Introduction to Organizational Behavior

Chapter Summary

Human beings are unique compared to other animals in terms of their linguistic abilities and creativity. Their behavior is influenced partly by genetic make-up and partly by environment. Both internal factors such as instincts, genetic background, cognitive influences, and personality traits and external environment are important determinants of behavior.

People can acquire new behavior by learning. Learning can be both formal and informal. Formal learning occurs through training and educational programs while informal learning is acquired through experience. The two processes associated with informal learning are associative and instrumental.

Organization is the setting in which all work behavior occurs. People come together to form organization to achieve personal as well as collective goals. They use various resources and work processes to achieve those goals. Management is responsible to coordinate the resources and the production activities across the organization. In modern organizational set up, expansion in size, complexity and technological advancement are a challenge to the manager. Structural and task characteristics of organizations are important elements of the organizational environment. A successful organization establishes a trade-off between efficiency of the work system and motivation of employees to improve the overall performance of the organization.

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