (after a given number of times that the desired behaviour has
occurred). A positive behaviour can also be reinforced as per a variable interval (the period at
which the behaviour is rewarded is random) or as per a variable ratio (the number of times
that positive behaviour has to occur to be rewarded is random and not fixed).
A combination of fixed interval and fixed ratio reinforcement at the initial stages followed by
a combination of variable interval and variable ratio is the approach that managers may adopt
to modify behaviours.
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Note however, that there are many other factors that influence behaviour and that
“reinforcement isn’t the only explanation in employee motivation” (Robbins and Coulter,
1999).
Activity 9
Describe a typical situation to illustrate each of the following:
(a) Positive reinforcement
(b) Negative reinforcement
(c) Extinction
(d) Punishment
5.3.3 The Social Learning Theory of Motivation
The promoter Social Learning Theory is Albert Bandura (1977). The Theory argues that
behaviour is the result of personal factors, experiences and environmental variables. The
cognitive and thinking capacity in individuals is a key element in the understanding of human
behaviour, and the process of learning is crucial.
There is a reciprocal interaction between individuals and their environment. Individuals
influence their environment, which in turn impacts on their thinking and behaviour.”(Bartol et al,
1997).
Three distinct processes are involved:
1. Symbolic processes,
2. Vicarious learning
3. Self-control.
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- The symbolic processes involve the ways in which we process and store our perceptions and
experiences in forms of both verbal and non-verbal symbols. We refer to these symbols as
guide for future actions. We are able to have some idea of situations even before we go
through the actual process of living the experience.
The symbolic process also integrates the element of self-efficacy, a belief that we can
perform certain specific tasks.
- The vicarious learning is concerned with learning through observations. Trying to do as
others do is called modelling.
- Self-control is a system of self-regulation. We make promises to ourselves and see to it that
they are fulfilled by our actions and behaviours.
The interesting feature of the Learning Theory is that managers can use the concept of modelling
to shape behaviours. It also helps employees to fine-tune their own behaviour through their
observations.
Activity 10
Write short notes on self-efficacy, modelling and self-control. Provide suitable illustrations.
Theories of motivation provide interesting insights into understanding, analysing and influencing
attitudes and behaviours for higher performance. There is no such thing as a universal theory of
motivation, although the contemporary theories are more scientific and are of more conceptual
value.
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It must also be borne in mind that most of the theories of motivation are of American origin, and
are about Americans. Cultural differences are bound to be present in the way the issue of
motivation is addressed. For example, Professor Ouchi’s Theory Z has been developed from the
specific experiences of Japanese management. They incorporate a number of typical Japanese
values like life-long employment, shared decision-making and mutual respect among superiors
and subordinates.
Theory Z can be applied in other contexts but this will require changes in value systems. The
changes need to be introduced in a gradual and organised manner and will require consultation,
communication and appropriate training.
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5.4 KEY CONCEPTS
Content Theories
Goals
Incentives
Motivation
Motives
Needs
Process Theories
Social Learning Theory
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UNIT 6 WORK GROUPS AND WORK TEAMS
Unit Structure
6.0 Overview
6.1 Learning Objectives
6.2 Introduction to Groups
6.2.1 Definition of a Group
6.2.2 Group Development
6.2.2.1 Homans’ Group Behaviour Model
6.2.2.2 Tuckman Model
6.2.2.3 William Schutz Group Development Model
6.2.2.4 Wilfred Bion Model
6.2.2.5 Bennis and Shepard Model
6.2.3 Types of Groups in the Workplace
6.2.4 Socialisation into Groups
6.2.4.1 Benefits of Socialisation
6.2.5 Dynamics of Groups
6.2.5.1 Roles
6.2.5.2 Norms and Conformity
6.2.5.3 Cohesion of the Group
6.2.5.4 Status in Groups
6.2.6 Factors Affecting Group Performance
6.2.6.1 Organisational Setting
6.2.6.2 Nature of the Group Task
6.2.6.3 Membership Characteristics
6.2.6.4 Status Congruence
6.2.6.5 Group Size
6.3 Introduction to Teams
6.3.1 Performance Enhancing Qualities of Team-Based Work Structures
6.3.2 Historical Influence of Teams at the Workplace
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6.3.3 Definition of a Team
6.3.4 Types of Teams
6.3.5 Model for Developing Effective Teams
6.4 Key Concepts
6.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit introduces the concept of group and teams in organisations. You will be able to learn
several concepts related to groups and teams, such as group development, group dynamics,
socialisation and teams that affect group performance.
Note that some of the activities involve group work.
6.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1. Define a group.
2. Identify the reasons for joining groups.
3. Explain the various group development models.
4. Identify each of the five stages of group development - forming, storming, norming,
performing, and adjourning.
5. Distinguish between formal and informal groups.
6. Describe each of the following group concepts in terms of their effect on the group: roles,
norms, status, group size, cohesiveness.
7. Define conformity pressures and describe its impact on the group.
8. Identify factors that lead to more effective group performance.
9. Define a team.
10. State the role of teamwork in organisations.
11. Develop effective teams and teamwork.
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6.2 INTRODUCTION TO GROUPS
As managers in organisations, we need to be aware of groups, the dynamics of group behaviour
and the mechanisms that are required in order to make our working groups or teams more
effective.
It is universally acknowledged that with the growing complexity of society and the continuing
development of technological capability, more organisational life will revolve around group or
team structures. In this world of information and communication, no one individual can be
expected to have all the knowledge required for making decisions and thus the contribution of
teams and groups will find accrued importance in the decision making process.
Most researchers concur that groups are good for individuals. Groups foster innovation and
creativity, improve decision-making, help gain commitment to act, control members, offset some
aspects of change and they are a natural phenomena. Thus, managers must understand groups:
how they are formed, how they are maintained, under what circumstances they are functional and
dysfunctional etc.
Warm-Up Activity
(i) Recall the various instances where you have had to perform as member of a group instead
as an individual. List the most important things that come to your mind regarding these
instances.
(ii) Would you prefer to work in a group or alone when you have a difficult task to
accomplish? Explain your answer.
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6.2.1 Definition of a Group
Wood et al., (1998) define a group:
as a collection of two or more people who work with one another regularly to achieve
one or more common goals.
Schein (1988) defines a group as:
any number of people who (i) interact with one another, (ii) are psychologically aware of
one another and (iii) perceive themselves to be a group.
Knowles (1972) believes that a collection of people becomes a group when it depicts the
following qualities:
• Definable membership (the members constituting the group are identified in some way or
the other)
• Group consciousness (members are conscious about belonging to a particular group)
• A sense of shared purpose (the group has a common purpose or objective)
• Interdependence in satisfaction of needs (members are aware of their interdependence on
one another)
• Interaction (communication flows among members)
• Ability to act in a unitary manner (the group constitutes one force)
Thus, we can define a group as two or more interdependent and interacting individuals engaged
in some social interaction, for the purpose of achieving some common objective or objectives.
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Activity 1 (Group Activity)
Provide suitable illustrations to show how the characteristics listed by Knowles (1972), are
applicable to groups and in what ways they can help to explain group effectiveness.
6.2.2 Group Development
There are several reasons put forward to explain why people join groups and find themselves
more comfortable when they are in a group.
To Robbins (1998), individuals join groups for:
- Security (many individuals feel more comfortable and secure when they are in a group)
- Identity (many honour the sense of identity provided to them - members of the ACCA and
other professional bodies, etc)
- Self Esteem (particularly when the group is one that is recognised by society and is well
known)
- Status (when the group is famous and prestigious)
- Affiliation (for socialisation purposes and achieving a sense of belonging)
- Power (united we stand!)
Activity 2
(i) Discuss in some details and in your own words why individuals may prefer to join
groups.
(ii) Under what circumstances would you wish not to form part of a particular group?
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6.2.2.1 Homans’ Group Behaviour Model
Homans (1950) developed a model to help us understand and explain work group behaviour.
Although this model dates back in time (more than 4 decades ago), it continues to have
considerable substance for explaining how groups behave. Fundamentally, the model identifies
the outputs of group effort:
- Tasks are accomplished,
- Intrinsic satisfactions are derived,
- Personal growth is experienced.
The model considers those factors outside the group itself such as the personalities of the
members, the formal requirements of the group and the actual behaviours that emerge. The
model reckons that there is a set of influences whereby background and individual personal
factors act upon the formal system to produce actual behaviours, which in turn produce the
outcomes of group behaviour.
In other words, the model acknowledges that background factors do have some kind of influence
on group behaviour. The personal characteristics of individuals influence the behaviour that
emerges from the required system. The required behaviours are actually highly intertwined and
mutually dependent. Careful analysis of the required and personal systems can assist the observer
to predict emergent behaviour (how the group will behave towards the task to be accomplished).
It must be noted that Homans assumed that interaction and interpersonal sentiments are closely
related.
The parameters that require explanation in connection with the model are as follows:
1. Activities the things individuals do, for example, walking, eating,
jogging, weeping, working, etc.
2. Sentiments the feelings (positive or negative) that members of groups
have for each other.
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3. Required behaviour the activities, interactions and feelings that are defined by
the group’s formal leaders and assigned to members as
their specified roles.
4. Emergent Behaviour behaviour that occurs, which is additional to what is
required.
For instance one application of the model is that when members of a group complete a task
satisfactorily, the outcome of the group effort may be that individual members derive internal
(intrinsic) satisfaction, which in turn builds their confidence and leads to personal growth. You
can imagine various alternative situations, for example what happens when groups do not
complete the task.
6.2.2.2 Tuckman Model
Group development is normally an ongoing process. Tuckman (1965, 1977) feels that it is
important that groups are managed throughout their existence and proposes the following stages
in groups development:
1. Forming
2. Storming
3. Norming
4. Performing
5. Adjourning
The forming stage is characterised by the development of interpersonal relationships, the
identification of goals and the establishment of behaviour norms among the members. The first
stage normally involves some uncertainty about the group’s purpose, structure, and leadership.
Members try to communicate to each other and observe other members in the group to determine
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what types of behaviour are acceptable. This stage is complete when members have started to
realise that they are part of a group.
The storming stage is one that is characterised by intragroup conflict. Members acknowledge
the existence of the group, but often there is some resistance over what the group imposes or may
impose on individuality. Quite often, there is conflict over who will lead the group. Thus, the
storming stage entails inevitable conflicts over leadership and goals and if this stage is handled
properly (a leader and task to be accomplished identified), it leads to the next stage.
The norming stage is where members of the group understand what is expected of them and
where the leadership structure is clear. In fact, there is integration of individuals with other
individuals constituting the group and close relationships develop among members. The
integration stage brings harmony, unity and clarity.
For permanent work groups, the final stage is the performing stage. This stage results in an
effective well-integrated group that performs the required task effectively and efficiently. The
group will also have leadership and effective human relations strategies that encourage and
sustain the team spirit.
For temporary task forces, committees or for groups that have a specific task or project to
complete, the adjourning stage is the final one. In this stage, the group prepares for its winding
up, whereby attention is focused on wrapping up activities. Behaviour of group members varies:
some feel very happy and satisfied for having been able to achieve the goals, others may feel
depressed over the loss of friendship gained during the work group’s life. This adjourning stage
may call for counselling of both those who leave the group and those who stay behind.
It must be noted that there is no set time frame for groups to go through these stages. For some
groups, the initial stages may be almost instantaneous while for others they may drag on and
create frustrations.
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6.2.2.3 William Schutz Group Development Model
William Schutz (as cited in Wheelan, Facilitating Training Groups, p: 15) has also attempted to
explain group behaviour. His theory of group development is based on emotional needs of the
individuals. He proposes that individuals have three sets of inherent interpersonal needs:
1. inclusion (primary needs with initially concern for whether the group will accept them
or not)
2. control (decision making and leadership struggles)
3. affection (the building of emotional bonds)
Briefly, Schultz suggests that depending upon the level of satisfaction of the interpersonal needs
described above and the compromission or inclination of individuals, groups may result as one
entity or remain dispersed.
6.2.2.4 Wilfred Bion Model
Bion (1959), again four decades back, (Experiences in Groups, 1959, Basic Books, New York)
developed another theory of group development. He assumed that groups operate on two levels,
these being the work level where concern is for completing the task and on the unconscious
level, where group members act as if they had made certain tacit assumptions about the purpose
of the group that may differ from its conscious level. Bion called these assumptions dependency,
flight, fight and pairing.
Dependency is characterised by an attitude of helplessness and an abdication of
responsibility. The group waits for the leader to decide and take action for the group. In
such a situation, the members act as if they are helpless or incompetent.
Fight is manifested by conflict (usually on a trivial matter) amongst group members.
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Flight occurs when members are willing to discuss anything except the task that needs to
be undertaken and completed.
Pairing occurs when two members of the group work on their relationship while the
other members observe. In this situation, it seems or it is expected that the pair will sort
out their problem and in so doing they will work out the group problems.
Fundamentally, this model aims to explain why individuals try to avoid or complete the task they
have to accomplish. The emotional states mentioned above lead to groups that are so fixed that
the task is hindered or completed.
6.2.2.5 Bennis and Shepard Model
In yet another theory, Bennis and Shepard (1956) saw that the central issues of group life are
dependence and independence, with power, love, authority and intimacy as the primary concerns.
They believe that these events move the group from one phase to the next.
Activity 3
(i) What are the salient features of the models described above to explain group
development?
(ii) What lessons can you draw from these models?
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6.2.3 Types of Groups in the Work Place
Two types of groups co-exist in organisations. They are the:
1. Formal Group
2. Informal Group
The formal groups represent the grouping of individuals through the formal organisation
structure and are usually depicted by the organisation chart or organigram. Individuals are
grouped under functional, product, matrix structure, etc.
As for informal groups, there are numerous studies (including the Hawthorne Studies) that have
been carried out to explain their existence and influence in organisations.
Schein (1988) has classified informal groups into the following:
1. Horizontal cliques: informal associations of organisational members of approximately
the same organisational rank who work in the same general area
2. Vertical cliques: groups composed of different levels within the same department
3. Mixed cliques: groups composed of people of different ranks, departments and
physical locations
It is widely accepted that informal groups are formed because of the inadequacy of formal
groups with regards to the formal functions that they have to undertake. For example, when
individuals are given either too much or too little work, they try to seek help from others to
complete their work when they are overloaded or else individuals who do not have much to do,
while away their time with other colleagues. When there are no mechanisms in place to cope
with monotonous work practices, individuals tend to organise themselves in an informal manner.
Quite often, informal groups are constituted to provide political or economic needs such as,
gaining control by the workers over their work and counter organisational operations and
functions. In essence, individuals see the informal as an alternative system of power and
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influence that may lead to the subversion of the formal organisational goals. These concepts are
further discussed in Unit 10.
Groups have also been categorised as having stable or unstable membership. The classification
of unstable membership is gaining more relevance in organisations in the light of the dynamic
environment in which many organisations operate.
Management thus has a crucial role in managing work groups so that the groups become
psychologically aware and form into teams. Now let’s discuss the dynamics of groups and issues
associated with team development.
6.2.4 Socialisation into Groups
The importance of socialisation at work has been the focus of a number of research studies and
work. In fact, Elton Mayo, through the Hawthorne studies, is among the first persons to
acknowledge the importance of socialisation. Abraham Maslow also places socialisation at a
higher level in the hierarchy of needs. According to Louis (1980), organisational socialisation
is the process by which an individual comes to appreciate the values, abilities, expected
behaviours and social knowledge essential for assuming an organisational role and for
participating as an organisational member.
Although the socialisation processes vary from organisation to organisation, essentially
they are made up of:
u Investigation seeking information about the group and whether someone wants
to belong to that group.
u Socialisation acknowledgement of the group norms and sanctions for not
abiding to those norms and accepting those norms as standards of
behaviour.
u Maintenance by way of rewards and punishment.
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u Resocialisation occurs whenever task or group changes substantially.
u Remembrance in reminiscence to old ways of doing things.
Activity 4
Reflect on these socialisation processes. Provide suitable examples to illustrate their implications
in an organisation.
6.2.4.1 Benefits of Socialisation
Socialisation brings a number of benefits to human beings in general. Quite often, we
automatically get up to go to work or university and school with our thoughts directed on our
colleagues and friends: we are eager to meet them again. Concretely, such an attitude helps to
control absenteeism in organisations. Socialisation helps individuals to develop a sense of
affiliation to an organisation and this in turn helps them to work collectively towards the
organisational goals. The sense of affiliation also helps to develop an organisational culture
where values, beliefs and norms are shared. Roles of members are clearly established and
reporting and authority structures are more easily accepted. In brief, the socialisation process
prepares individuals to have a better sense of responsibility and commitment.
However, socialisation also has its dangers, especially when people group themselves to exhibit
negative behaviour and attitude. In such cases, socialisation may create several problems to the
organisation. Managers must then try to address such type of socialisation in the most effective
manner.
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6.2.5 Dynamics of Groups
As explained earlier, once a group has been established, there are a number of dynamics that
maintain the group active. These dynamics are the roles individual play, the expected behaviours
or norms and, associated conformity leading to varying levels of cohesiveness. It is important for
us to understand group dynamics. Let’s try to go over certain concepts first.
