OB Chapter 2 What is Personality?

Personality: the relatively stable set of psychological characteristics that influences the way an individual interacts with his or her environment and how he or she feels, thinks, and behaves. Personality consists of a number of dimensions and traits that are determined in a complex way by genetic predisposition and by ones long term learning history. Personality is relatively stable, but can change throughout adult learning experiences. Personality and Organizational Behaviour It was believed that personality was an important factor in many areas of organizational behaviour. Organizations used personality tests for employment. Known as Dispositional Approach Focuses on individual dispositions and personality Individuals possess stable traits or characteristics that influence their attitudes and behaviour Individuals are predisposed to behave in certain ways Research has shown however, that that personality does not predict organizational behaviour and job performance. As a result, there was a decline in personality tests and research for employment. Researchers started looking for factors in the work environment that might explain organizational behaviour. Known as Situational Approach Characteristics of the organizational setting, such as rewards and punishment, influence peoples feelings, attitudes, and behaviour Job satisfaction is largely determined by situational factors such as the characteristics of work tasks The role of personality in organizational behaviour has often been debated in what is known as the PERSON-SITUATION DEBATE It is now believed that both approaches are important for predicting and understanding organizational behaviour. This lead to a third approach... Known as Interactionist Approach (interactionism) Organizational behaviour is a function of both dispositions and the situation To predict and understand organizational behaviour, one must know something about an individuals personality and the setting in which he or she works Ex. Personality has the strongest effect in weak situations (when roles are loosely defined, there are few rules and weak reinforcement and punishment). Personality has less of an impact in strong situations (when the roles, rules, and contingencies are more defined. No personality is bad. Organizations look for fit putting the right person in the right job. Leads to employee diversity.

OB Chapter 2 Five Factor Model of Personality (FFM) 5 basic dimensions that describe personality: Extraversion the extent to which a person is outgoing vs. Shy o High extraverts enjoy social situations Leads to higher job satisfaction Important for jobs in sales, management Tend to be more absent than introverts o Low (introverts) avoid social situations Emotional Stability the degree to which a person has appropriate emotional control o High emotional stability (low neuroticism) self confident, high self esteem Likely to have more effective interactions with co-workers and customers because they tend to be more calm and secure o Low emotional stability (high neuroticism) self doubt, depression Tend to be anxious, hostile, impulsive, insecure, more prone to stress Job performance is likely to suffer, low job satisfaction, low job motivation Agreeableness the extent to which a person is friendly and approachable o More agreeable people are warm, considerate, friendly, sympathetic Likely to contribute to job performance in jobs that require interaction and involve helping, cooperating, and nurturing others and teamwork. Higher job satisfaction o Less agreeable people tend to be cold and aloof Tend to be more argumentative, uncaring, uncooperative, intolerant Conscientiousness the degree to which a person is responsible and achievement oriented o Conscientious people are dependable and positively motivated Orderly, self disciplined, hard working, and achievement striving Like to perform well on most jobs given their tendency towards hard work and achievement Higher job satisfaction, higher job motivation Higher attendance at work o Less conscientious people are irresponsible, lazy, and impulsive Openness to Experience the extent to which a person thinks flexibly and is receptive to new ideas o More open people tend toward creativity and innovation Likely to do well in jobs that involve learning and creativity given that they tend to be intellectual, curious, and imaginative and have broad interests o Less open people favour status quo

The Big Five dimensions are relatively independent Each of the Big Five dimensions is related to job performance, job motivation and satisfaction, and predict job search employment, vocational interests, and career success.

