Behaviour:

●​ Actions
●​ Reactions
●​ Interactions

Why do we behave the way we behave: what factors play in determining

the behaviour

●​ Physiological: Physical, genetic

●​ Psychological: Cognitive, affective, personality type
●​ Sociological: context, culture, community

Why should we study the behaviour: they determine performance,

engagement and productivity

Organisation

Organisation is a consciously coordinated social unit, composed of two or

more people, that functions on a relatively continuous basis to achieve a
common goal or set of goals. It consists of the following elements:​
​

●​ Structure
●​ Process
●​ People
●​ Purpose

Organisational Behaviour

Organisational Behaviour is concerned with the study if what people do

in an organisation and how that behaviour affects the performance of the
organisation.

Organisational Behaviour is a field of study that investigates how

●​ Individuals
●​ Groups
 ●​ Structure

Affect and are affected by behaviour within the organisation, for the
purpose of applying knowledge toward improving an organisation's
effectiveness.

Challenges Facing the Workplace

Organisational Level

●​ Productivity
●​ Developing effective employees
●​ Global competition
●​ Managing the global village

Group Level

●​ Working with others

●​ Workforce Diversity

Individual Level

●​ Job Satisfaction
●​ Empowerment
●​ Behaving ethically
Interrelated dimensions influencing behaviour:

●​ The Behaviour- working environment should satisfy individual needs as

well as attainment of organisational goals.

●​ The Group- formal and informal. Understanding of groups complements

a knowledge of individual behaviour

●​ The Organisation- impact of organisation structure and design, and

patterns of management, on behaviour.

●​ The Environment- technological and scientific development, economic

activity, governmental actions.

The Layers Of OB

-The Individual (Motivating self and others)

●​ Emotions
●​ Values and Attitudes
●​ Perception
●​ Personality

-The Group (Power and Politics)

●​ Negotiations
●​ Conflict
●​ Communication
●​ Groups and Teams

-The Organization
●​ Change
●​ Organization Culture
●​ Decision Making
●​ Leadership
VUCA

VUCA is an acronym that stands for volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and

ambiguity. It's used to describe the unpredictable and dynamic challenges
that companies and managers face in today's world.

Some Benefits of VUCA:

●​ Anticipation and preparedness

●​ Strategic agility
●​ Innovation and creativity
●​ Learning and growth
●​ Opportunity recognition
●​ Global perspective
●​ Informed decision-making
●​ Continuous adaptation

Some examples of VUCA include: The emergence of Uber, Netflix

disrupting the video and DVD rental industry, and The 2020 COVID-19
pandemic.
 TOWARDS AN OB Discipline

The Dependent Variables

●​ Productivity
●​ Effectiveness
●​ Efficiency
●​ Absenteeism
●​ Turnover
PERCEPTION

-Individual ->Attitude, Perception, Personality type, Values, Stress, Motivation,

Emotions
-Group -> Group, Team, Leadership, Power, Conflict, Politics
-Organizations -> Structure, Culture, Change

We will mainly be dealing with Individual and Group.

Perception is the meaning you assign to something/someone.

Perception is-

A Process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory

impressions, in order to give meaning to their environment.

The world as it is perceived is the world that is behaviourally important .

Perception:

The process of organising and interpreting information, enabling us to recognize

meaningful objects and events.

How does perception happen:

My perception occurs due to my thoughts, the information which I already have,

and the attitude I possess. It happens typically due to an external influence like
my family, my friends. As a child, my parents have taught me how to perceive a
thing, or an object.

Hrishi- Perception is influenced by our attitude. A person's experiences, his

up-bringing and his way of thinking.
Perception - Who are you?

When you understand the people or society, it is called social perception. When
you understand an object, it is called a physical perception.

3 STAGES IN PERCEPTION

1.​ Attention: Stimuli, senses, selective

2.​ Organise: Mental schemes
3.​ Interpretation: Giving a meaning

ATTRIBUTION PROCESS

The attribution process in organizational behaviour is the process of determining

a cause for an event based on perceived information. Attribution theory is a
psychological framework that explains how people assign responsibility or
blame for outcomes in the workplace.