6.2.5.1 Roles
All individuals or human beings play or undertake roles in actual life. Some of the concepts that
we need to know about roles are:
Role identity attitudes and behaviours that are consistent with a particular role.
Role expectations beliefs concerning the responsibilities and requirements of a
particular role.
Role Ambiguity uncertainty of a person about what other group members expect of
him or her.
Role conflict conflict that occurs when a person is unable to respond to the
expectation of one or more group members.
Creation of Roles
Benne and Sheats (19480 identified a number of work-related roles that people can play in
jointly or severally:
Group task roles are concerned with getting the job done and achieving organisational
goals
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Group building and maintenance roles deal with the maintenance of interpersonal
relations among group members
Self centred roles refer to roles where individuals are more busy solving personal rather
than group goals
To summarise, it must be noted that in both the formal and informal groups, the roles that we
play tend to be a factor of individual personality, status within the group, expertise, task of the
group and the established leadership pattern. However, because of authority assigned to us by
the organisation, we may find ourselves having to perform a particular role irrespective of the
above characteristics.
6.2.5.2 Norms and Conformity
Norms play an essential role in group behaviour and the maintenance or disbandment of a group.
According to Homans (1950), norms are
Ideas in the minds of members of a group that can be put into the form of a
statement specifying what other members should do, ought to do and are expected
to do under given circumstances.
Norms can be identified as the expectation that others in the groups have on one’s behaviour.
This expectation is quite strong and one usually conforms to the behaviour required. Norms
often become part of the individual’s psychological makeup that affects attitudes, values, beliefs
and behaviours; this often occurs because the group applies pressure in the form of sanctions
(rewards or punishments) so individuals comply with the expected behaviour.
In a work situation, norms can relate to the productive process itself, one’s dress, behaviour
towards clients, fellow workers, management or subordinates etc.
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The sanctions applied to group members can be placed on a continuum from ridicule to
ostracism (or even at times, violence). It may be quite difficult for a person not to conform when
sanctions are applied.
The main characteristics of norms are:
- Norms are link agreements among group members about their behaviours in which they
or others of their group should or should not engage, and existence of mechanisms by
which such agreements are enforced (sanctions or rewards).
- Norms can be formal or informal. Formal norms are written in organisational support
materials but the majority of norms are informal.
- Norms are not equally weighted in the group - some norms are pivotal (they are
considered to be particularly important to the group), others are peripheral (that is, not as
important).
- In work groups, the pivotal norms usually focus on task-related behaviour or socially
related behaviours that are central to the functioning of the group. Deviations from
peripheral norms are not sanctioned as severely as those norms that the group feels are
pivotal.
Sources of Norms
Within an organisational framework, norms emanate from both external and internal sources. For
example norms may be:
Brought into the group by members (prior experience etc)
Promulgated by outside sources (e.g. legislation)
Derived from interaction within the group
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Compliance with Norms
Organisational success depends to a large extent on the way organisational members comply
with norms.
Compliance with norms is seen to be more effective when:
The norm has been internalised by the participants of the group and the group believes
that the norm is important to the group;
The source of the norm is seen as legitimate;
The enforcement agent is seen as legitimate;
The group leader supports the norm;
The relevant reference groups support the norm;
The norm relevant behaviour is visible (In most cases, visibility comes from others in the
group breaking the norm and sanctions are then visible to the group);
Powerful sanctions are enforced including ostracism;
The norms reinforce the desirable characteristics of the group;
The group members have the opportunity to participate in the norm formation.
Activity 5
Explain in your own words how you would help members of an organisation to comply with
organisational norms.
Importance of Norms
Experience and research work have shown that norms serve amongst others, the following
purposes in an organisation:
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Norms help the group to survive: A group must be able to produce enough or perform
adequately to ensure the economic success of the group and the organisation. Some norms
will develop to facilitate and enhance group performance.
Norms help to predict members’ behaviour: For example, how individuals are expected
to behave in meetings, in crisis situation, etc
Norms provide a sense of identity: For the group by giving members a chance to express
their shared values and beliefs.
Norms help to keep a group together or cohesive.
Let’s now try to understand cohesion and its implications on group behaviour.
6.2.5.3 Cohesion of the Group
Conformity to norms contributes to the cohesiveness of the group and in turn, to the extent to
which a group can exert pressure on its members to conform to a norm.
Cohesion refers to
the degree to which group members desire or are committed, to remain in the group and
the strength of their commitment to the group and its goals.
In a highly cohesive group, group members fully understand each other; interpersonal
relationship is at its highest and members cooperate without reserve to perform the task that they
have to accomplish. In groups that are not cohesive, interpersonal relationship is low and
members do not constitute one force to accomplish their task.
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It must be appreciated that a highly cohesive, informal work group can have norms, which either
work against or assist the goals of the organisation. Managers must strive to develop highly
cohesive work groups with norms that are in accordance with the goals of the organisation.
Group cohesion has its origin in two dimensions:
The task dimension - the group’s activity or goal, i.e, the work it does.
The maintenance or Personal Relations or Process dimension - the relationships that
exist among group members.
The following factors may help to predict the cohesiveness of a group:
Contact - groups that have high degrees of contact among its members are likely to be
more cohesive than a group whose tasks are performed sequentially by its members (e.g.
assembly lines), where members are not regularly in contact with one another.
Groups whose members are similar in age and backgrounds are usually more cohesive.
The attractiveness of the rewards or the degree of negative sanction can be important
for cohesiveness.
The extent of mutual attraction among group members: the more the attraction, the
greater the cohesion.
Inter-group conflict or threats to the group: the lesser the incidences of dysfunctional
conflict, the more cohesive will the group be.
The degree of success of the group in meeting its goals or objectives: the more
successful the group is in accomplishing its task, the greater is the group cohesion.
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6.2.5.4 Status in Groups
Status is a prestige grading, position or rank within a group. In an organisation, one’s status may
be formally imposed through titles or amenities (formal group) or in an informal sense, it may be
acquired by characteristics such as age, sex, speech pattern, skill or experience. Generally in
groups, there is a high degree of agreement of the status of group members.
Factors contributing to different status position.
It is a matter of common experience that people show varying influences and have varying
statuses in a group. High status members are more likely to demonstrate one or more of the
following characteristics than are low status members:
They
have a high degree of conformity to group norms.
assist in goal achievement of the required or emergent system or both.
assist group members in their personal system of goal achievement.
have access to scarce resources.
have access to important communication or information or both.
have high formal rank due to the job or group positions.
have high external status in the eyes of group members, that is, status that is derived
from outside the group
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Activity 6
With reference to what has been discussed above and your own experience, reflect on some
groups that come to your mind.
1. What do you think have been the factors that have kept the members together to form a
highly cohesive group?
2. What differences can you make between members who enjoy high status from those who
have lesser status in a group?
6.2.6 Factors Affecting Group Performance
In many circumstances, individuals perform better when they are in a group than when they are
on their own. This is to say that groups may produce better performance, because of synergy.
Synergy occurs when the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. For example in a work
situation, the total work done by a number of workers working together as a group is more than
what would have been expected if each worker has done the work individually. To be able to
judge whether synergy will be obtained from a group, it is necessary to consider some factors in
the environment within which the group operates. Robbins (1998) identifies organisational
setting, the task required of the group, the characteristics of the members and the group size as
some of the main factors.
Let us look at these in more details.
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6.2.6.1 Organisational Setting
The organisational setting and structure within which the group operates have some definite
influence on the performance of the group. How initiatives and participation are encouraged, to
what extent is the organisation formal or informal, etc, are important issues that must be
addressed by an organisation. It is necessary that the organisation is supportive of groups by
encouraging a group mentality, providing the resources (including technology) to assist the
groups and generally, encouraging a team environment. Initiatives must not be condemned or
punished harshly.
6.2.6.2 Nature of the Group Task
According to Wood, the difficulty of achieving group effectiveness increases with the degree of
task complexity. The reason for this is that more is demanded of the group members where the
task is complex, as more information processing is required, creating the necessity for greater
coordination. At a social level, the more complex the task, the greater the propensity for conflict
as it may be more difficult to reach agreement on specific aspects of the task. Obviously, the less
complex the task, the less interaction may be expected from group members and the easier it is to
achieve organisational goals and group effectiveness.
6.2.6.3 Membership Characteristics
The characteristics of the members of a group require consideration of the skill level within the
group and the psychological make-up of the members. It is important to have members with
appropriate skills to complete the task. The members of the group must also be able to get along
with each other and interpersonal skills are quite important. Moreover, interpersonal skills have
to be managed very sensitively in a culturally diverse environment. It is easier for a
homogeneous collection of individuals to get along. However, this dynamic can work against
the valuing of diversity and the loss of productive potential, which work adversely in relation to
effectiveness and efficiency.
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6.2.6.4 Status Congruence
Status congruence refers to the matching of a person’s status within and outside of a group.
Trouble can arise if the match is poor - for example when young people are placed in charge of
an older group of employees.
6.2.6.5 Group Size
It has been observed that the smaller the size of the group, the easier it is to select compatible
group members and to have more effective communication. But this is not a rule per se and a lot
will depend on interpersonal skills of individuals and the degree of understanding.
Activity 7
From your experience, provide suitable illustrations to show how the organisational setting, the
task required of the group, the characteristics of the members and the group size can affect the
performance of a group.
6.3 INTRODUCTION TO TEAMS
Team-based work structures have become one of the most, if not the most popular and important
tools of the modern manager in this increasingly competitive, globalised world where efficiency
and effectiveness are the order of the day for both growth and survival. No workplace is immune
from this world of rapid changes and fierce competition. In response to this, managers have
embarked on workplace restructuring (reengineering is a common term that is often used instead)
using invariably a team-based approach as a valid alternative. Many questions may be asked in
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this connection: Is the adoption of a team approach a fad? Is it possible that managers are
being deceived by the rhetoric of teams? Can everyone be a winner with a team-based
approach or is it possible that cohesiveness in teams is contrary to initiatives that value and
promote diversity?
The literature abounds in teams as being simple constructs, being thus appealing in the
increasingly complex environment in which managers work. However, ample care must be
taken in addressing teams and team-based management in organisations. Teams may and/or may
not bring the result expected from them. Nothing is automatic anymore in organisations.
6.3.1 Performance Enhancing Qualities of Team-Based Work Structures
Team-based structures have often been thought to be best for organisations in order to
complement work with play and moreover socialisation has been found to have significant
importance in work settings. This approach is in line with the human aspect of management that
has sought to encourage and sustain motivation and commitment of staff as a way of enhancing
and advancing the cause of both productivity for the organisation and providing a satisfying
environment for employees. There is no doubt that increasingly, employees are looking for both
autonomy and social interaction at work. Both of these can be incorporated into teams. Teams
are believed to provide solution to many of the problems of efficiency and effectiveness in
organisations to the extent that teams are often self-managed and take responsibility for the task
entrusted to them.
Katzenbach and Smith (1993) have acknowledged that many managers have been caught up with
faddism in this regard and have incorporated a team-based design in their workplaces simply
because teams are ‘nice to have’.
For organisations in Mauritius, it makes sense to seriously consider a team structure, given the
diversity of the Mauritian labour market and the corresponding skill mix, cultural background
and age profile of the workforce. Many studies have concluded that teams developed within a
diversity framework assist in the achievement of organisational outcomes. Such teams are likely
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to display the degree of interdependency necessary for achieving a higher level of performance.
However, it has also been cautioned that a team-based structure is not a panacea for
organisational effectiveness. Management has to provide the necessary support in developing an
appropriate organisational environment whenever team structures are chosen. This may imply
that managers have to sacrifice or trade off part of their power and authority to the teams. This
further implies that the benefits of a team-based structure should outweigh the consequences to
management in this connection, in particular those arising out of a lost of control. However, it
must be appreciated that the modern workplace is characterised by competent and skilled staff
whose quest for initiatives, responsibility for their work and trust is of no precedence, meaning
that the working environment is getting more conducive to accommodating team work.
This new situation also explains why empowerment, participation, flexibility and multi skilling
have become sine qua non in this world where the focus is on the customer and a quality
approach to products or services is essential.
6.3.2 Historical Influence of Teams at the Workplace
Scientific Management was not supportive of teams. Taylor, for example, acknowledged the
power of groups but in a negative way. He suggested that it was much preferable to keep staff
separate from each other because interactions could affect productivity negatively.
Elton Mayo, through his famous Hawthorne Studies, confirmed Taylor’s concern in that some
groups deliberately decreased productivity levels. But studies also proved that groups could
influence productivity positively if management showed concern to employees. The Hawthorne
effect was developed as a concept, which showed that if staff were given the importance they
deserved, they would increase outputs.
Systems Theory drew attention to group effectiveness and how individuals working with each
other gain in terms of outcomes.
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6.3.3 Definition of a Team
The contemporary management literature suggests that a shared corporate vision and a strategic
management approach are necessary prerequisites for an effective team-based structure.
According to Katzenbach and Smith (1993), a team is a:
a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common
purpose, performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually
accountable.
This definition suggests that one of the biggest challenges of management in organisations is to
create and develop teams that operate within the mission and culture of the organisation at large.
The organisations themselves must start by defining their mission and strategic intent.
Individuals constituting the organisation must be guided to work towards the defined common
purpose and objectives. Teamwork then becomes a good tool that managers can use to further
their aims. However, it must be cautioned that in many cases, teams have shown such
effectiveness in organisation in terms of being a psychological group, that this creates inter-team
rivalry. For instance, it has been found that some teams have developed such a strong culture
and almost impermeable boundaries that they do not interact with other teams in their
organisation or elsewhere. This creates significant side problems, which are often difficult to
solve or manage.
Thus, it is most important that the development and management of teams is given the necessary
attention so that the teams and their members perform and complete the assigned task to
satisfaction.
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Activity 8
Think of some situations whereby inter-team rivalry manifests itself in organisation.
(i) What could be the overall gains and drawbacks for the organisation in question?
(ii) What general conclusions can you draw about inter-team rivalry in organisation?
6.3.4 Types of Teams
Teams are normally designed and used for specific work situations that result in different
structures and group processes for different types of teams. The categorisation of teams has to
be addressed from the point of view of work undertaken and from processes required in order to
complete the tasks assigned to the teams.
Katzenbach and Smith (1993) have categorised teams according to the type of work undertaken
as:
those that recommend things such as ad hoc committees, select committees, task forces,
project groups, audit, quality and safety groups whose role is to solve particular
problems.
those that make or do things by being involved in manufacturing, research and
development, marketing, sales, service and other value-adding activities associated with
a business venture.
those that run things which involves overseeing some business or ongoing program or
being involved in some significant functional activity.
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Bolman and Deal (1993) have categorised teams on the basis of their structure in terms of degree
of interdependency of the members. In this analysis, Bolman and Deal have used a team analogy
with the identification of the following team types:
Baseball teams that are characterised as loosely coupled, in which the small number of
individuals acts quite independently with little interdependence amongst the members.
Goals are identified with individual team members contributing to the achievement of
these goals with some consultation amongst each member. Such team would be more
characteristic of a self-managing work team.
Football teams (American code) which display sequential activities towards a goal
represented by a tighter coupling of individuals and a high need for coordination. This
coordination is achieved by planning and hierarchical control. There is little movement
of individuals amongst the teams because of the teams’ systemic characteristics.
Basketball teams that have a high degree of reciprocity between the members and a
high degree of interdependency between those in the team.
Activity 9
With reference to Bolman and Deal (1993) analogy of team types, which of the baseball,
football and basketball teams would you find yourself more effective? Explain your
conclusion.
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6.3.5 Model for Developing Effective Teams
D. Dunphy (1981), in his book Organisational Change by Choice has shown that the following
key intervention strategies can be used to overcome team (or group) problems:
• Goal Setting and Goal Classification
This strategy requires the development of a clear and concrete statement of goals that is
accepted by both the team and management. This statement can then be used as a basis
for defining roles and responsibilities and laying down detailed action plans.
• Role Analysis and Role Classification
Here focus is on developing an agreement among team members as to how goals are to
be translated into specific role responsibilities for team members.
• Group Problem Solving and Decision-Making
Attention to group problem solving and decision-making will facilitate greater
commitment to the goals and also avoid some of the pitfalls associated with group
decision-making. The pitfalls generally are those of groupthink and minority domination.
If these conditions develop, it is likely that the group will not consider all possible
alternatives in a decision-making situation. Groupthink occurs when all members of the
group prefer to agree rather than to confront unusual or unpopular views, particularly
emanating from a minority. Minority domination takes place when one person or a small
group of individuals within a larger group influences decision-making.
• Understanding and Contributing to the Group Process
This strategy assists the groups in their task and maintenance functions.
• Reviewing and Revising Group Norms
The objective here is to identify and discuss existing group norms with regard to both
task and personal objectives and see whether they should be modified.
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Activity 10
With reference to Dunphy’s model for developing effective teams, explain what you would do to
ensure that you have an effective team, if you were required to develop one.