OB Chapter 2 Locus of Control A set of beliefs about whether ones behaviour is controlled mainly by internal or external factors. Internals believe that the opportunity to control their own behaviour rests within themselves. o People who are high on internal control are more satisfied with their jobs, earn more money, and achieve higher organizational positions. Externals believe that external forces determine their behaviour. Self-Monitoring The extent to which people observe and regulate how they appear and behave in social settings and relationships. Low self monitors are not concerned with fitting in with those around them High self monitors take great care to observe and control the images that they project (somewhat like actors). They tend to show concern for socially appropriate behaviour High self monitors tend to gravitate towards jobs that require a degree of role-playing and self presentation skills. (sales, law, PR, politics). They tend to be more involved in their jobs, to perform at a higher level, and to emerge as leaders. However, they tend to show low commitment to their organization Self-Esteem The degree to which a person has a positive self-evaluation Behavioural Plasticity Theory: people with low self esteem tend to be more susceptible to external and social influences than those who have high self esteem Events and people in the organizational environment have more impact on the beliefs and actions of employees with low self esteem. This occurs because they are unsure of their own views and behaviours People with high self esteem make more fulfilling career decisions and have higher job satisfaction and job performance. People with high self esteem are more resilient to the strains of everyday work life. Employees with low self esteem tend to react badly to negative feedback. Managers should be cautious when using negative reinforcement and punishment. Recent Developments in Personality and Organizational Behaviour Positive and Negative Affectivity emotional dispositions that predict peoples general emotional tendencies People who are high on positive affectivity experiences positive emotions and moods and view the world in a positive light. High PA report higher job satisfaction and creativity People who are high on negative affectivity experience negative emotions and moods and view the world in a negative light. High NA report lower job satisfaction and performance, and higher workplace stress Proactive Personality Proactive behaviour: taking initiative to improve current circumstances or creating new ones. Proactive personality: a stable personal disposition that reflects a tendency to take personal initiatives across a range of activities and situations and to effect positive change in ones environment. Related to job performance, tolerance for stress, work team performance.

OB Chapter 2

General Self-Efficacy A trait that refers to an individuals belief in his or her ability to perform successfully in a variety of challenging situations. Considered to be more of a motivational trait rather than an affective trait because it reflects an individuals belief about him or herself. If youve experienced many successes in your life, you probably have high GSE, many fails leads to low GSE. Core Self-Evaluations A broad personality concept that consists of more specific traits that reflect the evaluations people hold about themselves, their self worth, competence and capability. 4 traits make up a persons core self evaluation: Self esteem General self efficacy Locus of control Neuroticism People with more positive self evaluations have higher job satisfaction and job performance Individuals with a positive self regard are more likely to perceive their jobs as interesting, significant, and autonomous What is Learning? Learning: a relatively permanent change in behaviour potential that occurs due to practice or experience Practical Skills job specific skills, knowledge, and technical competence Intrapersonal Skills problem solving, critical thinking, learning about alternative work processes, and risk taking Interpersonal Skills communicating, teamwork, and conflict resolution Cultural Awareness - learning the social norms of organizations and understanding company goals, business operations, and company expectations and priorities Operant Learning Theory Learning by which the subject learns to operate on the environment to achieve certain consequences Operantly learned behaviour is controlled by the consequences that follow it Operant learning can be used to increase the probably of desired behaviours and reduce or eliminate the probability of undesirable behaviours. Increasing the Probability of Behaviour Reinforcement: the process by which stimuli strengthen behaviours. A reinforce is a stimulus that follows some behaviour and increases or maintains the probability of that behaviour. Reinforcement serves to strengthen behaviours

OB Chapter 2 Positive Reinforcement o Increases or maintains the probability of some behaviour by the application or addition of a stimulus to the situation in question o Whether or not something is a positive reinforce depends only on whether it increases or maintains the occurrence of some behaviour by its application Negative Reinforcement o The removal of a stimulus that in turn increases or maintains the probability of some behaviour o Occurs when a response prevents some event or stimulus from occurring o Ex. Working harder to stop bosss nagging

