INFLUENCES ON EMPLOYEE

BEHAVIOR

Chapter 2

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Learning Objectives
Identify that influence employee behavior
Describe outcomes resulting from behavior and tell
how they influence future behavior
State how a supervisors leadership and
expectations for employees can affect their behavior
Recognize the impact that coworkers and the
organization itself have on employee behavior
Define motivation and describe the main
approaches to understanding motivation at work
Discuss how knowledge, skill, ability, and attitudes
influence employee behavior

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Goals of HRD
Goal of Human Resources
Development interventions is to assist
employees and organizations in
attaining their goals
Ultimate objective of most, if not all,
HRD programs is to improve
organizational performance
Major focus of most HRD
interventions is an effort to change
employee behavior
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Model of Employee Behavior
Fig. 2-1

Factors in the External Environment

Economic Technological Labor Market Laws and Labor

Conditions Changes Conditions Regulations Unions

Supervision
Leadership
Performance
Expectations

Organization Employee Behavior

Reward Motivation Task Outcomes
Structures Attitudes Performance Personal
Culture Knowledge, Organizational Organizational
Job Design Skill, Ability Citizenship
Behaviors

Coworkers
Norms
Group
Dynamics
Teamwork
Control Over
Outcomes

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Major Categories Affecting
Behavior
External forces
Outside the organization
Inside the work environment
Leadership
Coworkers
Outcomes of performance
Internal Forces
Within employee
Motivation
KSAs

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Major Categories of Employee Behavior
Individual performance is multidimensional
Most HRD focuses on Task Performance
Behaviors central to doing ones job
Organizational citizenship behaviors
Critical to organizational effectiveness
Not specific to any one task

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External Influences
General state of economy
Government intrusion
Global and technology issues

In spite of excellent work and production,

external influences can result in down-sizing to
reduce costs

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Workforce Investment
Organizations invest a lot of time and
money in their workforce
They must maintain their investment, even
when restructuring or downsizing
Re-training survivors to do other work
rather than laying them off
Coaching and mentoring
Individual development
Multi-rater feedback

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Influences on Employee Behavior
Factor Issues
Outcomes Types
Effect on motivation
Leadership
Supervision Performance expectations
Reward structure
Organizatio Organizational structure
n Job design
Control of outcomes
Norms
Group Dynamics
Coworkers Teamwork/Trust/Cohesiveness

(Table 2-1)

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Employee Perceptions Drive
Behavior
Expectancy Theory:
Workers will perform behaviors that they
perceive will bring valued outcomes
Better the outcome, better the work
Equity Theory
Outcomes are evaluated by comparing
them to the outcomes received by others

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Supervision and Leadership
Immediate supervisor:
Delegates tasks and responsibilities
Sets expectations
Evaluates performance
Provides feedback
Rewards desirable behavior
Provides discipline

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Supervisory Influences
Self-fulfilling prophecy
Supervisor's expectations can influence
workers behavior
Leadership:
Non-coercive influence to direct and
coordinate the activities of a group
toward accomplishing a goal

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Rewards Structure
Focuses on:
Types of rewards used
How rewards are distributed
The criteria for rewards distribution
Rewards are more than money or
plaques
They can include recognition and
acceptance

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The Organizational Culture
A set of values, beliefs, norms and
patterns of behavior that are shared
by organization members, and that
guide their behavior

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Job Design
The development and alteration of
the components of a job to improve
productivity and the quality of an a
employees life
A job design can affect behavior and
attitudes
Altering the job may improve
performance and attitudes

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Influence of Coworkers
They control some of the outcomes
and therefore some of the behavior
They may offer or withhold friendship
and recognition
Norms set the guidelines for behavior
in the group
Group dynamics influence the way an
employee behaves when interacting
with a group
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Group Dynamic Characteristics
Groupthink -- concerned with
unanimity rather than making good
decisions
Social Loafing -- tendency for
individuals to reduce level of effort as
group becomes larger
Teamwork:
Trust
Cohesiveness
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Motivation
One of the basic elements of human
behavior
Factors that cause the arousal,
direction and persistence of voluntary
actions that are goal directed

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Factors to Consider
Work motivation pertains to voluntary
behavior
Motivation focuses on
EnergizingThe generation or
mobilization of effort
DirectionApplying effort to one
behavior over another
PersistenceContinuing (or ceasing) to
perform a behavior
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Worker Motivation
Based on the individual because of
unique
Needs
Desires
Attitudes
Goals

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The Need-Based Approach
Underlying needs, Theories include:
such as the needs Mazlows Needs
for safety or power, Hierarchy
drive motivation Alderfers
Existence,
Relatedness and
Growth Theory
Herzbergs Two-
Factor Theory

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Cognitive Process Approach
Motivation is a Theories include:
process controlled Expectancy Theory
by conscious Goal-Setting
thoughts, beliefs Theory
and judgments
Social Learning
Theory
Equity Theory

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Non-Cognitive Approach
Motivation is Theories include:
explained as an Reinforcement
interaction Theory
between behavior
and external
events without
appealing to
internal thoughts
or needs

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Needs-Based Approach
Needs: deficiency states or
imbalances, whether physiological or
psychological, that energize and
direct behavior
Needs drive behavior through need
activation and need satisfaction

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The Need Activation-Need
Satisfaction Process
Fig. 2-2 Process Example

Need is activated Layoff announced;

Need for security
is activated

Tension is created Tension expressed in

fear and worry

Search for ways Improve performance?

to reduce tension Politics?
Job search?

Perform behaviors Performance improvement

to reduce tension leads management to
remove employee's
name from layoff list

Tension eliminated Fear and worry

or significantly No significantly reduced
reduced?