6.4 KEY CONCEPTS
Groups
Group Cohesion and Group Development
Homan’s group behaviour Model
Tuckman model
Schutz Group Development Model
Bion Model
Bennis and Sheppard Model
Socialisation
Dynamics of Groups
Norms, Conformity, Compliance, Cohesion
Teams
Effective Teams
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UNIT 7 LEADERSHIP
Unit Structure
7.0 Overview
7.1 Learning Objectives
7.2 Introduction
7.3 Managers and Leaders
7.4 What is Leadership all About?
7.5 Leadership Variables
7.6 Successful and Unsuccessful Leadership
7.7 Authority, Power and Leadership
7.8 Theories of Leadership
7.8.1 Trait Theory
7.8.2 Style Theories
Iowa Leadership Studies
Michigan and Ohio Studies
Blake’s and Mouton’s Managerial Grid
3 – D Model
Likert’s Management Systems
7.8.3 Group and Exchange Theories of Leadership
7.8.4 Contingency Theories
Fieldler’s Contingency Theory of Leadership
Path – Goal Theory
Vroom – Yetton – Jago Model
Situational Leadership Theory
7.8.5 Other Contemporary Theories of Leadership
Attribution Theory of Leadership
Charismatic Theory of Leadership
Transactional and Transformational Leadership
Visionary Leadership
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Team Leadership
7.9 Contemporary Issues in Leadership and Managerial Leadership
Leadership and Gender
Leadership and Cultural Factors
Leadership and Organisational Life Cycle
Leadership and Globalisation
7.10 Are Leaders Necessary?
7.11 Key Concepts
7.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit deals with the concept of leadership in relation to the management of organisations.
We explain the nature of leadership and its importance; its relationship to management and its
contribution to effective management. We also provide an insight into the various theories of
leadership. The issue of power in the exercise of leadership is also examined. The unit ends
with a few reflections on contemporary developments in the field of leadership.
7.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1 Define the concept of leadership and the key variables associated with the concept.
2 Explain the importance of leadership.
3 Differentiate between managers and leaders.
4 Analyse the different theories of leadership.
5 Explain the link between power and leadership.
6 Identify the future orientations of leadership.
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Warm - Up Activity
(i) Think of any person whom you can consider as being a leader.
(ii) List those specific qualities/attributes that can qualify that person to be a leader.
(iii) Look at your list and then group the qualities, where possible under these three
categories: Personal qualities, Social relationships and Task performance.
7.2 INTRODUCTION
Throughout history and even in the contemporary world, there are many examples of
organisations that can be classified as successful and worthy of being emulated; there are others,
always confronted with all kinds of problems and not able to achieve results. In an environment
that is highly competitive, and driven by considerations of technological innovation, quality, cost
effectiveness, timeliness and excellence in service delivery, organisations cannot afford to lag
behind. The risks of organisational demise are considerable.
All organisations have people known as managers, who have overall and direct responsibilities
for the organisational fortunes, and who carry out a number of managerial functions. However, a
close scrutiny of different management systems and practices can reveal that there is an
important difference in the way organisations are managed. In some organisations, there are
managers who are able to get work done by creating conditions that encourage initiative,
involvement, commitment, trust and a team spirit among their employees; they are a source of
inspiration within the organisation. On the other hand, in many other organisations, there are
managers who fail to "connect" with their employees or to secure their enthusiasm in performing
their tasks; they are unable to create interest and enthusiasm among their employees.
There may be many factors to explain such situations but the common denominator of exemplary
organisations comes out to be good leadership. (Bennis, 1999).
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Activity 1
I (a) List the specific contributions from managers to give their organisations a competitive
edge relative to other organisations.
(b) Do employees always share and support the initiatives of managers? Justify your answer.
II (a) Identify some people, both at the national and international levels, whom you consider as
leaders. (The leaders can come from any field of activity).
(b) Give reasons for each of your choice. Can you identify a common set of attributes that
each of these people have?
7.3 MANAGERS AND LEADERS
Luthans (1998) has noted that there are fundamental differences between leaders and managers.
Zaleznik (1992) has argued that leaders and managers are fundamentally different types of
personalities.
Managers and leaders have different agendas, different competencies, different work methods
and different self-concepts.
Managers are appointed and derive their authority from their formal positions within
organisations and are required to work towards the achievement of organisational purposes.
Leaders can be appointed, elected or nominated; they can emerge; they can be appointed
informally or they can simply be imposed.
Managers will exercise authority attached to the position and as such, can be considered as the
leaders. But leaders can exercise authority that is derived from their personal expertise, wisdom,
reputation or qualities. They can work towards organisational or even personal goals.
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Managers relate to goals and objectives in a passive or impersonal manner and are primarily
concerned with developing plans and budget, organising directing, co-ordinating and controlling
resources. They focus on processes and systems and work to bring about compromise and
consensus.
The management process reduces uncertainty and stabilises an organisation.
(Nelson and Quick, 1997)
In contrast, leaders develop visions and have a high sense of active and personal involvement.
They create choices and they are a source of inspiration. They show empathy towards others and
motivate them. They deploy their ability and skills to align the imagination and efforts of their
employees with the vision and strategies of the organisation and, to use the full potential of
organisation's intellectual capital. Leaders are, therefore, people who are capable of influencing
others to engage in certain specific activities and to secure their commitment to achieve those
activities. They cause a difference, a change in performance and achievement to take place.
Robbins and Coulter (1999) define leaders as:
Persons who are able to influence others and who possess managerial authority.
Adair (1986) makes the following distinction:
Remember that you can be appointed a manager but you are not a leader until your
appointment is ratified in the hearts and minds of those who work for you.
Bennis (1989) summarises the difference between leaders and managers as follows:
Leaders conquer the context---the volatile, turbulent, ambiguous surroundings that
sometimes seem to conspire against us and will surely suffocate us if we let them---while
managers surrender to it.
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Kolb et al., (1995) have suggested that,
Leaders tend to promote change while managers tend to produce order, predictability,
and the key results expected by stakeholders.
According to Quick and Nelson (1997),
Whereas leaders agitate for change and new approaches, managers advocate stability
and the status quo.
Finally, leaders and managers are also different in the following manner: leaders do the right
things whereas managers do things right.
But do leaders have to be managers and vice versa? Many leaders may not possess managerial
skills, and therefore it is not always possible to come across leaders who are also managers. But
in the organisational context, both leadership and management are important and
complementary.
Nelson and Quick (1997) have stated that while management and leadership are two distinct
systems, they are also complementary. Leadership is a sub-set of good management.
Activity 2
(i) Why should managers develop and exercise leadership skills and qualities?
(ii) Explain what is meant by "Doing things right and doing the right things".
(iii) How would you differentiate between effective managers and ineffective ones?
(iv) What do you have to say about the following statement - “Some people are born or are
natural leaders”?
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7.4 WHAT IS LEADERSHIP ALL ABOUT?
Mankind, throughout history, has always been fascinated by the phenomenon of leadership and,
even today, it continues to be a subject of much interest in all societies.
Leadership has probably been written about, formally researched, and informally
discussed more than any other single topic.
(Luthans, 1998)
Bennis (1999) has qualified this state of affairs as a "contagious" obsession.
The widespread interest, past and present, in leadership, has not facilitated the task of defining
the concept.
According to Luthans (1998), leadership
is known to exist and to have a tremendous influence on human performance, but its
inner workings and specific dimensions cannot be precisely spelled out.
To Bennis too, the concept "remains elusive". Tyson and Jackson (1997) have stated that "there
are as many definitions as there are theoreticians in the field".
Mullins (1999) defines leadership "as a dynamic process''. He adds that,
The leader-follower relationship is reciprocal and effective leadership is a two-way
process which influences both individual and organisational performance.
To Robbins and Coulter (1999), leadership is:
The ability to influence a group toward the achievement of goals.
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Moorhead and Griffin (1999) consider leadership to be both a “process” and a “property”, i.e,
leadership involves both the exercise of influence as well as the possession of certain
characteristic attributes.
McGregor (1987) takes the view that:
Leadership is not a property of the individual, but a complex relationship among these
variables.
According to Tyson and Jackson (1997),
The notion of leadership involves some kind of reciprocal relationship between those who
lead and those who are led.
Hersey and Blanchard (1977) define leadership as:
The process of influencing the activities of an individual or a group in efforts toward goal
achievement in a given situation.
Luthans (1998), referring to an article in Fortune magazine, provides the following definition for
leadership:
When you boil it down, contemporary leadership seems to be a matter of aligning people
toward common goals and empowering them to take actions needed to reach them.
While the various definitions reflect different theoretical frameworks and focus on various
aspects of the concept, like different types of behaviours, group processes, authority and power,
persuasion, compliance, goal achievement and personality attributes, the common denominator
however seems to be "the role that influence plays in leadership" (Luthans, 1998).
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In a broad sense, leadership can be viewed as a dynamic process, which involves a number of
combined factors and phenomena, and the outcomes of effective leadership are behaviours and
achievements that are in line with the vision and strategies of the organisation.
Leadership is therefore a function of specific goals and objectives, leader behaviour, follower
behaviour and a given situation.
7.5 LEADERSHIP VARIABLES
In any leadership situation, there are at lest five variables that can influence leadership
behaviour.
1. The tasks and goals of the organisation.
2. The leader variables – the leader’s knowledge, skills, attitudes, personality and
behaviour.
3. The followers’ variables – their motivation, skills, attitudes and behaviours.
4. The context or situation.
5. The resources available to get work done.
Leadership results out of the interplay of these five variables.
Leadership = f (goals and objectives, leader behaviour, follower behaviour and situational
factors, and resources)
It is important to remember that leadership does not concern a hierarchical superior-subordinate
relationship only, i.e. "leader behaviour resulting in subordinate behaviour" (Mullins, 1999).
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According to Hersey and Blanchard (1977):
Any time an individual is attempting to influence the behaviour of someone else, that
individual is the potential leader and the person he or she is attempting to influence is the
potential follower no matter whether that person is your "boss", a colleague (associate),
a subordinate, a friend, or a relative.
Mullins (1999) also emphasises that leadership
is more than eliciting mechanical behaviour which results from a superior-subordinate
relationship in a hierarchical structure.
Activity 3
(i) Can there be a universal way of influencing people?
(ii) Do you have a particular way in which you try to influence others? Can you explain why
you adopt that particular way?
7.6 SUCCESSFUL AND UNSUCCESSFUL LEADERSHIP
Three kinds of situation may be identified when studying leadership:
1. Attempted Leadership
2. Successful Leadership
3. Effective Leadership
Attempted leadership will refer to a situation where there is an attempt to exert influence over
others.
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Such an attempt may succeed or fail if the response expected by person A from person B is
forthcoming because of the position power of A (who can reward or punish) and not because B is
willing and wants to respond. The situation will be described as one of successful leadership
where there is compliance without commitment.
However, if the response of B is accompanied by his willingness as he realises that his own goals
are being fulfilled in the process, such a situation can be categorised as effective leadership.
Successful and effective leadership will reflect a situation where both position and personal
power are exercised, are accepted and approved. It is accompanied by both the process of
delegation and empowerment. It promotes teamwork and team spirit and leads to the integration
of organisational, individual and team goals.
According to Hersey and Blanchard (1977),
If managers are both successful and effective, their influence tends to lead to long-term
productivity and organisational development.
Activity 4
(i) Describe an effective organisation.
(ii) What are the attributes of an effective leader?
7.7 AUTHORITY, POWER AND LEADERSHIP
In the exercise of influence within organisations, leaders are allowed, within prescribed, well-
defined limits, to implement certain decisions, cause certain actions to be taken or control
resources, on behalf of the organisation. This is referred to as authority, which is legitimate
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power. This power is also known as position power. It can be exercised fully by the
incumbent, in his role as prescribed by the organisation or it can be shared with others, through a
process of delegation.
Whilst authority may be delegated and certain tasks may be assigned to other employees, the
accountability (being answerable for whatever goes wrong due to the actions of subordinates)
remains with the person to whom original authority was vested.
Leadership has more to do with influence and consent but leaders can have recourse to authority
to get things done the way they like.
Apart from authority, there are other forms of power that leaders can exercise. (Raven and
French, 1959):
Coercive Power: This is the crudest form of power, based on threats and
punishments.
Reward Power: The leader has the ability to secure rewards for those who comply.
Expert Power: This is based on the possession of specialised knowledge and
skills.
Referrent Power: This is personal power, based on personal attributes, reputation or
charisma.
Another source of power is information power, based on access to important information.
These different sources of power are interrelated and the use of one type of power can have an
influence upon the use of another type of power. For example, a person who is ineffective when
using position power, can have recourse to reward power. On the other hand, a person can
exercise different types of power in different situations.
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Activity 5
(i) Think of circumstances under which different types of power can be utilised by a leader.
(ii) What would be the likely subordinate reactions in each of the circumstances?
7.8 THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP
Various theories have been put forward to shed light on the concept and meaning of leadership,
as explained below.
7.8.1 Trait Theory or "The Great Man Theory"
The earliest studies on leadership focussed on identifying a number of personal attributes or
personality traits that a person possessed, and which allowed the person to emerge as leader, in
course of time. This theory supported the idea that leaders are born.
Two major problems confront this theory: (i) what list of qualities to retain in determining
leadership and how many of them? (ii) How to avoid the element of subjectivity in determining
the list of qualities?
According to Luthans (1999),
the trait approach to leadership has provided some descriptive insight but has little
analytical or predictive value.
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7.8.2 Style Theories
To deal with the weaknesses of the trait theory, researchers concentrated on the behaviour of
leaders, and its impact on followers.
IOWA Leadership Studies
These studies were carried out in the 1930’s,under the direction of Kurt Lewin, at the
University of Iowa. Three styles of leadership were experimented with: autocratic,
democratic and laissez-faire. The purpose was to study the different impacts on groups.
The experiments showed that different styles have different impacts on groups and it was
assumed that employees would prefer working with leaders with a democratic style.
While the results of the research showed that a democratic leadership contributed to
higher levels of employee satisfaction, it did not always result in higher performance.
Tannenbaum and Schmidt (1973) argued that the appropriate style of leadership to be
used would depend upon the assumptions managers make about themselves, the
subordinates and the situation. The leadership styles would then evolve along a
continuum as illustrated in Figure 7.1.
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Michigan and Ohio Studies
These studies were undertaken in the 1950s. The Michigan Studies analysed high and
low producing groups and the different leadership behaviour of the supervisors. It was
noticed that in the high producing groups, supervisors were more employee-oriented,
whereas in the low producing group, the supervisors were more production-oriented.
The Ohio Studies, conducted after the Michigan studies, used a leadership behaviour
description questionnaire, containing 150 items, to determine the leadership behaviour.
Two distinct groupings of behaviour emerged: concern for relationships with employees
(consideration) and concern for organisation and allocation of tasks (initiating
structure).
The Ohio studies showed that there were two separate dimensions present in work
situations (Figure 7.2) and that the leadership behaviour of supervisors would reflect the
various combinations possible for the two dimensions, namely:
Use of authority of managers
Area of freedom for subordinates
Boss-centred leadership
Subordinate-centred leadership
Manager makes decision and announces it
Manager “sells” decision
Manager presents ideas and invites discussion
Manager presents tentative decision subject to change
Manager presents problem, gets suggestions, makes decision
Manager defines limits; asks group to make decision
Manager permits subordinates to function within limits defined by superior
Continuum of boss-centred and subordinate-centred leader behaviours (Tannenbaum & Schmidt 1973, p.164) Figure 7.1
171
High consideration/high structure
High consideration/low structure
Low consideration/high structure
Low consideration/low structure
172
Figure 7.2: Initiating Structure
low initiating structure
high consideration
low initiating structure
low consideration
high initiating structure
high consideration
high initiating structure
low consideration
Consideration
High
Low
Low High
Ohio State two-dimensional model of leader behaviours
173
Blake’s and Mouton's Managerial Grid
The grid is a graphic representation of two dimensions - concern for people and concern
for production-along two axes, each with a scale of 1-9 (1 representing lowest concern
and 9 representing highest concern).
The grid (Figure 7.3) shows that the repertoire of leadership behaviour ranges from a
minimal to an optimum style.
[also on p 10, unit 7, MGT 1111 support materials]
Concern for production
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
HighLow
Low
High
ImpoverishedManagement1.1
1.9 Country clubmanagement
5.5 Organisation management
9.9Team
management
Authority – obedienceManagement
9.1
Concern for people
Figure 7.3
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3-D Model
Reddin (1970) improved on Blake and Mouton's Managerial Grid by providing it with a
three-dimensional perspective and introducing an appropriateness/effectiveness
dimension. (Figure 7.4)
Figure 7.4
There are eight possible styles of leadership. The central grid represents the basic styles
and each basic style provides two alternative management styles depending upon the
appropriateness or inappropriateness of the situation.
Reddin's model suggests a wider range of leadership behaviours available to managers
and the possibilities of four effective styles whereas in Blake’s and Mouton’s Managerial
Grid, there is only one effective style (9, 9).
Reddin's proposals are interesting for managers but they have not been validated by
research.