Attribution is a process of giving causes to events and people because of

perceived information.

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE PERCEPTION

●​ Perceiver: Attitudes-Motives-Interests-Experience-Expectations

●​ Situation: Time-Work Setting-Social setting

 ●​ The target: Novelty-Motion-Sounds-Size-Background-Proximity

Person Perception: Attribution Theory

Suggests that perceivers try to "attribute" the observed behaviour to a type of

cause:

Internal- Behaviour is believed to be under the personal control of the

individual.

External- The person is forced into the behaviour by the outside events/causes.
Kelly's Model of Attribution

Basic Premise: An Attribution is based on the consensus, distinctiveness and

consistency of the observed behavior.

Consensus: Involves Comparing an individual's behavior with that of his or her

peers. Low consensus indicates an individual is different from peers.

Consistency:

Distinctiveness:

Predictions:

In organizational behavior, attribution errors significantly influence how

employees, managers, and teams perceive and interpret each other’s actions,
ultimately impacting communication, motivation, decision-making, and
workplace dynamics. Misattributions can lead to misunderstandings, conflict,
and unfair treatment, which may reduce overall productivity and morale.
Key Attribution Errors in Organizational Behavior
1. Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE)
●​ Explanation in the Workplace: Managers or colleagues often attribute
an employee's poor performance to internal traits (e.g., laziness,
incompetence) rather than situational factors (e.g., lack of resources,
unrealistic deadlines).
●​ Example: A manager sees an employee missing deadlines and assumes
they're unmotivated, ignoring the fact that the employee might be
overwhelmed with multiple projects.
●​ Impact: Can lead to demoralization, resentment, or unfair performance
evaluations.

2. Actor-Observer Bias
●​ Explanation in the Workplace: Employees attribute their own mistakes
to external factors (e.g., system failures) but blame others’ mistakes on
internal traits (e.g., carelessness).
●​ Example: An employee who submits a late report may blame technical
issues, but when a coworker does the same, they assume the coworker is
irresponsible.
●​ Impact: Creates a culture of blame and reduces team cohesion.

3. Self-Serving Bias
●​ Explanation in the Workplace: Employees and managers attribute their
successes to internal factors (e.g., effort, skill) and their failures to
external factors (e.g., bad luck, external challenges).
●​ Example: A manager takes credit for a team’s success by highlighting
their leadership but blames market conditions for poor sales performance.
●​ Impact: Can erode trust and recognition, leading to frustration among
team members.

4. False Consensus Effect

●​ Explanation in the Workplace: Employees and leaders overestimate the
extent to which others share their beliefs, attitudes, or behavior.
●​ Example: A manager assumes everyone agrees with a new policy
because they personally find it beneficial, ignoring dissenting opinions.
 ●​ Impact: Miscommunication and resistance to change, as differing
perspectives are overlooked.

5. Just-World Hypothesis
●​ Explanation in the Workplace: People believe employees "deserve"
outcomes based on their behavior or traits, rather than situational factors.
●​ Example: If an employee is passed over for a promotion, colleagues may
assume they didn’t work hard enough, ignoring possible organizational
politics or biases.
●​ Impact: Reinforces workplace inequality and discourages employees
from speaking up about unfair treatment.

6. Ultimate Attribution Error

●​ Explanation in the Workplace: Stereotyping is applied to groups, rather
than individuals, leading to biased assumptions about team performance
or departmental behavior.
●​ Example: Assuming all members of the sales team are aggressive or that
HR employees are overly lenient, regardless of individual differences.
●​ Impact: Creates silos and perpetuates stereotypes, hindering
collaboration.