Yes

Need satisfied; Need for security

Need no longer satisfied
drives behavior

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Mazlows Need Hierarchy
In Reverse Order of Importance
Self-actualization
Status and Esteem
Love
Safety and security
Physiological
The item(s) below must be satisfied
before those above can be satisfied

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Alderfers ERG Theory
Existence
Relatedness
Growth

Basically reduces Mazlows five to

three items

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Deficiencies of Need-Based
Difficult to test and apply
Insufficient for explanation of
motivation
Some programs based on theories
have been successful
Job enrichment
Achievement motivation

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Cognitive Process Theories
Expectancy theory
Assumes that motivation is a conscious
choice process
Employees
believe they can perform successfully (high
expectancy), and
believe are connected (high
instrumentality) to outcomes they desire
(high valence) or
believe will prevent (negative
instrumentality) outcomes they want to
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avoid (negative valence)
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Expectancy Theory and HRD
Employees will not attend HRD
sessions unless
They will learn something
It will increase their job performance
They will be rewarded for their efforts

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Graphical Representation of
Expectancy Theory
Fig. 2-3

Expectancy Instrumentality Valence

Should I How likely is it that Will I receive various How desirable or
exert effort? I will reach my outcomes if I reach undesirable are
performance goal? my performance goal? these outcomes?

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Goal Setting Theory
Goals can
Mobilize employee effort
Direct their attention
Increase their persistence
Affect strategies used to accomplish a
task

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Goal Setting
Goals that are specific, difficult, and
accepted by employees lead to better
performance
Feedback enhances effectiveness of
goal setting
Goals must be achievable

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Social Learning Theory
Outcome and self-efficacy
expectations affect individual
performance
An Outcome Expectation
persons belief that performing a given
behavior will lead to a given outcome
Self Efficacy
peoples judgments of their capabilities
to organize and execute courses of
action required to attain designated
types of performances
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Self-Efficacy and Performance
Fig. 2-4

Analysis of task
Performance history
Modeling
Attribution of performance history Self-efficacy Behavioral Performance
Persuasion
outcomes
Physiological/
emotional state
Assessment of constraints
Feedback

SOURCE: ACADEMY OF MANAGEMENT REVIEW by Gist, M. E., Mitchell, T. R. Copyright 2005 by ACAD OF
MGMT. Reproduced with permission of ACAD OF MGMT in the formal Textbook via Copyright Clearance Center.

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Major Prediction of Social Learning
Theory
A persons self-efficacy expectations
will determine
whether a behavior will be performed,
how much effort will be spent, and
how long the person will continue to
perform the behavior

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Equity Theory
Motivation is strongly influenced by
Peoples desire to be treated fairly
Perceptions about whether they have
been treated fairly

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Basis of Equity Theory
People develop beliefs about what is fair for
them to receive in exchange for the
contributions that they make to the
organization
People determine fairness by comparing
their relevant returns and contributions to
those of others
People who believe they have been treated
unfairly (called inequity) will experience
tension, and they will be motivated to find
ways to reduce it
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Reducing Feelings of Inequity
Cognitively distorting views of contributions
or rewards (She must be smarter than I
thought.)
Influencing the perceived rival to change
his or her contributions or rewards (e.g.,
convincing the person to be less
productive)
Changing ones own contributions or
rewards (either working harder or
contributing less)

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Comparing oneself to a different person
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leaving the situation (requesting a transfer
Equity Theory Graphically
Fig. 2-5

Outcomes/rewards
Outcomes/rewards
received by
received by self
relevant others

Inputs of self Inputs of

relevant others

Social comparison
of outcomes to inputs

Perceived Perceived
inequity equity

Motivation Motivation to
to correct or maintain present
reduce inequity equity relationships

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Reinforcement Theory
A non-cognitive theory
Based on Law of Effect
Behavior that is followed by a pleasurable
consequence will occur more frequently
Process known as reinforcement
Behavior that is followed by an adverse
consequence will occur less frequently

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Behavior Modification
Positive reinforcement refers to increasing
the frequency of a behavior by following
the behavior with a pleasurable
consequence
Negative reinforcement increases the
frequency of a behavior by removing
something aversive after the behavior is
performed
Extinction seeks to decrease the frequency
of a behavior by removing the consequence
that is reinforcing it
Punishment seeks to decrease the
frequency of a behavior by introducing an
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42
behavior
Integrating Theories in Practice
Fig. 2-6

Expectancy
Valence Ability

Desire to perform
Effort
Performance

Instrumentality Satisfaction
Accuracy
of role
perceptions Equity
of
rewards

SOURCE: Wagner, J. A., III, and Hollenbeck, J. R. (1995). Management of Organizational Behavior (2nd ed,).
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

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Attitudes
Second major influence on work
behavior
Attitude: a persons general feeling of
favorableness or unfavorableness
toward some stimulus object
A combination of attitudes with
perceived social pressure to behave in
a certain manner influences an
individuals behavior
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The Behavioral Intentions
Model
Fig 2-7
Perceived situational
Beliefs about Attitude or internal constraints
behavior/outcome toward the
relationships behavior

Intentions Behavior

Beliefs about
Perception
group/society
of norms
norms

SOURCE: From Organizational Behavior 5th edition by Hellriegel/Slocum/Woodman. 1989. Reprinted with permission
of South-Western, a division of Cengage Learning: permissionrequest@cengage.com. Fax 800 730-2215.

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Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
(KSAs)
If employees lack the KSAs to
perform a task or behavior, they will
likely fail
Abilities general capacities related
to the performance of a set of tasks
Skills combine abilities with
capabilities that are developed as a
result of training and experience
Knowledge an understanding of
factors or principles related to a
particular subject
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