Missionar
Deserte
Compromise
Autocra
Related
Separate
Integrated
Dedicate
Developer
Bureaucrat
Executive
Benevolent Autocrat
Effectivenes
More effective
Less effective
Concern for task
High Low Low
Concern for people
High
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Likert's Management Systems
Likert (1961) and his colleagues of the Institute for Social Research at the University of
Michigan argued that approaches to managing and motivating people could be
represented along a continuum of systems.
According to Likert, organisations that are closer to system 4 are able to achieve higher
level of productivity.
Figure 7.5
Organisational Variable System 1 System 2 System 3 System 4
Leadership processes used Extent to which superiors have confidence and trust in subordinates
Character of motivation forces Manner in which motives are used
Character of interaction-influence process Amount and character of interaction
Have no confidence and trust in subordinates
Have condescending confidence and trust, such as master has to servant
Substantial but not complete confidence and trust; still wishes to keep control of decisions
Complete confidence and trust in all matters
Fear, treats, punishment, and occasional rewards
Rewards and some actual or potential punishment
Rewards, occasional punishment, and some involvement
Economic rewards based on compensation system developed through participation; group participation and involvement in setting goals, improving methods, appraising progress towards goals, etc
Little interaction and always with fear and distrust
Little interaction and usually with some condescension by superiors; fear and caution by subordinates
Moderate interaction, often with fair amount of confidence and trust
Extensive, friendly interaction with high degree of confidence and trust
176
Activity 6
(i) List the major differences between the trait theories and the style theories.
7.8.3 Group and Exchange Theories of Leadership
The body of knowledge developed under this category of leadership theories is founded on the
principle that leadership involves an exchange process between the leaders and followers.
Followers are in a position to affect leadership behaviour. For example, group productivity and
group cohesion is known to have a direct impact on leaders attitudes and behaviours.
7.8.4 Contingency Theories
Contingency theories of leadership take a more contextual view and focus on the importance of
the situation in which leadership is exercised. They are based "on the belief that there is no
single style of leadership appropriate to all situations" (Luthans, 1999).
Fiedler’s Contingency Theory of Leadership
Fred Fiedler (1967) was the first theorist to use the term "contingency". He developed
the contingency theory of leadership that takes into account both the leader’s personality
and the complexities of situation in explaining leadership behaviours.
He devised a special term to define a leader’s basic personality trait: task versus
relationship motivation. He viewed the trait to be fairly constant for a given person. To
determine the degree of task or relationship motivation, a questionnaire, known as the
Least Preferred Co-worker scale (LPC) is addressed to respondents (the leaders). High
LPC scores indicate relationship motivation and low LPC reveal task motivation of
leaders.
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Task-oriented leaders are primarily gratified by accomplishing tasks and getting
work done. Relationship-oriented leaders are primarily gratified by developing
good, comfortable interpersonal relationships.
(Nelson and Quick, 1997)
As regards the situation, Fieldler described them in terms of its favourableness to the
leader, which ranged from being highly favourable to highly unfavourable. Three factors
influenced the favourableness of the situation: leader-member relations, task structure
and leader position power.
Leader behaviours become dependent upon the various combinations of leader
motivation and the favourableness or unfavourableness of the situation.
In all, there are eight different situations. The most favourable situation for leadership is
characterised by: good leader-member relations, high task structure and high position
power. The most unfavourable situation for leadership is characterised by poor leader-
member relations, low tasks structure and low position power. These conclusions were
reached after a series of studies on the relationships of leader motivation, situational
favourableness and group performance.
The most important aspect of the model was that a particular leadership style would be
most suitable for different kinds of situations. It was possible to select the right leader for
a given situation. To do so, it was therefore, important to identify a style of leadership
and match it with the appropriate situations.
One of the important weaknesses of Fieldler’s model relates to its validity. The research
results show some inconsistency and the model has been criticised for its lack of solid
scientific evidence.
178
Path-Goal Theory
Evans and House (1971) have argued that leadership styles can be adapted to a given
situation. Personality traits are, therefore, not considered to be the determining factor.
They have put forward the Path-Goal Theory, which is inspired from the expectancy
theory of motivation, whereby motivation is based on:
a. Valence the value of a particular rewarded
b. Expectancy the belief that efforts will lead to performance
c. Instrumentality the belief that performance is related to rewards
The basic premise of the path-goal theory is that:
The leader affects subordinates’ performance by clarifying behaviours (paths)
that will lead to desired rewards (goals).
(Moorhead and Griffin, 1992)
The leadership style is adapted to the characteristics of the followers and the environment
in which they are employed.
The theory incorporates the following variables (Figure 7.6):
The leader behaviour styles
The subordinate characteristics and the environmental forces
The subordinate perception and motivation (the effort-performance-reward
linkage)
The outcomes (the follower goals)
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Figure 7.6
The leader can use one of the four leadership styles that is most appropriate for a given
situation.
Unlike Fiedler's model where leadership style is dependent upon the traits of the leader,
the path-goal model implies that the same leader can display any or all of these four
leadership styles.
The path-goal theory is supported by much of available research findings but a complete
validation of the model will require further testing.
Vroom-Yetton - Jago Model
This model, like the path-goal model, suggests that there can be a specific leadership
style for a given situation. However, its main concern is with the degree of subordinate
participation in decision-making.
SUBORDINATE CHARACTERISTICS Locus of control and/or ability
LEADER BEHAVIOUR/STYLES Directive Supportive Participative Achievement-oriented
SUBORDINATE Perceptions Motivation
OUTCOMES Satisfaction Role clarity Goal clarity Performance
ENVIRONMENTAL FORCES Task characteristics Formal authority system Primary work group
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The model is also referred to as the Normative Leadership Model because of its
prescriptive nature and provides for "a sequential set of rules (norms) that the leader
should follow in determining the form and amount of participation in decision-making, as
determined by the different types of situations" (Robbins and Coulter, 1999).
There are, in all, twelve contingency variables, (for instance, quality requirement,
commitment requirement, goal congruence, problem structure, leader's information,
subordinate information), that have be assessed before the leader can determine an
appropriate decision route to follow to arrive at a recommended course of action. The
use of a decision tree is advised. The leader addresses each problem attribute. The
answer takes him to the second node on the decision tree until a terminal node is reached.
The manager's decision-making style is thus revealed. Each of the five possible styles -
ranging from autocratic to participative - will reveal the level of subordinate participation
that the manager should provide.
For greater accuracy in assessing each situation, Vroom and Jago have developed a
computer software.
The model works well in structured situations, but in situations that are unstructured and
require interactions with followers, the model is of limited use.
Situational Leadership Theory
The Situational Leadership Theory (also known as the Life-Cycle Theory) was developed
by Hersey and Blanchard (1977). The theory suggests that leader behaviour needs to be
adjusted to the maturity level of followers, i.e, degree of motivation, experience and
interest. Two dimensions of leader behaviour are used: task-or production orientation
and relationship or people orientation.
Follower maturity is grouped into four levels as illustrated in Figure 7.7.
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Figure 7.7
The bell-shaped curve depicted in the figure show the leadership style that can be
utilised, depending on followers' level of maturity. The four available leadership styles
are: delegating, participating, selling and telling.
The situational theory of leadership has considerable intuitive appeal for managers but
lacks in scientific evidence. But it is widely used in the context of training and
development programmes.
3 Share ideas and facilitate in decision making
2 Explain
decisions and provide
opportunity for
clarification
low rel. low task
4 Turn over
responsibility for decisions and
implementation
1 Provide specificinstructions and closely supervise performance
(low) (high)TASK BEHAVIOUR
(Guidance) FOLLOWER READINESS
HIGH MODERATE LOW R4 R3 R2 R1
Able and willing or confident
Able but unwilling or insecure
Unable but willing or confident
Unable and unwilling or insecure
(high)
high task high rel.
high rel. low task
Situational leadership theory (adapted from Hersey & Blanchard 1988, p. 188)
high task low rel.
(Supporting Behaviour) RELATIONSHIP BEHAVIOUR
DELEGATING
PARTICIPATING
SELLING
TELLING
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Activity 7
(i) What improvements do the contingency theories bring to the trait and style theories?
(ii) Examine the path-goal theory and explain the function of the leader in theory.
7.8.5 Other Contemporary Theories of Leadership
Attribution Theory of Leadership
The Attribution Theory is based on the concept of cause and effect relationships. Under this
theory, behaviour is observed and causes are then attributed. As regards leadership, people
have a tendency to characterise leaders as having a number of traits: intelligence, outgoing
personality, strong verbal skills, aggressiveness, understanding and industriousness. A good
leader is also considered to be someone who pays high attention to production/tasks as well
as people/relationships, irrespective of situations. Success is credited to good leadership and
failure is explained by poor leadership.
Leadership is also attributed to those who take up difficult challenges and work with
determination until success is achieved.
The Attribution Theory of Leadership is at an early stage of its development. Further
research is needed to make the theory scientifically sound.
Charismatic Theory of Leadership
Robert House (1979) (who put forward the path-goal theory), Warren Bennis (1984), Bernard
Bass (1985), Jay Conger and Rabindra Kanungo (1988) are among those who have
contributed to the Charismatic Theory of Leadership.
Charisma refers to the ability of a leader to command respect and inspire pride and faith;
Charismatic leaders possess certain personal qualities that they use to exercise very profound
and extraordinary impact upon their followers.
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Charisma is a form of interpersonal attraction that inspires support and acceptance and
is likely to make a highly charismatic supervisor more successful in influencing
subordinate behaviour than a supervisor who lacks charisma.
(Moorhead and Griffin, 1992)
Charismatic leaders have a strong sense of mission and purpose and are able to articulate a
clear vision to their followers. Other key characteristics of charismatic leaders are: self-
confidence, strong convictions about vision, behaviour that is out of the ordinary, appearance
as a change agent and environmental sensitivity (Robbins and Coulter, 1999). High levels of
technical expertise and strong empathy are also very important.
Charismatic leadership becomes a requirement in situations of crisis, or where change is
badly needed.
Research about charismatic leaders show that the performance and satisfaction among
followers are positively related to charismatic leadership, but the theory’s propositions need
to be tested further. There are also clear indications that people can be trained to demonstrate
charismatic behaviours (Howell and Frost, 1989).
Transactional and Transformational Leadership
Transactional Leadership is concerned with enabling followers to work towards established
goals, by clarifying tasks and roles, in return for negotiated rewards. The leader uses position
power and the followers are motivated by self-interests: "a fair day's pay for a fair day's
work" is the guiding principle. There is a calculated exchange relationship between leaders
and followers. The broader and longer term interests of the organisation are not addressed.
According to Burns (1978), transactional leadership is derived from the more traditional
views of management, where workers' interests and managers' interests are conflictual.
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The contingency theories fall within the category of transactional leadership theory. This
system of leadership is not conducive for high levels of productivity and does not always
result in to superior performance.
In contrast, transformational leadership is distinct from transactional leadership.
Transformational leaders motivate and inspire followers to go beyond established and normal
expectations; they are encouraged to thrive for higher level goals and broader missions rather
than the immediate, mundane considerations.
Transformational and transactional leadership are not mutually exclusive leadership
behaviours, nor are they substitutes. Transformational leaders build on transactional
leadership and try to achieve performance beyond expectations.
Transformational leadership is built on top of transactional leadership.
(Robbins and Coulter, 1999)
Transformational leadership is more strongly correlated to lower turnover rates, higher
productivity and higher employee satisfaction than transactional leadership. Employees are
empowered, their potential is expanded; they are also encouraged to welcome change and
take initiatives.
Transformational leadership is also closely associated with charismatic leadership. There is
some degree of overlapping between the two concepts, but transformational leadership is
much more than charismatic leadership. Apart from charisma, transformational leadership
also requires individualised consideration and intellectual stimulation (Bass, 1985).
The characteristics and the approaches of transformational and transformational leaders are
summarised in Figure 7.8.
185
Characteristics and Approaches of Transactional Versus
Transformational Leaders
Transactional Leaders
1. Contingent Reward: Contracts exchange of rewards for effort, promises rewards for good
performance, recognises accomplishments.
2. Management by Exception (active): Watches and searches for deviations from rules and
standards, takes corrective action.
3. Management by Exception (passive): Intervenes only if standards are not met.
4. Laissez-Faire: Abdicates responsibilities, avoids making decisions.
Transformational Leaders
1. Charisma: Provides vision and sense of mission, instills pride, gains respect and trust.
2. Inspiration: Communicates high expectations, uses symbols to focus efforts, expresses
important purposes in simple ways.
3. Intellectual Stimulation: Promotes intelligence, rationality, and careful problem solving.
4. Individual Consideration: Gives personal attention, treats each employee individually,
coaches, advises.
Figure 7.8
Source: Bernard M. Bass, “From Transactional to Transformational Leadership: Learning to
Share the Vision,” Organisational Dynamics, Winter 1990, p. 22.
186
Activity 8
What are the major differences between the transactional and the transformational leaders?
Visionary Leadership
The concept of visionary leadership has been put forward because of the need to ensure that
organisations are able to cope with a new, complex and fast changing world. There are
multiple stakeholders and multiple interests that compete for attention of organisations and
unless there is a common sense of direction, organisations may not be able to survive and
prosper.
A common vision acts as a glue that binds people together and provides the basis for
common endeavour.
The key properties of a vision seem to be inspirational properties that are value centred,
are realisable, have superior imagery and are well articulated.
(Robbins and Coulter, 1999)
Organisations need leaders who can create vision, communicate it effectively, secure
adherence of followers and inspire them. Visionary leadership creates and sustains a culture
of continuous improvements, by tapping the emotions and energies of employees.
Visionary leaders have three key skills:
(i) ability to explain the vision to others
(ii) ability to express vision not just verbally but through behaviour
(iii) ability to extend or apply vision to different leadership contexts.
It is to be noted that there is some degree of overlapping in the concepts of charismatic,
transformational and visionary leadership, although each concept has its own specificities.
187
Team Leadership
Organisations are increasingly adopting the team concepts in the conduct of their
activities. Under these circumstances, the focus of the leader's role is quite different from
the role that leaders have in non-team contexts.
A team leader performs a series of facilitating and supporting roles. Empowering
employees to take decisions is one of the key aspects of a team leader's job.
There are two priorities that are addressed by team leaders: facilitating the team process
and managing the team's external boundary. The team leader is in contact with the
external constituencies of the team and keeps the team informed about any aspect that is
of importance to its objectives and functions and ensures that the team has the required
resources.
The team leader is also available when the team needs advice, guidance and expert
knowledge in connection with certain specific problems and issues. Helping to manage
team conflicts is another responsibility of the team leader.
7.9 CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN LEADERSHIP AND MANAGERIAL LEADERSHIP
Leadership and Gender
One of the issues that is of interest relates to whether males and females have different
approaches to leadership. As more women are assuming managerial positions, it is
important to reflect upon this issue. Is gender a factor for the labelling of leadership
behaviours? There are differences between male and female managers. Are the
differences a source of problem or can they be an asset to organisations? The Gender
issue is not a straightforward issue and is likely to raise controversy. It needs to be
examined objectively and stereotyping needs to be avoided.
188
Leadership and Cultural Factors
Values and beliefs in particular societies and organisations have a direct impact on the
attitudes and behaviours of people. We have seen that situational variables are important
influences on leadership behaviours. Cultural factors have the potential of impacting
upon leadership behaviours. Both the value systems of leaders and followers can shape
leadership relationships in given contexts (Tannenbaum and Schmidt, 1973).
Leadership and Organisational Life Cycle
Organisations go through different stages of development and face different problems
and challenges. The leadership behaviour will have to take into consideration the
demands of the specific stages of the organisational life cycle and adopt the leadership
style that is most suitable. Leaders will therefore have to modify their styles as
organisations progress through the different stages of their life cycles.
Leadership and Globalisation
In a global context, managers have to work in different countries with different cultures.
They will need to develop new skills that will help them to understand the attitudes and
expectations of people from different cultural backgrounds.
According to Quick and Nelson (1997), organisations will have to train leaders for global
operations by focussing on cross-cultural and language skills.
7.10 ARE LEADERS NECESSARY?
Kerr and Jermier (1978) have argued that in certain circumstances, organisations may very well
do without leaders. There are some substitute factors (neutralisers) that may render leadership
redundant or unnecessary. These factors may be found in subordinate, task and organisational
aspects. However, such situations cannot be generalised.
The substitute idea does not negate leadership; it just puts a more realistic boundary on
what leadership is capable of achieving from subordinates. (Luthans, 1998).