Practical Implications of Attribution Errors in Organizations

1.​ Unfair Performance Evaluations:​
Managers may incorrectly attribute employee failures to personal
shortcomings, leading to biased reviews and hindering career progression.
2.​ Conflict and Misunderstanding:​
Misattributions about intentions or behavior can escalate conflicts among
colleagues or between managers and subordinates.
3.​ Demotivation and Burnout:​
Employees who are consistently blamed for failures without
consideration of external challenges may feel undervalued and lose
motivation.
4.​ Resistance to Change:​
Attributing resistance to change to "negative attitudes" rather than
situational factors (e.g., poor communication) can lead to failed change
initiatives.
 5.​ Stereotyping and Bias:​
Organizational culture may become toxic if attribution errors perpetuate
group-based biases or reinforce unfair stereotypes.
Strategies to Reduce Attribution Errors in Organizations
1.​ Awareness and Training:
○​ Conduct training sessions to educate employees and managers
about attribution errors and their impact on workplace
behavior.
○​ Encourage self-reflection to identify biases.
2.​ Open Communication:
○​ Foster a culture where employees feel safe discussing external
challenges or contextual factors affecting their performance.
○​ Use structured feedback systems to ensure balanced
evaluations.
3.​ Encourage Empathy:
○​ Managers should practice active listening and consider
situational factors before drawing conclusions about behavior.
4.​ Use Data-Driven Assessments:
○​ Rely on objective metrics and evidence to evaluate
performance rather than subjective judgments influenced by
attribution errors.
5.​ Adopt a Growth Mindset:
○​ Promote a culture that views failures as opportunities to learn
and improve, rather than as reflections of inherent personal
flaws.

Conclusion
Understanding and addressing attribution errors in organizational behaviour is
crucial for fostering a fair, inclusive, and high-performing work environment.
By recognizing these biases and taking proactive steps to reduce their impact,
organizations can improve decision-making, collaboration, and employee
satisfaction.
 1.​ Profiling: A form of stereotyping in which members of a group are
singled out for intense scrutiny based on sing, often Racial Trait.

PERCEPTUAL BIAS AND ERRORS IN DECISION MAKING

1.​ Leniency: A personal characteristic that leads an individual to

consistently evaluate other people or objects in an extremely positive
fashion
2.​ Primacy: First impressions
3.​ Recency Effect: The tendency to remember recent information. Most
recent information dominates perceptions. If the recent information is
negative, the person or object is evaluated negatively.
4.​ Projection: Believing other people are similar to you
RATIONAL DECISION MAKING MODEL

Attitude is of two types:

●​ Explicit attitude- An "explicit attitude" is a conscious, readily expressed

belief or opinion about something, like saying you love dogs.
●​ Implicit attitude- An "implicit attitude" is an unconscious, automatic
bias or preference that may not align with your stated beliefs, like
unconsciously feeling more comfortable around people of your own
ethnicity, even if you claim to not have racial biases.

3 COMPONENTS OF ATTITUDE

●​ Affective
●​ Behaviour : Action and reaction
●​ Cognitive: Beliefs/ Thoughts

BIAS AND PREJUDICE

Bias is a more general term than prejudice, and can be described as a tendency
to favor or oppose something. Prejudice is a more extreme form of bias that
involves forming an opinion about someone or something without adequate
knowledge or reason:

Bias
A tendency to favour one person or group over another, or to make systematic
errors in judgment. Bias can be influenced by background, personal
experiences, and cultural context. For example, an employer might promote a
man over a more qualified woman.

Prejudice
An unfavourable opinion or feeling about someone or something based on
insufficient facts. Prejudice is discriminatory and can involve prejudging or
stereotyping others. For example, someone might not select a woman for a job
requiring travel because they believe women don't like to travel for work.
Personality
Unique characteristics of a person by behaving, thinking and feeling that is
relatively stable.

What makes a personality?

Ability
Skill
Thoughts and beliefs
Attitudes and values
Habits

How do you understand a personality?

The first school of thought is from Sigmund Freud. Personality is like an

iceberg and what we see is the tip of the iceberg. Adler divided personality into
conscious, unconscious and subconscious.

