Seminar Ska Organizational Psychology

1

INTRODUCTION “Organizational

psychology

is

the

study

of

human

behavior

in

organizations; the behaviors of interest contribute to the effectiveness of organizational functioning, the satisfaction and well-being of those who populate the organizations, or both. These behaviors and the people who exhibit them exist in a dynamic open system.”1 Behaviors observed in the present are influence by past behaviors and conditions, as well as by the anticipation of future ones. Individuals are systems nested within other systems—such as teams and work groups— that are nested under larger organizational systems. All of these systems are open to the outside through connections to family members, customers,

and

multiple

other

potential

sources

of

influence

on

organizational members’ behavior. “What

is

the

difference

between

organizational

psychology

and

organizational behavior? In all honesty, these two fields are much more similar than different so much so, in fact, that many faculties who teach organizational behavior in business schools received their training in departments of psychology. Though less common, some faculty who teach organizational psychology received their training in business schools.”2 Organizational behavior is the study and application of knowledge about how people, individuals, and groups act in organizations.3 Organizational 1

Katz & Kahn, 1978

2

Steve M. Jex, Organizational Psychology John Willey and Sons, New York p.3

3

Robbins, Article about Organizational Behavior p.9

behavior helps build better relationships by achieving human objectives, organizational objective and social objective. Organizational psychology is a field that utilizes scientific methodology to better under-stand the behavior of individuals in organizational settings. This knowledge is also applied, in a variety of ways, to help organizations function

more

effectively.

This

is

important

because

effective

organizations are typically more productive, often provide higher-quality services, and are usually more financially successful than less effective organizations.4 The core of any organization is its personnel and our success depends on our people. The goal of this company is to increase our profitability, increase growth and innovation, and introduce new values and culture into the organization. In order for us to remain competitive, we need to have

"maximum

quality,

minimum

cost,

and

[maintain

peak

performance].5 The study of the way people think and behave is called psychology. The field of psychology has a number of sub-disciplines devoted to the study of the different levels and contexts of human thought and behavior. Social psychology, for example, deals with human thought and action in a social context, while physiological psychology is concerned with thought and behavior at the level of neurology. Another division of psychology, comparative psychology compares the thought and behavior of humans with that of other species. Abnormal psychology studies atypical thought and action. Psychology is an interdisciplinary science. Social psychology, for example, involves both sociology and anthropology. Abnormal psychology has much in common with psychiatry, while physiological 4

5

Steve M. Jex (2002) Organizational Psychology, John Willey and Sons, New York

Ahls, B. Organizational behavior: A model for cultural change. Industrial Management (2001, July-August).

psychology builds on the techniques and methods of neurology and physiology.

It

is

evident

that

psychological

methods

are

being

increasingly used in daily events. Employment for example, in Europe more companies are subjecting potential personnel to psychological profile checks and psychological tests during interviews. Even our social lives are becoming affected. People who are seeking the right partner are using psychological techniques to establish the emotional state of their potential partners. As psychology becomes more and more accessible and understandable to more people, we feel that it will begin to influence our lifestyles more. The behavior of employees within any organization is essential for success of one organization in today’s global economy. The study of organizational behavior is a science with its own vocabulary and terminology. Academic field of study concerned with human behavior in organizations; also called organizational psychology. It covers topics such as motivation, group dynamics, leadership, organization structure, decision making, careers, conflict resolution, and organizational development. When this subject is taught in business schools, it is called organizational behavior; when it is taught in psychology departments, it is called organizational psychology.6 Organizations are social arrangements, constructed by people who can also change them. Organizations can be repressive and stifling, but they can also be designed to provide opportunities for self-fulfillment and individual expression. The point is that human consequences depend on how organizations are designed and run.7 6

7

http://www.answers.com

Buchanan, D. & Huczynski, A. (1997) Organizational Behavior: An Introductory Text 3rd , Prentice Hall, London(1997)

“An organization is, simply, a body of people organized for some specific purpose”.8 According to Hunt & Osborn organizational behavior is taking a look at the way humans behave within a company9 . The United States Navy, and perhaps all military branches, has, in some respects, a unique organizational behavior. The behavior of its employees is governed by a strict set of rules and regulations. One prime example of this is the Uniform Code of Military Justice. There is no other organization that can legally imprison an employee for not obeying his or her supervisor or for not being where he or she is supposed to be. A civilian organization will just fire that employee there are no legal ramifications. A major challenge for organizational psychology is to develop theories that do not just passively regurgitate romantic prejudices that pass for 'common sense'. Indeed, when this interrogative perspective is adopted, one would argue that established beliefs bear little correspondence to processes of true leadership as it is practiced and experienced. Moreover, because they serve largely to accentuate the division between would-be leaders and their would-be followers, they can actually undermine the very thing they would create: a productive, healthy and invigorated organization. Organizational culture is created by the individuality and sometimes the commonness of the employees within the organization. “Organizational culture is a pattern of knowledge, belief, and behavior…it is the form, beliefs, norms, social patterns, the way things are done, the symbols and rituals”10.