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7.11 KEY CONCEPTS
Managers
Leaders
Leadership
Effective Leadership
Style Theory of Leadership
Contingency Theories
Path-Goal Theory
Situational Leadership, Charismatic, Transactional, Transformational, Visionary Leadership
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UNIT 8 CONFLICT IN ORGANISATIONS
Unit Structure
8.0 Overview
8.1 Learning Objectives
8.2 Introduction
8.3 Defining Conflict
8.4 Perspectives and Approaches to Conflict
8.4.1 Traditional View
8.4.2 Human Relations View
8.4.3 The Interactionist View
8.5 Functions of Conflict
8.5.1 Functional Outcomes of Conflict
8.5.2 Dysfunctional Outcomes of Conflict
8.6 The Conflict Process
8.7 Levels of Conflict
8.8 Strategies for Managing Conflict
8.9 Conflict Resolution and Stimulation
8.10 Negotiation – A Basic Approach to Manage Conflict
8.10.1 Conflict Management Through Negotiation
8.10.2 Myths About Negotiation
8.11 Key Concepts
8.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit explains the role of conflict in organisations. You will appreciate that conflict may be
both functional and dysfunctional in organisation processes. You will be able to learn how to
manage conflict so as to minimise dysfunctionalities.
Note that during tutorials, additional activities will be provided.
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8.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1. Define conflict.
2. State the role of conflict in organisations.
3. Assess the various views on conflict.
4. Identify various ways and strategies to manage conflict in organisation.
5. Explain how conflict may be stimulated.
6. State the importance of negotiation as a basic approach to overcome conflict.
8.2 INTRODUCTION
In this Unit, issues pertaining to conflict in organisations are discussed. There are various views
that are held about conflict in organisation. Some believe that conflict is good and helps
management to be informed about dysfunctionalities whilst others believe that conflict is harmful
to organisations and should not arise. For example, when we relate conflict with “change”, all of
us can appreciate the existence of significant potential for conflict situations in that some prefer
the status quo, others believe they will lose with change, others find a change process produces
uncertainty while others look at change as a solution to their problems, etc. In other words,
change does not keep everyone happy or satisfied in organisations. Conflict thus becomes an
important issue for organisations as it has been shown that an unhappy employee does not
produce at his or her best and both productivity and competitiveness eventually suffer. It is the
responsibility of managers to address the issue of conflict in organisation in such a way that the
organisation continues its journey ahead in the most effective and efficient manner. As
managers, we have a responsibility to assist in the management of the conflict process so that the
level of conflict remains within acceptable limits and does not work negatively in terms of
fulfilment of the organisational goals.
192
Warm - Up Activity
Imagine a moment of your life where you have experienced what you consider to be a major
conflict with an individual and with an organisation.
1. Describe this experience in terms of major issues involved and how, if at all, the conflict
was resolved.
2. What difference, if any, do you observe between the conflicts you had with an individual
and those you had with an organisation?
8.3 DEFINING CONFLICT
Conflicts refer to disagreements in a given context, and over issues which can be of a substantive
or an emotional nature or both. They are usually sources of antagonism and create friction
between individuals or groups.
Cole (1998) defines conflict as:
is a condition that arises whenever the perceived interests of an individual or a group
clash with those of another individual or group in such a way that strong emotions
are aroused and compromise is not considered to be an option. Conflict, when
managed effectively, can contribute to organisational effectiveness, but when
mishandled, can give rise to counter-productive behaviour, in which both sides lose.
Litterer (1985) views conflict as the outcome of perceived inequity:
Conflict is a type of behaviour which occurs when two or more parties are in
opposition or in battle as a result of a perceived relative deprivation from the
activities of or interaction with another person or group.
193
To Robbins (1998),
conflict is a process that begins when one party perceives that another party has
negatively affected, or is about to negatively affect, something that the first party cares
about.
Robbins’ definition encompasses a wide range of conflicts that people experience in
organisations; for example, incompatibility of goals, differences over interpretations of facts,
disagreements based on behavioural expectations, and the like. The definition is also flexible
enough to cover the full range of conflict levels - from overt and violent acts to subtle forms of
disagreement.
Despite the different definitions associated with the term conflict, several common themes exist
in most of the definitions. For instance, it is important to note that the parties involved in a
conflicting situation must perceive conflict to be aware of its existence. In other words, whether
or not conflict exists is a matter of perception. If we are not aware of a conflict, then we
generally feel that no conflict exists. Other things that come out from the definitions are that
there must be some opposition or incompatibility and some form of interaction to establish
whether conflict exists or not.
Briefly, the above definitions of conflict suggest that for conflict to occur, there must be at least
two parties involved, some form of disagreement between perceived interests and the
disagreement is made visible or noticeable.
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8.4 PERSPECTIVES AND APPROACHES TO CONFLICT
8.4.1 Traditional View
The traditional or early approach to conflict, also referred to as the Unitary Perspective by
Morgan (1986), viewed conflict to be bad and harmful for organisations in the sense that conflict
tended to deflect organisations from pursuing organisational objectives. The organisation was
considered to be a well-integrated team working towards a common purpose and as such, there
should be no reason for conflict in the organisation set up. Conflict is seen to emanate from
troublemakers and outsiders, who are not committed to the organisational goals and
philosophies. Managers believe that the minute they honour the employment contract they have
with employees, the latter must be satisfied and they should not complain. The traditional view
sees in conflict a source of diversion that hampers smooth operations and negatively affects
productivity. Thus, conflict is seen to be harmful to organisations and must be avoided.
8.4.2 Human Relations View
The Human Relations or Pluralist Perspective views an organisation as a loose coalition of a
range of different interest groups (Cole, 1995). In line with this coalition, conflict is considered
as a natural and inevitable outcome of organisational processes. It is believed that it is through
conflict that organisations get to know and learn about what are dysfunctional so that corrective
action may be taken to ensure smooth operation. For example, there is no point for an employee
to keep quiet about what he or she finds unacceptable. Instead, such feelings must be made
known and discussed so that a solution is found and improvements made. Such practice helps to
clear the air and keep frustration away.
8.4.3 The Interactionist View
The interactionist approach goes one step further to the Human Relations approach, which it
must be remembered, accepts the fact that conflict is inevitable in organisations. In fact the
interactionist approach holds the belief that conflict is not only a positive force in a group but
195
that it is absolutely necessary for a group to perform effectively (Robbins, 1998). In other
words, this approach encourages conflict on the premise that it enhances harmony, peace and
cooperation in a group and prevents the group from becoming static and resistant to changes and
innovation.
Note that the interactionist view does not suggest that all conflicts are good for organisations. It
thus distinguishes between functional and dysfunctional conflicts: -
1. functional conflict supports the goals of the group and enhances its performance. For
example, someone having a genuine feeling that a particular activity must be done
differently and explaining how it is to be carried out concretely.
2. dysfunctional conflict can hinder group performance. Conflict is dysfunctional when it
goes beyond what is required by a group to achieve its goals. For instance, someone who
hides or withholds valuable information and creates a crisis on basis of the withheld
information or when interpersonal relationship prevents the group from performing
efficiently and effectively.
Our experience of conflict indicates to us that conflict is a dynamic process and changes from
group to group and from time to time. Conflict that is functional for one group or at one point in
time may not be functional for another group or at some other point in time. Managers must
strive to strike the right balance between functional and dysfunctional conflict in their
organisations to maintain smooth operations.
To summarise:
The traditional view sees conflict
to be harmful and must be avoided
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The Human Relations view sees conflict:
as a natural and inevitable outcome in any group
The Interactionist view sees conflict
as not only being a positive force in a group, but is absolutely necessary for a group
to perform effectively
Activity 1
What general conclusions can you draw about conflict in organisations?
8.5 FUNCTIONS OF CONFLICT
As it has been pointed out earlier, conflict may have a double edge effect in organisations: it can
be both functional and dysfunctional. It rests on the skill of the manager to see to it that conflict
remains within the functional zone. Let us learn more about the two different roles of conflict
mentioned here.
8.5.1 Functional Outcomes of Conflict
Coser (1956) believes that conflict can benefit the organisation as it helps to:
redefine a group's or organisation's mission and objectives, can help review the group
norms and can help test the limits and boundaries of policy or rules. For example,
whenever there are conflicting situations and these are analysed, the causes of conflict
are unearthed. When this process has been effected objectively, organisations find in it
an opportunity to review their objectives and norms so as to minimise conflicting
situations.
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Litterer (1985) notes that conflict can lead to innovation and change. In such cases, it is believed
that conflict helps to shape ideas and inspire.
Robbins (1998) notes
conflict is constructive when it improves the quality of decisions, stimulates creativity and
innovation, encourages interest and curiosity among group members, provides the
medium through which problems can be aired and tensions released, and fosters an
environment of self-evaluation and change.
Robbins (1998) further notes that conflict is an antidote for groupthink, as it prevents a group
from passively accepting decisions that may be based on weak assumptions, inadequate
consideration of relevant alternatives, or other weaknesses. Conflict helps to challenge the status
quo and therefore stimulates the creation of new ideas, promotes the review of group goals and
activities, and improves the group’s response to change.
Research has shown that conflict often results in better productivity and provides good stimulus
for high achievement.
8.5.2 Dysfunctional Outcomes of Conflict
Conflict can easily have destructive repercussions upon a group or organisation’s performance.
To Robbins (1998), “uncontrolled opposition breeds discontent, which acts to dissolve common
ties, and eventually leads to the destruction of the group”. The more serious undesirable effects
of conflict are disruption in communication, loss of group cohesiveness with the result of poor
interpersonal relationship among members, and members focussing on the adversity among them
rather than on the achievement of group goals. Group functioning may be halted and the group’s
survival may be significantly threatened.
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When are groups functional and when are they not functional? Robbins (1998) suggests
the more non-routine the tasks of the group, the greater the probability that internal
conflict will be constructive. Groups that are required to tackle problems demanding
new and novel approaches — as in research, advertising, and other professional
activities —will benefit more from conflict than will groups performing highly routine
activities — for instance, those of work teams on an automobile assembly line.
Activity 2
(i) Provide suitable examples to illustrate circumstances where conflict can be (a) functional
(b) dysfunctional in organisations.
(ii) What conclusions can you draw about conflict under each of these two situations?
In the next section, we are going to discuss what happens when conflict occurs.
8.6 THE CONFLICT PROCESS
Conflict is a process. By process, we mean that it takes place following a sequence of events.
The conflict process is shown in Exhibit 8.1. It is to be noted that all conflicting situations start
with an antecedent, which leads to a situation where there are signs of disagreement. This
situation creates some kind of conflict in the minds of the parties involved (perceived conflict).
If this situation persists, conflict is then felt and experienced. This leads to some kind of
behaviour, which manifests itself in several ways, including attempts to resolve the conflict.
Whether the conflict is resolved or not, there is again some kind of behaviour that manifests
itself (aftermath to the conflict).
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Exhibit 8.1: The Conflict Process
Antecedent Conditions
Perceived Conflict
Felt Conflict
Manifest Behaviour
Conflict Resolution
Resolution Aftermath
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The antecedent condition in the conflict process takes place when there is the presence of
factors that create opportunities for conflict to occur. These factors may not lead directly to
conflict, but one of them is necessary if conflict is to arise. For example, the conditions may
arise from communication (misunderstanding, etc), structure (no unity of command, reporting
structure unclear, etc), and personal variables (attitude, behaviour, belief, norms etc.). Any
difference of opinion or perception that is felt between the parties concerned ignites or gives way
to conflict. Once the conflict is perceived, the persons feel it inside. This feeling may be strong
enough for causing the person to manifest and adopt certain behaviour. Sometimes the
behaviour may be visible enough to indicate that the person is in conflict. Attempts are made in
several and various ways to help resolve the conflict. The conflict may either be resolved or not.
Once the conflict is resolved, satisfaction occurs, and the person forgets about the conflict. In
many cases, when the conflict cannot be resolved or is not resolved, the person remains worked
up or disturbed and continues to remain influenced by the conflict.
Activity 3
Remember a situation where you experienced a major conflict.
(i) Describe the various states or processes that you went through, making reference to the
conflict process explained above.
(ii) What conclusion can you draw regarding the “conflict resolution” and the “resolution
aftermath”?
8.7 LEVELS OF CONFLICT
Conflict manifests itself at several levels in organisations. These are:
• Intra-individual conflict occurs when an individual is faced with two sets of
incompatible goals (for example, whether to sit down and study or go for a movie).
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• Inter-individual conflict occurs when two individuals are striving to attain their own
goals and as such block the other's achievement (for example, two employees seeking
promotion, two students trying to top the list in class).
• Intra-group conflict arises when a person or faction within a group attempts to achieve a
goal that interferes with the group's goal attainment (for example, in a class, there may be
a group of students who prefer to have a group assignment whereas others may prefer a
class test for continuous assessment).
• Inter-group conflict occurs between two groups trying to attain their respective goals
(for example, the marketing department wanting to provide more choice and variety to
customers, the production department wishing to standardise products and producing
less variety, etc).
• Inter-organisational conflict: This is conflict between organisations with incompatible
goals (for example, trying to achieve sales goals but creating environmental problems).
Activity 4
To check your understanding of the levels at which conflict manifests itself in organisations,
provide further illustrations to those mentioned above.
8.8 STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING CONFLICT
Conflict must be managed in organisations. Numerous strategies have been proposed to this
effect. Primarily, everything must be done to clear ambiguities or ambiguous situations and
make communication flow in organisations.
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The following strategies may prove quite useful to manage conflict:
1. Emphasise the organisation’s wide goals and effectiveness. This would ensure that
individuals and groups know what is expected of them and what they are supposed to
achieve. If nothing is left to chance, there is a higher probability that conflict would be
restricted to the functional level.
2. Provide stable, well-structured tasks. In line with the strategy above, well-structured
and stable tasks enable individuals to have a clear idea of the tasks they have to
accomplish. They will know what is expected from them. Frustration would be
minimised, so would conflict.
3. Facilitate inter-group communication. Communication is the lifeblood of
organisations. Nothing can be better than communication to manage conflict in
organisations. Managers have to ensure that communication takes place in the most
effective manner within groups and among groups.
4. Avoid win-lose situations. Managers must create options or situations that lead to win-
win for both parties, so that hard feelings and frustrations are minimised. Each party
derives satisfaction and the resolution aftermath retains a positive image.
8.9 CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND STIMULATION
As explained earlier, the interactionist approach believes in encouraging conflict in organisation,
as it is acknowledged that conflict brings to organisations better ways of dealing with
organisational change and innovation. As such, whenever or wherever there is minimal or
insufficient conflict, it has been proved useful to stimulate conflict.
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To stimulate conflict, you can consciously introduce some of the factors noted as causes for
conflict such as building a degree of competition for resources (interdependence) or introducing
culturally alien practices.
Robbins (1974) proposes the following techniques to stimulate conflict in organisations.
Communication
Using ambiguous or threatening messages to increase conflict levels. This will result in
members of the organisation trying to sort out the ambiguities or react to the threatening
messages. In so doing, they will come closer to the problems and hence the solution to
the problems.
Bringing in outsiders
Adding employees to a group whose backgrounds, values, attitudes, or managerial styles
differ from those of present members. This will create the necessary interaction to
unearth long existing problems and thus guide the organisation in identifying new ways
of doing things.
Restructuring the organisation
Realigning work groups, altering rules and regulations, increasing interdependence, and
making similar structural changes to disrupt the status quo. Again this will have the effect
of shaking up the organisation, so that new ways of competing and working are adopted.
Appointing a devil’s advocate
Designating a critic to purposely argue against the majority positions held by the group.
When managed to the functional level, conflict leads to creativity, improved relationships and
may assist in overcoming performance difficulties. However, conflict has to be managed the
right way so that it does not reach an uncontrollable stage as to cause organisations’ dysfunction.
Robbins (1974) recommends the following ways to resolve and contain conflict.
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Conflict Resolution Techniques
The following are some of the ways that can be utilised to resolve conflict:-
Problem solving: Face-to-face meeting of the conflicting parties for the purpose of
identifying and examining the problem and resolving it through open discussion.
Sometimes arbitration may be required.
Super-ordinate goals: Creating or formulating a shared goal that can be attained only
through the cooperation and collaboration of each of the conflicting parties.
Expansion of resources: This is particularly applicable when a conflict is caused by the
scarcity of a resource - say, money, promotion opportunities, office space, and
equipment. Expansion of the resource or providing more of the resources can create a
win-win solution.
Avoidance: Withdrawal from, or suppression of, the conflict. In other words, forgetting
that a conflicting situation existed.
Smoothing: Playing down differences while emphasising common interests between the
conflicting parties. In other words, each party trying to understand what each will gain if
the conflict is ignored.
Compromise: Each party to the conflict gives up something of value and shakes hand
with a view to create a win-win situation.
Authoritative command: Management uses its formal authority to resolve the conflict
and then communicates its decisions to the parties involved.
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Altering the human variable: Using behavioural change techniques such as human
relations including interpersonal skills training to alter attitudes and behaviours that cause
conflict.
Altering the structural variables: Changing the formal organisation structure and the
interaction patterns of conflicting parties through job redesign including job rotation,
transfers, creation of coordinating positions, and the like.
Activity 5
Use examples of your experience to explain how conflict may lead to creativity and improved
relationship. Record your answer.
Let us now examine in more details one of the most important, if not the most important, ways to
manage conflict, which is negotiation.
8.10 NEGOTIATION – A BASIC APPROACH TO MANAGE CONFLICT
In this world of relationship building, whereby almost everything is achieved through
appropriate networking, negotiation is seen to be an everyday activity that is closely linked to
conflict in an organisation. Managers negotiate with employees, peers, and bosses and vice
versa; marketers negotiate with customers; an employee agrees to complete the work of his or
her colleague for a few hours in exchange for some past or anticipated benefit, all these with a
view to minimise dysfunctional conflict and create win-win situations.
