ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY (ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR):

IOP202R

1.1. INTRODUCTION

This module’s aim is to enable us to understand the human behaviour, at individual,

group & organisational level, in organisations. It also assists us in understanding the
effect of change on behavior.

“Organisational psychology is a field of specialisation in industrial psychology which

studies the effect of individual behaviour, group behavior and contextual variables on
organisational functioning. Its purpose is to promote effectiveness through the
application of knowledge.” (Baloyi, S, Botha, E, Leary, M, Martins, N. 2009
Organisational Psychology. Unisa)

1.2. UNISA SYLLABUS

This Module covers the following Themes divided into study units:

THEME 1 : Introduction to organisational psychology

Study Unit 1: What is organisational psychology?

THEME 2 The individual

Study Unit 2: Foundations of human behaviour and the role of perceptions
Study Unit 3: Values, attitudes and job satisfaction
Study Unit 4: Perceptions and individual decision making
Study Unit 5: Motivation from concepts to applications

THEME 3: The Group

Study Unit 6: Understanding work groups and teams
Study Unit 7: Leadership and trust
Study Unit 8: Conflict and negotiation

THEME 4: The organisational system

Study Unit 9: Foundations of organisational structure
Study Unit 10: The Organisational culture

THEME 5: Organisational dynamics

Study Unit 11: Organisational dynamics
2.1 THE PRESCRIBED TEXTBOOK
Robbins, SP, Odendaal, A, Roodt, G. 2007. Organisational Behaviour Global and
Southern African Perspectives.

OR

Robbins, SP, Odendaal, A, Roodt, G. 2003. Organisational Behaviour Global and

Southern African Perspectives.

The two editions are the same (only different prints),

Do NOT buy any other edition of Robbins et al., meaning international editions).

2.2 RECOMMENDED READING

None that I know of

3. EXAM FOR IOP202R

3.1 PAST PAPERS
The Oct/Nov 2009 exam: The Total marks for this exam was [75]. It was divided into 3
sections.

Section A: Multiple Choice

Section B: Case Study
Section c: Short questions (theory)

The multiple choice questions: some questions were taken from the assignments and
study guide while there were some totally new questions.

The case study was something totally new, not taken from the tutorial letter 101 as was
the case with the May/June 2009 exam.

The Short questions: Some questions were taken from the tutorial i.e. assignments 1 & 3
of the 1st and 2nd semester.

It was a relatively straight forward exam.

4. HOW TO PASS IOP202R

The study material given for this module is sufficient. Using the study guide in
conjunction with the textbook helps, as there are only certain sections of the textbook that
need to be studied.

4.1 STUDY TIPS

ASSIGNMENTS:
Doing well in the assignments is an added advantage in preparation for the exam. By
doing your assignments, you master that section of work on which the assignments were
set.
Going over the assignment questions of semester 1 & 2 (compulsory & non compulsory)
thoroughly helps give 1 an idea of what the standard of the exam will be. Its possible that
some of the questions in the exam will be the same as the assignments.

If you are 1 of those people with limited time, draw up a schedule, try sticking to it, and
work consistently throughout the semester. It really works!
I find that going through the work and making summaries as I go along helps. As I
progress with my studies I’ll make a shortened summary just before the exams that I use
as revision.

4.2 USEFUL LINKS

www.uni-sa.net On this website I found some very useful summary notes that helped
with my final preparation for the exam.
 STUDY NOTES

THEME 1 : Introduction to organisational psychology

Study Unit 1: What is organisational psychology?

 Organisational psychology studies the effect of individual behaviour, group

behaviour and contextual variables on organisational functioning
 Managers are people who make decisions, allocate resources and direct the
activities of others to attain the goals of the organisation.

Management Management roles Management skills Management

functions (Henri activities
Fayol)

o Planning o Interpersonal o Technical skills o Traditional

o Organising roles o Human skills management
o Leading o Information roles o Conceptual skills o Communication
o Controlling o Decisional roles o Human resource
management:
o Networking

Organisational psychology should be studied from a systematic point of view.

Challenges facing Organisational Behaviour (OB):

1. Globalisation
2. Managing workforce diversity
3. improving quality & productivity (total quality management)
4. improving people skills
5. empowering people
6. stimulating innovation & change
7. improving ethical behaviour
8. coping with “temporaries”

Contributing disciplines to the OB field

1. Psychology
2. Sociology
3. Social psychology
4. Anthropology
5. Political science

• Forces for change in the global arena

o Dealing with global challenge
o Parochialism
o Ethnocentric views
o Polycentric views
o Geocentric views
THEME 2 The individual

Study Unit 2: Foundations of individual behaviour and the role of perceptions

Definition of “personality”: Allport’s: “the dynamic organisation within the individual

of the psychophysical systems that determine his/her unique adjustments to his/her
environment”.