Organizational Errors Involving Reinforcement Confusing rewards with reinforcers o Rewards fail to serve as reinforcers when they are not made contingent on some specific desired behaviour o Ex. Many organizations assign overtime work on the basis of seniority rather than performance or good attendance Neglecting diversity in preferences for reinforcers o Organizations often fail to appreciate individual differences in preferences for reinforcers. o Ex. A workaholic might not want time off as a reward Neglecting important sources of reinforcement o There are many reinforcers which are not obvious. o Ex. Giving attention and empty threats to workers who fool around while doing a boring job o Performance Feedback: providing quantitative or qualitative information on past performance for the purpose of changing or maintaining performance in specific ways Ex. Doctors can observe the success of their treatment by observing the progress of their patients health, mechanics can take the cars they repair for test drives o Social Recognition: informal acknowledgement, attention, praise approval, or genuine appreciation for work well done from one individual or group to another When made contingent on employee behaviour it can be an effective means for performance improvement Reinforcement Strategies For fast acquisition of some response, continuous and immediate reinforcement should be used Behaviour tends to be persistent when it is learned under conditions of partial and delayed reinforcement Managers have to tailor reinforcement strategies to the needs of the situation Reducing the Probability of Behaviour Extinction: terminating the reinforcement that is maintaining some unwanted behaviour. If the behaviour is not reinforced, it will gradually be extinguished Ex. Having an employee make jokes constantly is encouraged by laughing coworkers. If coworkers stop laughing, the joking will dissipate Behaviours that have been learned under delayed reinforcement schedules are more difficult to extinguish that those learned under continuous reinforcement

OB Chapter 2 Punishment: involves following an unwanted behaviour with some unpleasant, aversive stimulus *Different from negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement removes a negative stimulus, punishment applies a negative stimulus* Punishment does not demonstrate which activities should replace the punished response *While positive and negative reinforcers specify which behaviours are appropriate, punishment indicates only what is not appropriate* Punishment only temporarily eliminates the unwanted response. When surveillance is removed, the response will tend to recur. Punishment can provoke a strong emotional reaction

Using Punishment Effectively Provide and acceptable alternative for the punished response Limit the emotions involved in punishment Make sure the chosen punishment is truly aversive o Do not punish absent employees by making them take days off Punish immediately Do not reward unwanted behaviours before or after punishment o Do not participate in horseplay with employee and then punish it when its time to work Do not inadvertently punish desirable behaviour Social Cognitive Theory Emphasizes the role of cognitive processes in regulating peoples behaviour People often learn and behave through their own volition and self influence. People have the cognitive capacity to regulate and control their own thoughts, feelings, motivation and actions Ex. People learn by observing the behaviour of others, by thinking about the consequences by setting performance goals, by monitoring their performance, and by rewarding themselves for goal accomplishment Social Cognitive Theory involves 3 components: Observational Learning: the process of observing and imitating the behaviour of others o Self reinforcement Self-Efficacy: beliefs people have about their ability to successfully perform a specific task Self- Regulation: the use of learning principles to regulate ones own behaviour o Making external control less necessary, and focusing on their own behaviour o Discrepancy reduction when there exists a discrepancy between ones goals and performance, individuals are motivated to modify their behaviour in the pursuit of goal attainment o Discrepancy production when individuals attain their goals, they are likely to set even higher and more challenging goals

OB Chapter 2 Self-Regulation Techniques Self-observation collect objective data about oneself Observe others finding someone successful to imitate Set goals set specific short and long term goals Rehearse explain reason to employees about changed behaviour Reinforce oneself Do it! Organizational Learning Practices Organizational Behaviour Modification: involves the systematic use of learning principles to influence organizational behaviour Employee Recognition Programs: formal organizational programs that publicly recognize and reward employees for specific behaviours Training Programs: planned organizational activities that are designed to facilitate knowledge and skill acquisition to change behaviour and improve performance Behaviour Modelling Training one of the most widely used and effective methods of training o Describe to trainees a set of well defined behaviours to be learned o Provide a model displaying the effective use of those behaviours o Provide opportunities for trainees to practice using those behaviours o Provide feedback and social reinforcement o Take steps to transfer those behaviours to the job Career Development: an ongoing process in which individuals progress through a series of stages that consist of a unique set of issues, themes, and tasks Involves career planning and career development