Robbins (1998) defines negotiation as a process in which two or more parties exchange goods or
services and attempt to agree upon the exchange rate for them.
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Why Negotiate?
In today’s team-based organisations, where members are increasingly having to work in
collaboration with colleagues over whom they may not have any direct authority and with whom
they may not even share a common feeling, negotiation skills become most important.
Negotiation helps:
(1) To approach conflicts, or potential conflicts, with more confidence.
(2) To resolve conflicts without acrimony.
(3) To see opportunities to negotiate, which we may have overlooked before.
(4) To obtain better outcomes.
8.10.1 Conflict Management Through Negotiation
Negotiation has proved very beneficial in the management of conflict generally. According to
Fisher, there are a number of preparatory steps involved to achieve success in negotiation.
For instance, the negotiator must:
1. Have the facts (have all relevant and pertinent information)
2. Have the time (must be prepared to have the time to listen and prepare himself or herself)
3. Know his/her interests (must anticipate what to look for and what are the alternatives)
4. Assess his/her alternatives (must evaluate each alternative properly)
5. Get to know the other side (have pertinent information on the other party)
6. Gain support from other parties to the negotiation
7. Be positive (in order to pave the way towards a win-win situation)
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Activity 6
(i) Think of some situations whereby you have been involved in negotiation.
Record the experience you had from such situations.
(ii) How can negotiation help you to approach conflict with more confidence and resolve
conflict with less acrimony?
8.10.2 Myths About Negotiation
There are several myths about negotiation. Some of them are mentioned here for your
appreciation and interpretation.
• If you are not tough, you are always going to lose.
• Have a firm position and a clear idea of the outcome you expect.
• Don't give away too much information or else they will take advantage of you.
• Don't acknowledge the other side's case.
• Give an inch and they'll take a mile - never make the first concession.
• Try to get the other side to do things they don't want to do.
• Negotiation is about getting the other side to agree with you.
• If you don’t have all the power, there's no point in negotiating.
• When you win a negotiation, make sure your victory is clear to yourself and to your
opponent.
Remember, negotiation is about ongoing relationships. To preserve the relationship, you need to
be ethical in the current negotiation situation.
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Activity 7
“Participation is an excellent way to identify differences and resolving conflicts”.
Discuss whether you agree or disagree with this statement. Record your conclusion.
8.11 KEY CONCEPTS
Conflict
Unitary Perspective
Pluralist – Perspective
Interactionist Approach
Functional Conflict
Dysfunctional Conflict
Conflict Process
Antecedent Condition
Levels of Conflict
Conflict Resolution and Stimulation
Negotiation
Conflict Management
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UNIT 9 COMMUNICATION
Unit Structure
9.0 Overview
9.1 Learning Objectives
9.2 Communication: Introduction
9.2.1 Nature and Meaning of Communication
9.2.2 Definitions of Communication
9.3 Types or Forms of Communication
9.4 Communication Flows or Channels
9.5 Purposes of Communication
9.6 Barriers to Effective Communication
9.7 Effective Employee Communication in Leading Companies Undergoing Dramatic
Changes
9.7.1 Commitment of CEO to the Importance of Communication
9.7.2 Managers Match Actions and Words
9.7.3 Commitment to Two-Way Communication
9.7.4 Emphasis on Face-to-Face Communication
9.7.5 Shared Responsibility for Employee Communications
9.7.6 Dealing with Bad News
9.7.7 Shaping the Message for its Intended Audience
9.7.8 Treating Communication as an Ongoing Process
9.8 Contemporary Issues in Communication
9.8.1 Cross-Cultural Communication
9.8.2 Electronic Communications
9.9 Key Concepts
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9.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit deals with the process of communication, its nature and importance in organisations.
It also presents the different forms and channels of communication as well as highlights the
barriers to effective communication and makes suggestions on how to make the communication
process effective.
9.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following:
1. Define communication.
2. Outline the communication process.
3. State the importance of communication in organisations and its relevance to managers.
4. Identify communication forms and channels of communication.
5. List common barriers to effective communication.
6. Describe an effective communication program in an organisation undergoing dramatic
changes.
7. Describe potential problems in cross-cultural communication.
8. Discuss how technology is changing organisational communication.
9. Identify some of the current issues facing managers and organisations in the area of
communication.
9.2 COMMUNICATION: INTRODUCTION
Communication is one of the most pervasive of human activities. It takes place in various forms:
talking, listening, reading, writing, drawing, gesturing, seeing, smelling, feeling touching or
tasting.
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According to Raymond et al. (1989),
It is one activity that we human beings clearly do better than other forms of life on earth,
and it largely explains our dominant role.
With the passage of time, societies and organisations have become more complex and more
sophisticated. Innovative communication technologies have significantly modified the way in
which people have communicated traditionally. Electronic media have invaded the
organisational context and many activities are now carried out on-line.
These developments have contributed to underscore the fact that communication continues to
remain a central and an indispensable human activity. Without communication, organisations
would probably cease to exist altogether.
Because of the indispensable nature of communication, in most societies and organisations, it
continues to be a subject of considerable interest, attention and investigation. The importance of
communication is underlined by this statement:
Ineffective communication is commonly cited as being the root of practically all the
problems of the world.
(Luthans, 1998)
In the context of organisations, interpersonal and managerial communication are primary
activities, and on an average, they take up some 75% of available time. A typical manager
spends around 90% of his time in communication. The effectiveness of communication is,
therefore, very critical for organisational and managerial effectiveness.
Without effective communication, even the most brilliant strategies and best-laid plans
may be unsuccessful.
(Bartol et al., 1998)
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Activity 1
Think of a situation when communication did not succeed? List the possible causes for the
failure.
9.2.1 Nature and Meaning of Communication
One of the common problems associated with communication is the lack of clarity and precision
about its meaning. Communication involves transfer of information, ideas and feelings between
and among people and organisations. The “transfer” or the “sending and receiving” activity is
only one aspect and provides only a partial view of communication; it is part of a total and
comprehensive process involving a number of key variables. The communication process is
itself dynamic and interactive.
A scrutiny of the process is likely to provide us with information on the following questions:
What is the message? Who is sending and who is receiving the message? What is the context or
situation in which the communication is taking place? How is the message being sent? How
important is the message? Is there any way of knowing that the message is being received as
intended? Is there any hidden or unintended meaning being associated to the original message?
And above all, what is the purpose that is intended to be achieved and how far it is being
achieved?
Communication is, therefore, much more than a technical transaction; it is also a social and
psychological process and the end result is to bring about desirable changes in the opinions,
attitudes, feelings and behaviours of people.
Effective communication is one of the most difficult and demanding activities. It is also the most
important prerequisite for the attainment of organisational objectives. For success and growth, it
is imperative for organisations to continuously improve and develop communication skills.
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Activity 2
(i) Whenever a message is being sent, what are the possible outcomes? What factors can
explain the possible outcomes?
(ii) Explain some of the consequences of a breakdown in communication.
9.2.2 Definitions of Communication
It is not easy to come across definitions that convey in a precise manner the meaning of
communication. According to Tyson and Jackson (1997),
The problem is in the definition of the word ‘communication’. It covers a great deal and
includes not only the actual words used, but, also, the tone of voice, pitch situation in
which it takes place, and so on.
In spite of these difficulties, it is possible to propose some ideas that convey a fairly good picture
of what communication is all about.
Baskin and Aronoff (1980) have defined communication as the exchange of messages between
people to achieve shared meanings.
According to Carell et a.l, (1995),
Communication is the glue that binds various elements, coordinates activities, allows
people to work together and produces results.
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Cole (1993) defines communication as
the process of creating, transmitting and interpreting ideas, facts, opinions and feelings.
It is a process that is essentially a sharing one-an interchange between two or more
persons.
Communication can, therefore, be viewed as a process which involves a number of variables -
human, technical and environmental - that combine to bring about exchanges of information,
ideas, opinions and feelings between and among people, with a view to achieving some agreed
objectives.
A typical representation of the process will be:
Context
Feedback
Figure 9.1: The Communication Process
Activity 3
(i) What is your understanding of effective communication?
(ii) Give a suitable concrete example of an effective communication.
Sender (encoding)
Receiver (decoding)
Medium
Medium
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9.3 TYPES OR FORMS OF COMMUNICATION
Organisations have recourse to two broad types of communication: verbal or non-verbal verbal.
Another popular form of communication is audio-visual. All these are referred to as the media
for communication, i.e., how and by what means organisations communicate.
Verbal communication includes both written and oral communication. Examples of written
communication are: circulars, memos, letters, faxes, e-mails, newsletters and reports.
Oral or face-to–face communication takes place when words are spoken directly. Such
communication can take place through some electronic media like mobile phones or video-
conferencing.
Oral communication also includes tone, speed, pitch and volume and, which are frequently used
in meetings, while doing work, during presentations and formal speeches.
Nom-verbal communication accounts for a substantial part of any communication. It includes all
those aspects that are neither written nor oral. For example, facial expressions and physical
movements are commonplace in communication. Kinesic (body language), proxemics (influence
of proximity and space layout), object language (arrangements and use of certain objects or
material things) and paralanguage (vocal aspects) are specific examples of non-verbal
communication.
Activity 4
What are the criteria that need to be taken into consideration before choosing a particular media
for communicating?
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9.4 COMMUNICATION FLOWS OR CHANNELS
The flow of communication can take place in two ways:
1. Vertically.
2. Horizontally.
Vertical communication involves communication between two or more levels of the
organisation. When it flows from a higher level to a lower level, it is referred to as downward
communication. Management uses this channel to inform employees about plans, policies, job
instructions and feedback. The other form of vertical communication is known as upward
communication, i.e., from a lower level to a higher level. Employees use this channel to
communicate suggestions, grievances and progress of work.
Both upward and downward communication is not free from certain typical problems like
distortion of information.
Activity 5
What are the advantages and disadvantages of using
(a) Downward Communication?
(b) Upward Communication?
Horizontal communication takes place within and across the same levels, among people working
on similar tasks or same specialists. It is also referred to as lateral communication. It can take
various forms like meetings, face-to-face exchanges, memos, group discussions and telephone
conversations. Coordination, cooperation and integration are important objectives of horizontal
communication.
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Horizontal communication is a form of delegation and to be effective, it requires that the
respective bosses, of those involved in lateral communication, are kept informed on a regular
basis about developments taking place.
In most organisations, we can come across a blend of both vertical and horizontal
communication. As communication links develop, certain patterns emerge. Five of such
patterns are:
1. The Chain: the flow is vertical with a predominantly downward communication.
Figure 9.2 (a)
2. The “Y” network is a variation of the chain and is basically hierarchical.
Figure 9.2 (b)
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3. The Circle: members communicate with people nearest to them.
Figure 9.2 (c)
4. The “all-channel”, where members communicate freely.
Figure 9.2 (d)
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5. The “wheel”, where the leader is the central figure.
Figure 9.2 (e)
9.5 PURPOSES OF COMMUNICATION
The main purposes of communication is presented in the figure below.
Figure 9.3
Source: Adapted from Moorhead and Griffin, (1992)
L
Organisational Communication
Achieve Coordinated action
Share information
• Organisational Goals • Task directives • Results of efforts • Decision-making
Express feelings and emotions
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Activity 6
Drawing from your own experiences, state which communication patterns are most familiar to
you? Explain your answer.
9.6 BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
Robbins (1998) identifies a few prominent barriers to effective communication: filtering,
selective perception, defensiveness and language.
Filtering
Filtering refers to a sender manipulating information so that the receiver will see it more
favourably. For example, when an employee boasts about his supervisor in the presence of the
latter (the employee does not talk the same language behind the supervisor), the employee is in
fact filtering information. Such an approach is actually not good as the supervisor does not get a
chance to know what is wrong about him or his action. Filtering also takes place between the
supervisor and the manager, and in fact, from one level to the next. As the number of vertical
levels in the organisation’s hierarchy increases, the more opportunities there are for filtering.
Selective Perception
You have come across selective perception earlier in this module. Selective perception takes
place when the receivers in the communication process selectively see and hear, based on their
needs, motivations, experience, background, and other personal characteristics. Receivers of
information also associate their interests and expectations into communications as they decode
them. The manager may expect that an over- qualified employee will be looking for a better job,
regardless of whether the employee feels that way or not.
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Defensiveness
Defensiveness occurs when people try to defend their position because of certain threats. They
then have a tendency to engage in such behaviours as verbally attacking others, making sarcastic
remarks, being overly judgmental, and questioning others’ motives. Therefore, when individuals
interpret another’s message as threatening, they often respond in ways that blur effective
communication.
Language
Words and terms mean different things to different people. Age, education, and cultural
background are three of the more obvious variables that influence the language a person uses and
the definitions he or she gives to words. The ordinary man may have difficulty in trying to
understand the terms and language that are used by the more learned men. In an organisation,
employees usually come from different backgrounds and, therefore, have different patterns of
speech. The grouping of employees into departments creates specialists who develop their own
jargon or technical language. In large organisations that are geographically scattered (different
countries included), employees in each location may use terms and phrases that are unique to
their area. Hierarchical levels can also give rise to language problems, as the language of senior
managers can be ambiguous to operative employees not familiar with management jargon.
You must have realised how even for a common language that we all speak, for example,
English and French or Creole (in the Mauritian context), our usage of that language is far from
uniform. If we could make out how each of us modifies the language we use, communication
difficulties could be minimised to a great extent.
Activity 7
(i) Give suitable examples to illustrate the barriers to communication as discussed above.
(ii) From your experience, list some other communication barriers.
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9.7 EFFECTIVE EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATIONS IN LEADING COMPANIES UNDERGOING DRAMATIC CHANGES
Organisations around the world are restructuring in order to reduce costs and improve
competitiveness. Robbins (1998) reports a study that looked at employee communications
programmes in ten leading companies that had successfully undertaken major restructuring
programmes. The choice of the companies was based on their reputations for having excellent
internal communication programmes. The authors wanted to find out whether there were some
common factors that determined the effectiveness of these organisations’ employee
communications. The study revealed eight factors that were related to the effectiveness of
employee communications in these ten organisations. As the companies studied came from
various industries and organisations, the authors felt that these eight characteristics should apply
to many types of organisations.
The eight factors are:
(1) Commitment of CEO to the importance of communication.
(2) Managers match actions and words.
(3) Commitment to two-way communication.
(4) Emphasis on face-to-face communication.
(5) Shared responsibility for employee communications.
(6) Dealing with bad news.
(7) Shaping the message for its intended audience.
(8) Treating communication as an ongoing process.
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9.7.1 Commitment of CEO to the Importance of Communication
The most significant factor to a successful employee communications program is the chief
executive’s leadership. He/she must be philosophically and behaviourally committed to the
notion that communicating with employees is essential to the achievement of the organisation’s
goals. If the organisation’s senior executive is committed to communication through his or her
words and actions, it “trickles down” to the rest of the organisation. When a CEO communicated
important matters in person and refrained from delegating the task, it was found to be more
effective in keeping employee’s morale high and sustaining motivation. By personally
championing the cause of good communication, CEO lessens employee fears about changes that
are being implemented and sets the precedent for other managers to follow (Robbins, 1998).
9.7.2 Managers Match Actions and Words
Managerial action is closely related to CEO support and involvement. Employees will listen to
what management has to say regarding changes being made and where the company is going, but
these words must be backed by matching actions.
9.7.3 Commitment to Two - Way Communication
Ineffective programmes are dominated by downward communication. Successful programmes
balance downward and upward communication. How does a firm promote upward
communication and stimulate employee dialogue? The study of successful companies, as
reported by Robbins (1998) reveals that:
The companies used interactive television broadcasts that allowed employees to call in
questions and get responses from top management.
The companies’ publications had question and answer columns and employees were
encouraged to submit questions.
The companies developed a grievance procedure that processed complaints quickly.
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The managers were trained in feedback techniques and then were rewarded for using
them.
9.7.4 Emphasis on Face-to-Face Communication
With the rapid changes that are taking place in the environment, bringing with it lots of
uncertainty and change, employees are not at rest and show fears and concerns. Is their job at
stake? Will they have to learn new skills? Will their work group be disbanded? It was observed
that open face-to-face communication was most effective to keep the fears at bay and maintain
morale of the employees.
9.7.5 Shared Responsibility for Employee Communications
Top management provides the vision of where the company is going. Managers and supervisors
in turn participate to share and implement the vision with employees. Every manager has some
responsibility in ensuring that employees are well informed; with the implications for changes
becoming more specific as they flow down the organisation hierarchy. We prefer to hear about
the changes that might affect us from our boss, rather than from other sources.
9.7.6 Dealing with Bad News
Organisations with effective employee communications deal with bad news in the most effective
manner. Increasingly, many corporations are using their company publications and other media
to keep employees informed on setbacks as well as good news. Most organisations experience at
times product failures, delivery delays, customer complaints, or similar problems. The
successful organisations encourage employees to communicate those problems objectively.