8

Magazine Communication 2005

9

Hunt & Osborn, Schermerhorn, 2005,p.17

10

Burton, Lauridsen, & Obel, Strategic Organizational Diagnosis and Design: The Dynamics of Fit, 3rd Edition, Kluwer Academic Publishers 2004

In the nineteenth century, it was possible at the beginning of the industrial revolution to consider the individual as a part or a component. Essentially without life and character, and in order to be produced for the ‘mass.’ It has taken many decades for humanity to recover what it possessed in the eighteenth century but lost in the nineteenth individuality.

The

twentieth

century

saw

this

renaissance

initially

expressed in shadows such as ‘percentiles’ in which we sought to capture first the physical ‘measure of man’ only to be followed by its cognate companion. Each person is much like everyone else in many important ways. Our biological systems are all quite similar, as is our basic appearance. Each person is also very different from everyone else. The ways we think, the ways we interpret our environment, and the ways we respond to that environment are unique. We call this set of factors individual differences. At

the

beginning

of

the

21st

century,

individual

differences

in

performance are still not being included in workplace design. Most often they are ignored, minimized or not considered at all. “The past twenty-five years have been witness to celebration of all things organizational in organization and management research. Profound changes in both the global economy and information technology produced

new

organizational

forms

and

pushed

us

to

focus

on

competitiveness and wealth creation. To be sure, anyone who set foot in an organization knew that people matter, but our scholarly attention was diverted. We might even go so far as to say that individuals caught our attention only in times of failure. We are reminded of the University of Michigan hockey fans who stand up, point to the opposing goalie, and chant “It’s all your fault. . . it’s all your fault. . . it’s all your fault!”

whenever Michigan scores. People mattered most when we made person attributions for failure.”11 “The study of leadership has a natural home in organizational psychology. Businesses can thrive or perish largely due to the quality of organizational leadership. Organizational psychology places the study of leadership very high on its agenda.”12 It is important to underline that this research field that generates an enormous amount of literature spanning the complete range from weighty research tomes to fast moving self-help books. In recent years organizational psychologists have paid particular attention to transformational leadership and the role of charisma. Charismatic leaders are able to motivate followers to work for collective goals that transcend self-interest and transform organizations “This focus on "charisma" is particularly evident in "new leadership" research which proposes that effective leaders should be proactive, change-oriented, innovative, motivating and inspiring, and have a vision or mission with which they infuse the group. They should also be interested in others, and be able to create commitment to the group, and extract extra effort from and empower members of the group.”13 Organizational psychology can and should be viewed as a science. “Organizational

psychology,

however,

is

also

concerned

with

the

application of scientific knowledge to enhance the effectiveness of organizations. The scientist-practitioner model captures this interaction between generating scientific knowledge and the application of that knowledge for some practical purpose. At a very general level, the

11

James P., Article Walsh University of Michigan 2004 p.xi

12

Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (1993). Transformational leadership: Leadership theory and research: Perspectives and directions (pp. 49-80). London: Academic Press. 13

Bums, J. M. (1978). Leadership. New York: Harper & Row

scientist-practitioner model states that science and practice are not independent and, in fact, often “feed off” each other.”14

GROUP Organizational structure is the formal system of task and reporting relationships that controls, coordinates, and motivates employees so that they cooperate and work together to achieve the organization’s goals”. 15 The importance of structure can’t be stressed enough. Having an organizational structure ensures that each member of the organization has the correct goals of their particular department set. A good structure will give people the motivation needed to achieve those goals, and enhance their performance. In order to encourage work, cooperation, and the drive needed from employees, an organization should have some sort of organizational structure. Whether a functional structure, a divisional structure, a network structure, or even a matrix structure, every corporation must have one type to achieve the directives set forth by their mission statement. A strong structure essentially changes the way people work, and the results of their work ethics will produce quality work. Rosabeth Moss Kanter argues that ‘one way or another, the innovating organization accomplishes a high proportion of its productive changes through participation’. High proportion of productive changes in an organization can be achieved through group and team work.

14

Steve M. Jex (2002) Organizational Psychology, John Willey and Sons, New York p.5

15

George et al, 2002