Biographical characteristics that have an impact on employee productivity, absence,

turnover & satisfaction include:
1. Age
2. Gender
3. Marital status
4. Tenure

Personality Determinants:
1. Heredity
2. The Environment
3. The Situation

The Big 5 Model: This includes 5 basic dimensions:

1. Extraversion vs introversion
2. Agreeableness (High/low)
3. Conscientiousness (High/low)
4. Emotional stability (High/low)
5. Openness to experience (High/low)

Major personality attribute influencing OB are:

1. Locus of control
2. Machiavellianism
3. Self-Esteem
4. Self-Efficacy
5. Self-monitoring
6. Risk-taking

PERSONALITY TYPES:

Type A: A person who wants to achieve more in less time

Type B: A person who never suffers from time urgency

Personality characteristics create parameters for peoples behaviour. They give us a

framework for predicting behaviour.
A person who accepts rules, conformity and dependence and rates high on
authoritarianism is likely to feel more comfortable in, for e.g., a structured assembly line
job.
Study Unit 3: Values, attitudes and job satisfaction

Values are basic convictions that a specific mode of conduct or need state of existence is
personally or socially preferable to an opposite or converse mode of conduct. Values are
stable & enduring, and, because they lay the foundation for the understanding of attitudes
& motivation and, therefore, influence our perceptions.

TYPES OF VALUES
1. Terminal Values (desirable end states)
2. Instrumental Values (the behaviour to achieve terminal values.

According to Hofstede, managers & employees differ on 5 value dimensions:

1. power distance (high vs low)
2. collectivism vs individualism
3. uncertainty avoidance
4. long term orientation vs short term orientation
5. quantity vs quality of life

Attitudes are evaluative statements. They are not as stable as values.

TYPES OF ATTITUDES:
1. Job Satisfaction
2. Job Involvement
3. Organisational Commitment

People seek consistency between their behaviour and attitudes. If a difference exists,
they will try to correct it.
Employees attitudes can be changed depending on the following factors:
 who you are
 the strength of the employee’s attitude
 the magnitude of the change and
 the technology you use to try to change the attitude

How to measure job satisfaction?

1. single global rating
2. summation score

Factors that influence job satisfaction

1. the work itself
2. promotional opportunities
3. supervision
4. co-workers
5. working conditions

Productivity leads to satisfaction at individual level. At organisational level there is

renewed support for organisational satisfaction-performance relationship.

How do employees express dissatisfaction?

1. Exit 2. Voice 3. Neglect 4. Loyalty
STUDY UNIT 4 Perceptions and individual decision making

Perception is the process by which individuals organise and interpret their sensory
impressionsin order to give meaning to their environment. This is important to know
because peoples’ behaviour is based on their perception of what reality really is.

Factors influencing perception are:

1. the perceiver 2. the target 3. the situation

Attribution theory occurs when we observe others behaviour, we try to determine if it

was internally or externally caused.
This depends on 3 factors: distinctiveness, consistency & consensus.

Fundamental Attribution Theory: occurs when judging others, we tend to overestimate

the influence of internal factors and underestimate the influence of external factors.

Self-serving bias occurs when an individual attributes success to internal factors and
failures to external factors.

Frequently used shortcuts when judging others:

1. selective perception 2. halo effect 3. contrast effect
4. projection 5. stereotyping

specific applications in organisations include:

1. employment interview 2. performance expectations
3. performance evaluation 4. employee effort 5. employee loyalty

Decision making occurs as a reaction to a problem that’s perceived.

6 steps in the decision making process:

1. define the problem
2. identify the decision criteria
3. allocate weights to the criteria
4. develop alternatives
5. evaluate alternatives
6. select the best alternativesw

3 different criteria for making ethical decisions:

1. Utilitarian; making a decision that to the benefit of the majority
2. Rights: making decisions within the rules and regulations of the company or
country
3. Justice: making a decision that results in fair and equitable distribution of benefit
and cost

Factors influencing ethical decision making behaviour:

1. individual characteristics 2. the environment in which he/she works
3. locus of control 4. strong/weak moral sense