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9.7.7 Shaping the Message for its Intended Audience
We all know that different people in the organisation have different information needs. What is
important to supervisors may not be so to middle managers. Similarly, what is interesting
information to someone in product planning may be irrelevant to someone in accounting. What
information do individuals and groups want to know? When do they need to know it? In what
form (at home, newsletter, email, team meeting) is the best way for them to receive it?
Employees vary in their information requirement and the best way for them to receive it.
Managers must acknowledge this variety and plan their communication programme accordingly.
9.7.8 Treating Communication as an Ongoing Process
These leading companies viewed employee communications as a critical management process.
Five common activities help the firm to achieve this, namely:
1. Managers convey the rationale underlying decisions
As change occurs more frequently, and their future becomes less certain, employees
increasingly want to know the rationale underlying the decisions and changes made or
that are being made: Why is this occurring? How will this affect me? Employees expect
something from management to make up the difference between what they used to have
as acquired right and what they have now. One of those things is information.
2. Timeliness is vital
It is necessary for managers to disseminate information that reach them and that are
relevant to employees and stakeholders to know. Employees expect to be treated as
adults and deserve to be informed. Let the employees know the facts as soon as they
become available. This approach lessens the power of the grapevine and increases
management’s credibility.
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3. Communicate continuously
Communication should be continuous, particularly during periods of change or crisis.
When information is not forthcoming, employees have recourse to informal channels to
fill the void, even if those channels provide rumours. In most organisations, where
management endeavours to keep information continuously flowing, employees are also
more accommodating to occasional errors or omissions.
4. Link the “big picture” with the “little picture”
Effective communication does not take place until employees understand how the “big
picture” affects them and their jobs. Changes in the economy, among competitors in the
industry, or in the organisation as a whole must be translated into implications for each
location, department, and employee. This responsibility falls most directly on employees’
direct supervisors.
5. Don’t dictate the way people should feel about the news
Employees do not like to be told how they should interpret and feel about change. Trust
and openness are not enhanced by claims like “These new changes are really exciting!”
or “You’re going to like the way that the department is being restructured!” More often
than not, these attempts only help to provoke antagonistic responses. It’s more effective
to communicate, “who, what, when, where, why, and how” and then let employees draw
their own conclusions.
Activity 8
Think of some instances of your life when you have been ordered to do certain things?
What were your reactions to these orders? Under what conditions did you take the orders
sportingly?
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9.8 CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN COMMUNICATION
We conclude this Unit by addressing two contemporary issues in communication: How can
individuals improve their cross-cultural communications? And how is electronics changing the
way people communicate with each other in organisations?
9.8.1 Cross-Cultural Communication
Effective communication is difficult under the best of conditions. Cross-cultural factors clearly
create the potential for increased communication problems. A gesture that is well-understood
and acceptable in one culture can be meaningless or lewd in another.
Munter (1993) has identified four specific problems related to language difficulties in cross-
cultural communications.
1. Barriers caused by semantics: As we have seen earlier, words mean different things to
different people. This is particularly true for people from different national cultures.
Some words, for instance, cannot be translated between cultures. Understanding the
word “bese” will help you in communicating with people from Mauritius, but this word is
not easily translatable into English or French. Similarly, the new capitalists in Russia
may have difficulty communicating with their British or Canadian counterparts because
English terms such as efficiency, free market, and regulation are not directly translatable
into Russian (Robbins, 1998).
2. Barriers caused by word connotations: Words imply different things in different
languages. Negotiations between Americans and Japanese executives, for instance, are
made more difficult because the Japanese word “hai” translates as “yes,” but its
connotation may be “yes, I’m listening,” rather than “yes, I agree”.
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3. Barriers caused by tone differences: In some cultures, language is formal; in others it’s
informal. In some cultures, the tone changes depending on the context: people speak
differently at home, in social situations, and at work. Using a personal, informal style in
a situation where a more formal style is expected can be embarrassing and off-putting.
4. Barriers caused by differences among perceptions: People who speak different languages
actually view the world in different ways. Eskimos perceive snow differently because
they have many words for it. Thais perceive “no” differently than Americans because
Thai people have no such word in their vocabulary.
When communicating with people from different cultures, you can nevertheless minimise
barriers to communication (such as misperceptions, misinterpretations, and misevaluations).
Adler (1991), as reported by Robbins (1998), provides the following recommendations:
1. Assume differences until similarity is proven. Most of us believe or assume that others
are more similar to us than they actually are. However, people from different countries
are often quite different from us, implying that we are less likely to make an error if we
assume others are different instead of assuming similarity until difference is proven.
2. Emphasise description rather than interpretation or evaluation. Interpreting or evaluating
what someone has said or done, in contrast to description, is based more on the
observer’s culture and background than on the observed situation. It is thus better to
delay judgement until you have sufficient time to observe and interpret the situation from
the various perspectives of all the cultures involved.
3. Practice empathy. Before sending a message, put yourself in the recipient’s shoes. What
are his or her values, experiences, and frames of reference? What do you know about his
or her education, upbringing, and background that can give you added insight? Try to see
the other person as he or she really is.
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4. Treat your interpretations as a working hypothesis. The minute you have developed an
explanation for a new situation or think you empathise with someone from a foreign
culture, consider first your interpretation as a hypothesis that needs further testing rather
than as a certainty. Next, carefully analyse the feedback provided by recipients to see if it
confirms your hypothesis. For important decisions, you may wish to countercheck with
other foreign and home country colleagues to make sure that your interpretations are on
target.
9.8.2 Electronic Communications
Until the last two decades, there have been few technological breakthroughs that significantly
affected organisational communications. The telephone dramatically reduced personal, face-to-
face communication early in the twentieth century. In the late 1960s, the photocopy machine
drastically reduced the need for carbon paper and made the copying of documents faster and
easier. As from the early 1980s, the world has been subjected to an onslaught of new electronic
technologies that are largely reshaping the way we communicate in organisations. These include
pagers, facsimile machines, video conferencing, electronic meetings, emailing, cellular phones,
voice messaging, and palm sized personal communicators (Robbins, 1998).
Personal computers coupled with local and wide area networks, have expanded the connectivity
and availability of computing power. They have acted as catalysts and increased the potential for
sharing knowledge and communicating between collaborating organisations. While the Internet
has transformed communications between organisations and individuals, intranets and extranets
have had similar effects within organisations and linked organisations.
An intranet is a private version of the Internet and makes use of the same open systems standards
and protocols to allow the sharing of information and knowledge within an organisation. If such
arrangements are extended to collaborating partner organisations, the system is known as an
extranet.
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Continuing improvements in both hardware and software suggest that the capacity for
communication will increase substantially, further enhancing their role in the building and
sharing of knowledge and information. Only those businesses that react to new technologies will
be able to communicate effectively, resulting in more rapid inflow and outflow of information
and greater increases in intelligence, permitting them to generate and sustain competitive
advantage.
Electronic communications no longer make it necessary for you to be at your workstation or desk
to be “available”. Pagers, cellular phones, and personal communicators allow you to be reached
when you’re in a meeting, during your lunch break, while visiting a customer’s office or during a
football match on a Sunday afternoon. There is no more a distinct line between life at work and
away from work.
However, there are some differences in the way that we are used to be in. For instance electronic
mail does not provide the nonverbal communication component that the face-to-face meeting
does. Nor does email convey the emotions and nuances that come through from verbal
intonations in telephone conversations. Similarly, it’s been noted that meetings have historically
served two distinct purposes: (i) fulfilling a need for group cohesion and affiliation and (ii)
serving as a forum for completing task work. Videoconferences and electronic meetings do a
good job at supporting tasks but do not address affiliation needs. For people with a high need for
socialisation, a heavy reliance on electronic communications is likely to lead to lower job
satisfaction.
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9.9 KEY CONCEPTS
Communication
Effective Communication
Communication process
Types or Forms of Communication Channels
Purposes of Communication
Barriers to Communication
Electronic Communication
Cross Cultural Communication
Employee Communication
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UNIT 10 ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR AND ORGANISATIONAL CONTEXT
Unit Structure
10.0 Overview
10.1 Learning Objectives
10.2 Introduction
10.3 The Nature and Purpose of Organisations
10.4 Formal and Informal Organisations
10.5 Organisations: Theoretical Perspectives
10.6 Organisation Design and Structure
10.7 Structural Configurations and Emerging Structures
10.8 The Learning Organisation
10.9 Organisational Culture
10.10 Key Concepts
10.0 OVERVIEW
This Unit deals with the concepts of organisations, organisational culture, organisation design
and structures and their influence on the behaviour of people in organisations.
It also provides an overview of the principles involved in the design of organisations, reviews the
emerging trends with regards to organisational structures and their implications for
organisational efficiency and effectiveness.
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10.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this Unit, you should be able to do the following: 1. Define the concept of organisation, organisation structure and organisation design.
2. Explain how organisational variables influence organisational behaviour.
3. Differentiate between formal and informal organisations.
4. Differentiate between the contemporary and the classical theories of organisations.
5. Review the emerging organisation structures and their implications for organisational
behaviour.
6. Reflect upon the concept of learning organisation and learning culture and their influence
on the design of organisation structures.
10.2 INTRODUCTION
Without work, life goes rotten, but when work is soulless, life stifles and dies.
ALBERT CAMUS
The attitudes, behaviours and expectations of people in organisational settings can best be
understood, explained and managed through an insight into the context, both．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．．
internal and
external, within which people work and interact with each other. Interactions between people
and organisational variables influence work attitudes and behaviours;．．．．．．．．．．．
in turn, the external
environment affects both organisations and the behaviour within organisations. It is not always
easy to understand human behaviour. Knowledge about the context of human behaviour can
provide considerable help towards this end.
The organisational context is the stage where the drama of human behaviour is enacted.
According to Lewin (1951), behaviour is a function of both the person and environment. To deal
effectively with organisational behaviour, it is therefore essential to understand the relevant
organisational dimensions and their influences.
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Activity 1
(i) List the different factors that can have an influence upon organisations. Categorise them
into internal and external factors.
(ii) What are the distinguishing features of work organisations?
10.3 THE NATURE AND PURPOSE OF ORGANISATIONS
Let us first review what we have studied about organisations. Organisations are run by human
beings. Human beings are by nature social animals, with a pronounced tendency to organise, to
come together and to work together.
The tendency to organise or co-operate in interdependent relationships is
inherent in man's nature.
(Kast and Rosenzweig, 1974)
Throughout history, human beings have created (as well as destroyed) organisations in their
quest for progress. Their ability to develop and manage social organisations is unparalleled.
Organisations are needed because there are activities that cannot be performed by one individual
alone. The co-operation of different people is needed.
Etzioni (1972) has described organisations as:
social units (or human groupings)deliberately constructed and reconstructed to
seek specific goals
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To Robbins (1990),
An organisation is a consciously co-ordinated social entity, with a relatively
identifiable boundary, that functions on a relatively continuous basis to achieve
a common goal or set of goals.
Mullins (1998) has defined organisation as,
pattern of roles and a blueprint for their co-ordination
From the above definitions, we can note that
1. The social character of organisations is emphasised. It is people who constitute the basic
building block of organisations. Social interactions and exchanges are inevitable.
Organisations are essentially social systems.
2. Organisations are created to achieve some common purpose, through the efforts and
interactions of people or groups of people. Co-ordination is an important activity within
organisations.
3. Organisations are expected to contribute towards the betterment of societies and have
social relevance.
4. Organisations strive to ensure their long-term existence, survival and growth.
Activity 2
Why are organisations referred to as social systems?
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Organisations are however not always smooth and stable; they are not free from conflicts and
struggles. They are constantly undergoing changes and adjustments to respond to challenges and
opportunities. In the process, there is a constant remodelling of organisational attributes in order
to achieve higher levels of human performance.
The reality of organisations has been captured by Schwartz (1987) who has used the clockwork
and the snake pit metaphors to highlight, on the one hand, (clockwork) the logical and orderly
aspect of human behaviour, and on the other, (snake pit) the conflict, struggles and dilemmas of
organisational life.
Activity 3
"Ours is an organisational society"
(i) Reflect on this statement and identify two organisations you know.
(ii) List their main objectives.
(iii) Describe briefly their activities, the resources they utilise and their markets (or people
they serve).
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10.4 FORMAL AND INFORMAL ORGANISATIONS
Organisations can be classified in terms of a number of features like size, aims and objectives,
people employed, technology and markets.
One broad classification is in terms of their being either formal or informal.
• Formal organisations are deliberately planned and created and have explicit purpose and
goals. The tasks, roles, responsibilities, authority and accountability are prescribed and
known to all. Authority and responsibility are assigned to different people, but it is the
activities that are important and not the people. There is a process of co-ordination that
enables all the parts to be put together into a meaningful whole.
A formal organisation can exist without the membership of particular individuals. It is
the position and function that is more important than the people who hold the position.
People may come and go but the organisation continues to exist.
• The informal organisation arises out of the social interactions among members of the
organisation, and their social and psychological needs. It is unofficial and does not have
legitimacy. While the formal organisation is the overt part of the organisation, the informal
organisation is the covert part. The informal organisation develops its own norms of
behaviour and system of communication, known as grapevine. It is a source of identity and
of satisfaction for its members. The informal organisation can, at times be in competition
with the formal organisation; it can also act as a buffer for various shortcomings in the formal
organisation.
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INPUTS TRANSFORMATION OUTPUTS GOALS
Activity 4
What according to you are the implications of the informal organisation?
10.5 ORGANISTIONS: THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES
Organisations can differ in many respects but they also have a number of common features. All
organisations are open systems. They do not exist in a vacuum. As open systems, they draw
their inputs from the environment; these are converted into outputs and returned to the
environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL FORCES
Figure 10.1: A Simple Open System
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Work organisations are constantly interfacing with the external environment in particular with
the task environment, which is made up of customers, competitors, suppliers, and other relevant
agencies. The organisation/environment interface is a system of continual and mutual exchange
and influence.
According to Kast and Rosenzweig (1975), an organisation can be defined as:
1. A subsystem of its broader environment, and
2. Goal-oriented---people with a purpose; including
3. A technical subsystem--people using knowledge, techniques, equipment, and facilities;
4. A structural subsystem--people working together on integrated activities
5. A psychosocial subsystem---people in social relationships; and co-ordinated by;
6. A managerial subsystem--planning and controlling the overall endeavour.
The systems view is based on a number of common principles and prescriptions but there are
differences of degree and emphasis, in their application and operations in particular
organisational contexts. For example, different structures and different patterns of behaviour
will have to be adopted in different organisational settings.
The structure, management and functioning of an organisation is not only
determined by internal considerations and choices, but is also strongly
influenced by a range of external, environmental factors.
(Mullins, 1998)
Viewing work organisations as systems provides a useful and common framework for
understanding and analysing organisations as interrelated sub-systems made up of task,
technology, structure, people, management and the environment.
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ENVIRONMENT ENVIRONMENT
Figure 10.2
Series of activities
Transformation or conversion process
Interrelated sub-systems
A socio-technical approach
Task
Management
People
Technology Structure
Task – the nature of the work activities to be carried out Technology – the manner in which activities are carried out Structure – patterns of organisation and formal relationships within which
activities are carried out
People – the nature of members undertaking the activities Management – effective co-ordination of the sub-systems and direction of activities
of the organisation as a unified whole
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The people or organisations who are affected, directly or indirectly, by the transformation
process are the stakeholders.
The effectiveness of the transformation process depends upon the design of an appropriate
organisation structure that can respond to all changes taking place in the external environment.
Management will also need to handle a number of other internal conditions in order to increase
the levels of employee commitment, productivity and satisfaction.
A variation of the systems view is the information processing view of the organisation. The
main propositions of this view are that:
(a) Organisations are open systems continuously facing both environmental uncertainty as
well as task uncertainty.
(b) Organisations must be able to collect, process and distribute information required by
various units of the organisation.
(c) Organisational designs should cater for the needs for differentiation and integration
inherent in the various units and subunits.
The key concept is information, and the key idea is that organisations must
effectively receive, process, and act on information to achieve performance.
(Gibson et al., 1988)
The contingency approach to organisations takes the view that the structures and the
management styles of organisations are influenced by the environmental factors, both internal
and external.
Tyson and Jackson (1992) have suggested that:
what happens in organisations is contingent upon markets, history, production
systems and technical complexity.
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The main contributors to this approach were Joan Woodward, Tom Burns and G. M. Stalker, and
P. Lawrence and J. Lorsch.
Essentially, the contingency approach is a situational approach to management. Woodward
examined the impact of technology on organisational structures; Burns and Stalker; Lawrence
and Lorsch looked at the environment-structure relationship. Their work suggests that
organisation structures and management styles within organisations are more likely to be
pluralistic than universalist. In other words, structures are the outcome of a particular "mix" of
organisational elements and environmental variables and no single or universal managing style
or structure exists.
The contingency approach has been challenged by another approach: the ecological or natural
selection view of organisations. The idea that organisations transform or adapt themselves is
challenged. Organisations are considered as being involved in a process of natural selection.
