Organizational Behavior: Understanding Personality, Perception, and Attitudes

1. Chapter 8 Behavior in Organizations Power, Politics, Conflict, and Stress

2. Organizational Behavior Organizational behavior(OB) is the study of actions that affect performance in the workplace. Organizational behaviorists endeavor to explain and predict actions in the workplace and show how such actions affect performance. They attempt to create win–win situations.

3. Organizational Behavior • Three components—personality, perception, and attitudes—drive behavior. • Understanding how personality, perception, and attitudes drive behavior gives you insight into how people will behave in certain situations.

4. Personalities in Broadcasting • Think about Billy Packard, John Madden, Charles Barkley, Deion Sanders, and the late Howard Cosell. Where would their viewership be if they didn’t have lively on-air personalities? • Sean McManus, former president of CBS Sports, believes that today, with channels crammed with sports content and the resulting fragmentation in audience loyalties, announcer personalities are pivotal in garnering viewership.

5. Single Traits System of Personality Single traits are locus of control, optimism, risk propensity, self-esteem, and self-efficacy.

6. The Big Five Personality Traits 1. Extroversion 2. Agreeableness 3. Emotionalism 4. Conscientiousness 5. Openness to experience

7. Perception is the process through which we select, organize, and interpret information from the surrounding environment. Because this perception process colors everything, no two people experience anything the same way. Why do some people think George Steinbrenner is a nice guy and others think he’s a jerk? Why do some view a referee’s videotaped decision as fair while others do not? We all see the same videotaped play, but we don’t perceive itthe same way. Perception

8. Attribution • Attributionis the process of determining why we behave in certain ways. • Each of us tries to find reasons behind behavior every day—our own, those around us, football players on TV.

9. Figure 8.1

10. Frame of Reference • Our frame of reference is our bias of seeing things from our own point of view. This is pretty hard to overcome, and it tends to make situations into win–lose propositions. • The MLB players’ union and the owners display classic frame-of-reference problems. Players claim that MLB teams are very profitable; owners claim continual brink of bankruptcy.

11. Stereotyping • Stereotyping happens when we project the characteristics or behavior of an individual onto a group. • Think about breakthrough athletes like Hank Greenberg or high school female wrestlers.

12. Attitudes • Attitudesare positive or negative evaluations of people, things, and situations. • Organizations look for people with high self-esteem and positive attitudes toward their careers and personal lives, because such people tend to be loyal and reliable workers.

13. Pygmalion Effect • The Pygmalion effect has to do with how management’s attitude toward workers, their expectations of them, and their treatment of them affect workers’ performance. • John Wooden, the late legendary basketball coach at UCLA, expected excellence from every player.

14. John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success John Wooden’s teams won 10 NCAA national championships. Wooden constructed his pyramid of success out of such principles as "keep it simple" and "teamwork is not a preference, it's a necessity.”

15. Organizational Power Mark Emmert, president of the NCAA, is a powerful person, as is every effective coach and athletic director. FIFA is a powerful organization because of the influence it wields around the world. Phil Knight, founder of Nike and member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, has a powerful organization because of its ability to shape culture around the world through its products.

16. Losing Organizational Power • Just as it can be gained, every type of power can be lost (ask Kenneth Lay, former CEO of Enron). • Lance Armstrong, after many years, was found guilty of doping by the USADA. Lance stopped fighting the charge and has admitted to doping. His marketability of Livestrong merchandise has been severely affected.

17. Bases of Power • Coercive power • Connection power • Reward power • Legitimate power • Referent power • Informational power • Expert power

18. Figure 8.3

19. Organizational Power • Politics are the efforts of groups or individuals with competing interests to obtain power and positions of leadership. • The AIAW (Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women) represented women’s collegiate sports from 1971 until it folded in 1982. Observers blame the NCAA’s move into women’s sports for the fall of AIAW. However, the blame should also be placed on internal politics and the policies of the AIAW itself. AIAW had problems with its own members with regard to the organization’s lack of support for athletic scholarships for women.

20. Networking • Learn the organizational culture. • Learn the power plays. • Don’t surprise your boss. • Be an honest team player. • Stay tuned to the networking grapevine. • Resolve conflicts.

21. Figure 8.4

22. Conflict Management • Conflict management is based on two dimensions: concern for others’ needs and concern for your own needs. • These dimensions result in three types of behavior: passive, aggressive, and assertive.

23. Styles of Conflict Management • Avoiding • Accommodating • Forcing • Negotiating • Collaborating

24. BCF Statements BCF statements describe conflicts in terms of behavior, consequences, and feelings. That is, when you do B (behavior), C (consequences) happens, and you feel F (feelings).

25. Stress Think of stress as a tug-of-war with you in the center. On your left are ropes (causes of stress) pulling you to burnout. Stress that is too powerful will pull you off center. On your right are ropes (stress management techniques) that you can choose to use to pull you back to the center.

26. Methods of Reducing Stress • Time management • Nutrition • Positive thinking • Relaxation • Exercise • Support network

27. Figure 8.8