Organization Behaviour

Chapter 1 Definition, importance, historical background, Fundamental concepts

of OB , challenges and opportunities for OB :
It is a field of study that investigates the impact individuals, groups and structure
have on behavior within an organization, and then apply that knowledge to make
organizations work more effectively (Robbins 2003).
An effective and efficient manager should focus on two key results. Management
functions have been grouped in four categories- planning, organizing, leading and
controlling. Characteristics of management are goal oriented. Economic resources,
distinct processes, integrative forces, intangible forces, a science and an art
together results through others It is a system of authority and multidisciplinary
subject.
OB focuses on how to improve productivity reduce absenteeism, and turnover,
increase employee citizenship and job satisfaction. An organization consists of
people and so it is also a social system.
The field of OB draws primarily from the behavioral science disciplines of
psychology, social psychology and cultural anthropology. Aras on which OB focuses
are individuals, who will often be working with groups, which themselves work
within organizations as well as all the interrelationships between them. Some of the
specific themes held by OB are Personality Theory, Attitudes and Values, motives
and learning, interpersonal behavior, group dynamics, leadership and teamwork,
organization structure and design, decision-making power, conflict and its
negotiation. OB is an interdisciplinary field. It has distinctly humanistic outlook. It is
performance related. It consists of external environment as critical. It uses scientific
method and it has application orientation.
3 broad aspects of analysis are individual level, group level and organization level.
Further to this , Wood (1997), provides a useful model for exploring behavioral
events. He suggests that different levels of analysis can be applied when examining
the significance of an organizational issue. He proposed 8 , namely individual, team,
intergroup, organizational , inter-organizational , societal , international and global.
A large number of people have contributed to the growth of OB as a discipline
.Some of the most important works have been done by Adam Smith, Frederick
Taylor, Henri Fayol, Max Weber, Mary Parker Follet, Abraham Maslow , B.F. Skinner to
name a few. OB is an applied behavioral science that is built upon contributions
from a number of behavioral disciplines. Main areas are psychology, sociology,
social psychology, anthropology and political science also among many others.