The principle of the survival of the fittest is the order of the day and the fate of organisations is
determined by the environmental forces on which management has little influence.
In recent times, a new approach to organisations has been put forward. The organisational
learning approach is based on the premise that organisations must learn to be creative and
adaptive in order to survive in to-day's environment. This has been discussed in Unit 4.
The organisational perspectives that have been reviewed represent the modern approaches to
organisational theory and design. In contrast, the classical perspective, promoted by people like
F. W. Taylor, Frank and Lilian Gilbreth, Henry Gantt, Henri Fayol, L. F. Urwick and Max
Weber aimed at promoting a number of universal principles or the one best way for the design of
organisations, regardless of the specific organisational contexts. The bureaucratic model of Max
Weber represents the dominant classical model.
The classical theorists adopted the view that organisations could be designed in a rational way.
Through the process of division of labour, specialisation, hierarchical arrangements, unity of
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command, formal rules and regulations and impersonality in human interactions, organisations
were expected to function in a highly predictable and efficient manner.
The classical organisational structures were based upon a highly mechanistic and rigid
principles. With regard to Weber's bureaucracy, Morgan (1985) has commented the following:
Weber saw that the bureaucratic approach had the potential to routinise and
mechanise every aspect of human life, eroding the human spirit…
The dysfunctions and weaknesses in the classical approach to organising were many.
Unflexibility, inadaptability, impersonality, too much concentration of power at the top, absence
of initiative and innovation, limited scope for personal development and growth of mature
personalities were some of the features that caused frustration and serious dissatisfaction with the
classical organisational structures.
Many of these shortcomings were addressed by those who developed alternative ways of
theorising and restructuring organisations. However, each theory has its own merits and
shortcomings. It is still very difficult to have a universal approach to the study of organisations.
Activity 5
Review the different organisational perspectives that have been presented and explain the
rationale for the changes that have taken place.
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Irrespective of the perspective being adopted, there is one aspect that is common to most
organisations: their internal workings. There are two basic components to all organisations.
(i) the administrative
(ii) the operating components.
The administrative component is concerned with the planning, co-ordination and supervision
aspects whereas the operating component is concerned with the implementation and production
aspects.
There is some parallel to be drawn between the administrative and the operating components and
the concept of line and staff functions. Line functions refer to positions of authority and
responsibility for carrying out activities or operations in order to achieve certain goals. In
contrast, the staff function refers to the provision of expert advice to line managers.
Leavitt (1965) identified four internal components that make up an organisational system: task,
technology, structure and people.
On his part, Mullins (1998) has suggested that an organisational analysis will involve the
following aspects:
Task, Technology, Structure, People, Management and Environmental Influences.
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Activity 6
(i) Think of a business organisation from a systems perspective and list the major inputs and
outputs.
Inputs Outputs
(ii) What expectations do people have about the outputs of organisations?
Outputs Expectations
10.5 ORGANISATION DESIGN AND STRUCTURE
Organisation Design
Organisation design is a process that involves the application of a number of principles like
delegation, centralisation, decentralisation, specialisation, chain of command, span of control
and departmentation in order to create an appropriate framework for pursuing organisational
purposes.
According to Nelson and Quick (1997),
Organisation design is the process of constructing and adjusting an organisation to
achieve its goals
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To Robbins (1990),
Organisation design is concerned with constructing and changing an organisation's
structure to achieve the organisation's goals. Constructing or changing an organisation
is not unlike building or remodelling a house.
Activity 7
(i) Think of an architect. What factors would he take into account in designing a house?
(ii) Can you see any parallel between the design of a house and that of an organisation?
Explain your answer.
Organisation design involves two distinct processes:
1. Differentiation
2. Integration
Differentiation is the process of breaking the organisational goals into tasks.
Integration is the design process of linking tasks together to form a structure that
supports goal achievement. These two processes are the keys to successful
organisational design
(Nelson and Quick, 1997)
Differentiation involves a breakdown of tasks and responsibilities, and the allocation roles and
authority. Integration then draws and co-ordinates together the various activities and links the
authority centres to enable the organisational purpose to be achieved in the most effective
manner.
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There can be three forms of differentiation:
1. Horizontal.
2. Vertical.
3. Spatial (or geographic).
Horizontal differentiation will be based upon employees' education, experience and training. For
example, one marketing manager will be in charge of international marketing while another will
look after the domestic marketing. This type of differentiation increases with specialisation (or
division of labour) and departmentation (a grouping by function, price, geography, clients,
service, process or any combination)
Vertical differentiation refers to the difference in authority and responsibility. Greater
differentiation creates tall structures; smaller differentiation creates flatter structures.
Geographic or Spatial differentiation refers to the location of plants, personnel and offices in
different locations.
Horizontal, vertical and geographical differentiation are reflected in the structures of
organisations. Greater differentiation implies greater complexity of structures; the reverse is also
true.
From a structural perspective, every manager and organisation looks for the
best combination of differentiation and integration for accomplishing the goals
of the organisation.
(Nelson and Quick, 1997)
Lawrence and Lorsh (1967) have identified four possible orientations to differentiation, i.e., basis
for allocating work. These are: manager's goal orientation, time orientation; interpersonal
orientation and structure. The table below illustrates the four orientations in terms of two
specific functions:
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Basis for Difference Marketing Production
Goal orientation Sales volume Design
Time orientation Long run Medium run
Interpersonal orientation People-oriented Task-oriented
Structure Less formal More Formal
Table 10.1
(Source: Nelson and Quick, 1997).
These orientations will influence the degree of differentiation within organisations and will be
reflected in the organisational structures.
Organisation Structures
Organisation structures define the shape of organisations just like skeletons define human
shapes. They represent the formal pattern of allocation of tasks, roles, responsibilities,
authority and accountability, all held together through the process of co-ordination.
Essentially, the structure is an arrangement for organising and co-ordinating activities, and
for allocating resources, with a view to attaining the objectives of the organisation.
Structure also serves as a vehicle for the flow of information, decision-making and problem
solving.
Robbins and Coulter (1999) consider structure as:
the formal framework by which job tasks are divided, grouped, and
coordinated.
Mintzberg (1979) has defined the structure of an organisation
as the sum total of the ways in which it divides its labour into distinct tasks and
then achieves co-ordination between them.
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Structures can be highly formal and well defined; they can also be informal and tacit.
Unlike the structure, which is a web of relationships within an organisation, the organisation
chart is a simple visual representation of tasks, roles, responsibilities and authority relationships.
It does not capture and present the complex web of intangible relationships.
10.6 STRUCTURAL CONFIGURATIONS AND EMERGING STRUCTURES
Structures will usually embody aspects of horizontal, vertical and geographical differentiations.
The degree of differentiations will vary from organisations to organisations and will depend
upon a number of internal and external considerations, namely:
purpose, goals and objectives
size (number of people)
tasks, roles , responsibility, authority and accountability
technology and other resources
organisational value systems
external factors
Elements or principles that have to be considered in the process of designing structures
are:
Specialisation The extent to which work is subdivided into specific tasks and
activities. One person does not carry out the whole job, but
only part of it.
Standardisation The extent to which work is organised and carried out in a
routinely similar manner.
Centralisation The degree to which decision-making is concentrated in the
hands of top management of the organisation.
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Formalisation The extent to which employee role and behaviour is
prescribed through rules and procedures, job description and
manuals.
Hierarchy of Authority The number or reporting levels, or vertical differentiation,
within the organisation. Two concepts which are closely
associated with the notion of hierarchy are the unity of
command (one employee reporting to one superior) and the
span of control (the number of subordinates that a superior
can efficiently and effectively supervise)
Departmentalisation The basis for the grouping and organisation of work.
Departmentalisation can be in terms of functions to be carried,
products or services to be provided, processes to be employed,
customers to be served and geographical area to be covered.
Based on both internal and external considerations, the need for differentiation and integration,
and the various available design principles, various structural configurations can be developed to
suit the needs of specific organisations.
Mintzberg (1985) has proposed five possible structural configurations: the simple structure, the
machine bureaucracy, the professional bureaucracy, the divisionalised form and the adhocracy.
The characteristics of each of these structural forms are illustrated in Figure 10.3.
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Figure 10.3
Five – Structural Configurations of Organisation STRUCTURAL CONFIGURATION
PRIME COORDINATING MECHANISM
KEY PART OF ORGANISATION
TYPE OF DECENTRALISATION
Simple structure Machine bureaucracy Professional bureaucracy Divisionalised form Adhocracy
Direct supervision Standardisation of work processes Standardisation of skills Standardisation of outputs Mutual adjustment
Upper echelon Technical staff Operating Level Middle Level Support staff
Centralisation Limited horizontal decentralisation Vertical and horizontal decentralisation Limited vertical decentralisation Selective decentralisation
(SOURCE: H. Mintzberg, The Structuring of Organisations (Englewood Cliffs, N. J.): Prentice Hall, 1979), 301).
Emerging Structures
In to-day's context, managers are confronted with numerous changes and developments.
Globalisation, new technologies, increased competition, the need for efficiency and
customisation are some of the forces that have increased "the demands on process
capabilities within organisation and emerging organisational structures”.[Mintzberg, 1985]
It is becoming very important for organisations to be flexible, adaptable and innovative while at
the same time providing employees with challenging and interesting activities that fulfil both
professional and personal goals and aspirations.
A brief review of some of the emerging structures is provided below:
• Team-Based Structures
People get together and work in teams, and are responsible for all work activity, its
organisation and its realisation. They enjoy a high degree of autonomy and employee
empowerment is essential for organisational effectiveness
One variation of the team-based concept is 'adhocracy'.
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The adhocracy is a highly organic, rather than mechanistic configuration with
minimal formalisation and order. It is designed to fuse interdisciplinary experts
into smoothly functioning ad hoc project teams.
(Nelson and Quick, 1997)
NASA (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration) in America is often quoted
as an example of adhocracy as it is composed of highly talented experts who come and
work together on a large number of projects connected with America's space programme.
• Project and Matrix Structures
In the project structure, people with specific skills, experience and capabilities are
brought together to work on a particular project. They function as a team. Managers act
as facilitators, mentors and coaches. Once a project is completed, the employees are
assigned to other projects. This is typical in such areas like civil engineering.
A matrix structure arises "when a project structure is superimposed on a functional
structure.” (Luthans, 1998).
These structures can combine the benefits of both functional and project structures. They
are particularly useful in dealing with complex and creative works and usually involve a
high degree of inter-action among members of matrix structures, resulting in higher
levels of job satisfaction
• Boundariless Organisations
The term “boundariless organisations” was coined by Jack Welch, the Chairman of
General Electric. Boundariless organisations are not restrained by vertical and horizontal
boundaries that are so characteristic of many organisations; the external boundaries
between them and their customers, suppliers and other stakeholders are also removed.
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The organisations become more flexible, fluid, unstructured and less hierarchical and
work is organised around processes instead of functions. There are cross-hierarchical
empowered teams and more participating decision-making; more interactions and
exchanges between the organisations and the customers, suppliers and other stakeholders.
The use of IT and Telecommunication technology reduces response time and makes
customer-organisation linkage tighter.
• Networking Structures
The main idea in the concept of networking is that organisations disaggregate and
collaborate on the basis of what they are best at doing.
According to Luthans (1998),
the firm concentrates on where it can add greatest value in the chain, and
it out-sources to upstream and/or downstream partners who can do a
better job. This network of the firm and its upstream and downstream
partners can be optimally effective and flexible.
Another aspect of networking is known as "insourcing" whereby internal units within an
organisation are encouraged to enter into transactions among themselves at market prices
by but in and selling to each other at prices that outsourcing partners are prepared charge.
• The Virtual Organisations
The concept of the virtual organisation is closely associated with the concept of the
network organisation. It brings a number of companies together on the basis of their
individual strengths in certain areas; the companies agree to share costs and exploit
markets jointly. They share a sense of co-destiny, are linked electronically, are highly
opportunistic and provide world-class standards, as illustrated in Figure 10.4).
254
Luthans (1998) has defined the virtual organisation as follows:
The virtual organisation is a temporary network of companies that come
together quickly to exploit fast-changing opportunities.
Activity 8
With respect to the emerging structures, describe a typical structure in which you will find
yourself at ease to work.
255
10.8 THE LEARNING ORGANISATION
You will recall that the concept of organisational learning was discussed in Unit 4. We shall
now briefly introduce the concept of the learning organisation. Peter Senge, (1990) developed
the concept of the learning organisation that can have important implications for the design of
organisations in a context of rapid changes.
According to Quick and Nelson (1997):
In a learning organisation, employees are continually acquiring and sharing
new knowledge and are willing to apply that knowledge in making decisions or
performing their work.
Learning is an important aspect for the survival, development and growth of organisations in a
context characterised by rapid change and stiff competition. The concept of learning
organisation is not a particular organisational design but it has important design implications.
Some of the elements that will have to be looked into very closely include the organisational
culture or value system, leadership, information sharing, communication, trust and collaborative
arrangements within the organisations.
Activity 9
Write a short note on learning organisation.
256
10.9 ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE
The concept of organisational culture and its relevance to organisational life is now well-
established. Its roots go back to cultural anthropology and its relevance to management go back
to the Hawthorne studies (that looked into work group culture). During the 1980s and the 1990s,
faced with stiff competition and rapid changes, many organisations began to investigate into
factors that were directly linked to their survival.
Research on organisational culture and its influence on organisations were very conclusive and
showed that “cultures were real and could be managed” (Nelson and Quick, 1997).
According to Schein((1985), culture is a pattern of basic assumptions within an organisation, and
these are transmitted to members as being the ways to perceive think, feel and behave.
One of the most important functions of organisational culture is to influence, shape and control
behaviour. Organisational structures mirror the cultural realities of specific organisations.
Cultural diversity in the workplace is a growing phenomenon and poses new challenges for
managers and organisational scientists. One of the biggest challenges is how to harness all this
diversity and develop synergies that can benefit organisations.
Cross Cultural OB
The Workforce diversity poses new challenges to managers. They need to become more sensitive
to the differences that each cultural group brings to the organization as “interpersonal
approaches differ across culture.”(Luthans,1998)
To be effective, managers need to develop their ability to recognize and assess cross-cultural
differences. They also need to modify attitudes and behaviours in dealing with people from
different backgrounds.
257
The following approach may be adopted:
1. Recognise the fact that people are different and therefore cannot be treated all alike.
2. Practice empathy, by putting yourself in the other person’s shoes and making sense of
the other person’s values, experiences and perspectives.
3. Value and defend diverse views.
4. When communicating, emphasise description rather than interpretation of evaluation.
A Cross-cultural approach to OB helps managers to become more sensitive to cultural
differences and develop transnational competencies that are essential for managers to work in a
borderless, global context.
Future of OB
According to Luthans (1998):
“Just as businesses around the world have ignored the international context except in
recent years, so has the field of organizational behavior.”
In an increasingly global context, dominated by competition, demographic changes, Information
and Communication Technologies, Diversity, Ethics, Green Management, organisations face
new challenges and opportunities. These developments require new perspectives in
understanding work behaviours.
Moorhead and Griffin (1992) have proposed three perspectives that can be useful managing
behaviour in workplaces.
The Systems Approach
A key aspect of this approach is the interaction between the organisation and its environmental
constituents or stakeholders.
258
Managers will have to take into consideration environmental influences when dealing with their
employees.
The Contingency Approach
This approach argues that behaviour in organizations is influenced by multiple variables in the
environment.
“In other words, appropriate managerial action or behavior in any given situation depends on
elements of that situation.” (Moorhead and Griffin, 1992).
Interactionalism
This approach suggests that “individuals and situations interact continuously to
determine individual behavior.” (Moorhead and Griffin,1992)
All the three perspectives share a common concern—behaviour in work organizations cannot be
governed by universal principles. The organizational context and its influences are valuable
inputs in better understanding and influencing behaviour in work organizations.
You will learn more about culture as you progress with your programme of studies.
Activity 10 Explain the effects of organisational culture on organisational structure.
259
From this Unit we can conclude that effective organisations are able to tap and direct the full
potential of their members. They are able to provide material/financial and psychological
satisfaction and opportunities for growth and development. Each organisation faces a set of
specific circumstances and it is not advisable for all organisations to adopt similar design
principles and develop similar structures. But there are clear trends towards structures that are
more flexible and adaptable to changes. There is no one best way to organise but sufficient
knowledge and insights are now available to develop more meaningful and more effective
structures, thus representing is both an opportunity and a challenge for managers.
To Quick and Nelson (1997),
No matter what structural option managers choose for their organisations, it
should help employees do their work in the best, that is, the most efficient and the
most effective, way they can. The structure needs to help, not hinder
organisational members as they carry out the organisation work. After all, an
organisation's structure is simply a means to an end.
10.10 KEY CONCEPTS
Organisations
Formal and Informal Organisations
Theoretical Perspectives
Organisation Design and Structure
Emerging Structures
Learning Organisations
Organisational Culture
Open System
Systems View
Stakeholders
Information Processing View
260
Contingency Approach
Organisational Learning
Organisational Design and Structure
261
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