The 2nd school of thought is the Trait Approach. Personalities can be

characterised from the traits as per this theory.

The 3rd type of school is the Humanistic Approach.

Cognitive Behaviouralist Approach: This approach says that personality is

based on the environment.
Emotions are short-lived feelings that come from a known cause, while moods
are feelings that are longer lasting than emotions and have no clear starting
point of formation.

Why were emotions ignored in OB?

The "Myth of Rationality"

 ●​ Emotions were seen as irrational
●​ Managers worked to create emotion-free environments

View of Emotionality

●​ Emotions were believed to be disruptive

●​ Emotions were thought to interfere with productivity
●​ Only negative emotions were observed

●​ Now we know emotions can't be separated from the work place.

Emotions Defined

●​ Psychological, behavioural, physiological episodes experienced towards

an object, person, or event that create a state of readiness.

●​ Most emotions occur without our awareness

●​ Moods - lower intensity emotions without any specific target source.

All the emotions : Happiness, Sadness, Angry, Jealousy, Surprise, Disgust

​

Emotions - Intense feelings that are directed at someone or something

Mood - Feelings that tend to be less intense than emotions and that lack a
contextual stimulus.
The Basic Emotions

While not universally accepted, there appear to be six basic emotions:

●​ Anger
●​ Fear
●​ Sadness
●​ Happiness
●​ Disgust
●​ Surprise

All other emotions are subsumed under these six.

MOTIVATION
Motivation is a state of mind that pulls you, motivates you and energises you.
Motivation is basically an intrinsic process.

What motivated me to select BBA France:

Hrishi- Prospect of a intl degree - Extrinsive

IESEG School of Management

It's an international degree and is well respected
It's a very good stepping stone if I were to do my masters

The motivation I have is extrinsic

My scale of persistence is nil

Motivation is an inspirational process to direct one's behaviour towards a goal.

How and why people exert effort to engage in activities that will lead them
towards personal and organizational Goals.
Defining Motivation

The processes that account for an individual's intensity, direction, and

persistence of effort towards attaining a goal.

Key Elements

-Intensity: how hard a person tries

-Direction: toward beneficial goal
-Persistence: how long a person tries

The Phases of Motivational Process

●​ Identify Needs
●​ Ways to Satisfy
●​ Goal directed Behaviour
●​ Performs
●​ Rewards
●​ Assessment
●​ Identify Needs

The P Framework of Motivation

P1: Passion, fire within you (Push Factor) 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Competency:
●​ Talent
●​ Skill
●​ Knowledge
●​ Attitude

How to identify:
●​ Yearning
●​ Rapid Learning
●​ Satisfaction
P2: Purpose; The Pull Factor

●​ Vision and goal

●​ Your desirable outcome
●​ What do you want

●​ Smart goals
●​ Without goal, it is a purposeless activity

P3: Plan

●​ Road Map
●​ Goal Setting Process

P4: Process

●​ Methods and tools

●​ Resources

P5: Personal/ Self efficacy

●​ General Belief in one's capability (Bandura)

●​ Well considered decision

Self - Efficacy Theory:

●​ A persons belief that he or she is capable of performing a task

●​ Capability directly affects motivation

●​ Higher self-efficacy will have higher expectancy.

●​ Self-Efficacy is linked to performance goal setting.

●​ Enactive mastery- Person gains confidence through positive experience.

●​ Vicarious modeling - learning by observing others

 ●​ Verbal persuasion - Encouragement from others that one can perform a
task

●​ Emotional arousal - high simulation or energy to perform well in a

situation

Personal Motivators

●​ Power - Enjoying controlling others, decision making and leading others.

●​ Material rewards- Buying things such as fashionable things that satisfy

your needs.

●​ Autonomy - Making your own choices in all aspects of life.

●​ Expertise - Acquiring skills in your areas of interest.

●​ Creativity - Ability to think differently and come out with new things.

●​ Affiliation - Giving importance to relationship.

●​ Search for Meaning - Always looking for meaning for everything you do