5 Levels of Analysis

Understanding Organizational Behavior -

5 Levels of Analysis 
Helps managers look at the behavior of individuals.
Aids managers in understanding the complexities involved in
interpersonal relations when two people interact. 
The dynamics of relationships within small groups.
When two groups need to coordinate their efforts, inter-group relations. 
Organizations can be viewed and managed as whole systems that have
inter organizational relationships.
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Behavioral Bias
People who lack system understanding and become superficially
infatuated with OB may develop a behavioral bias, which gives them a
narrow viewpoint that emphasizes satisfying employee experiences while
overlooking the broader system of the organization in relation to all its
public's.
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A Contingency Approach
Different situations require different behavioral practices for greatest
effectiveness. 

Managers need to know under what conditions they should choose one
behavioral method over another.
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A cost-benefit analysis
Is needed to determine whether potential actions will have a net positive
or net negative effect.
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Cost-Benefit-Analysis
In edition to cost and benefits, human and social costs and benefits of an
activity will be analyzed in determining whether to proceed with the
activity.
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The Dynamics of People and Organizations Facts
Organizations are complex systems. 
Human behavior in organizations is sometimes unpredictable.
Human behavior in an organization can be partially understood by
studying and applying the frameworks of behavioral science,
management, and other disciplines. 

There are no perfect solutions to organizational problems.

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Environmental Forces
Four Key Sources - Can be internal or external, and all organizations
operate within them.
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Ethical Leadership
1. Social Responsibility - Responsibility to others arises whenever people
have power in an organization.
2. Open Communication - The organization will operate in a two-way-
system, with open receipt of inputs from people and open disclosure of
operations to them. 
3. Cost-Benefit-Analysis - In edition to cost and benefits, human and
social costs and benefits of an activity will be analyzed in determining
whether to proceed with the activity.
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Ethics
Organizations must treat employees in an ethical way to keep and
motivate employees.
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Evidence-Based Management
Asks managers to set aside some of the things they think they know, and
become totally committed to a rigorous collection of facts and combine
these with relevant research.
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The FOUR ELEMENTS OF MORAL INTELLIGENCE
1. Integrity - Acting consistently with one's values.
2. Responsibility - Willingness to accept accountability for the
consequences of our actions and admit mistakes and failures.
3. Compassion - Caring about others
4. Forgiveness - Recognizing that others will make mistakes, and
accepting them.
Behaving morally is not only right, but also good for business.
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Four Goals of Organizational Behavior
1. Describe
2. Understand
3. Predict
4. Control Human Behavior at Work
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Four Key Sources
People, Structure, Technology, and the Environment in which the
operation operates.
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Fundamental Concepts - A Whole Person
Organizations employ a whole person, and with a whole person they get
the skills they wanted and then some. What employer's want is someone
who will eventually be a better employee, a better person. They look for
people with the want to move up and stay motivated.
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Fundamental Concepts - Desire for Involvement
Most employees have a hunger to share and be apart of the organizations
with their specific skills and know how of certain things. this can be
achieved through employee empowerment - a practice that will result in
mutual benefit for both parties.
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Fundamental Concepts - Law of Individual Differences
This belief that each person is different from all others.
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Fundamental Concepts - Motivated Behavior
People are motivated not by what we think they ought to have but by
what they themselves want. Leaves management with two ways of
motivating people,. It can show them how certain actions will increase
their need fulfillment, or it can threaten decreased need fulfillment if they
follow an undesirable course of action.
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Fundamental Concepts - Nature of People
Six basic concepts exists in regard to people: individual differences,
perception, a whole person, motivated behavior, desire for involvement,
and the value of the person.
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Fundamental Concepts - Perception
The unique way people in which each person sees organizes, and
interpret things.
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Fundamental Concepts - Selective Perception
People tend to pay attention to those features of their work environment
that are consistent with or reinforce their own expectations.
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Fundamental Concepts - Value of the Person
Value of the Person - People deserve to be treated differently from other
factors of productions (land, capital, technology.)
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A Human Resources (Supportive) Approach
This approach is developmental, it is concerned with the growth and
development of people toward higher levels of competency, creativity,
and fulfillment, because people are the central resource in any
organization and any society. 

If helps employees become better, more responsible people, and then it

tries to create a climate in which they may contribute to the limits of their
improved abilities.
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Interdisciplinary
Positive Characteristics of the Organizational Behavior Field
- This is one major strength of organizational behavior, it integrates the
behavioral sciences (the systematic body of knowledge pertaining to why
and how people behave as they do.) with other social sciences that can
contribute to the subject.
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The Law of Diminishing Returns
Overemphasis on a valid organizational behavior practice may produce
negative results, as indicated by the Law of Diminishing Returns. 
More of a good thing is not necessarily good.
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Mutual Interest
Organizations have a human purpose. They are formed and maintained
on the basis of some mutualtity of interest among their participants. If
mutuality is lacking, trying to assemble a group and develop cooperation
makes no sense, because there is no common base on which to build.
Managers need employees. If employees don't get paid then there is no
mutuality of interest between the two.
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Open Communication
The organization will operate in a two-way-system, with open receipt of
inputs from people and open disclosure of operations to them.
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Organizational Behavior
Is the systematic study and careful application of knowledge about how
people - as individuals and as groups - act within organizations. It is a
scientific discipline that strives to identify ways in which people can act
more effectively.
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Peoples Sources
Four Key Sources - Make up the internal social system of the
organization. Nowadays the workforce has become a rich melting pot of
diversity. 
Which means that employees bring a wide array of educational
backgrounds, talents, and perspectives to their jobs. 

Companies are discovering that demonstrating a sense of caring, really

listening to the employees, and being concerned with both competence
and relationships are among the keys to motivating the present
workforce.
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Quick Fix
One problem is the quick fix that managers will look for, this leads
managers to embrace the newest fad, to address the symptoms while
neglecting underlying problems, or to fragment their efforts within the
firm.
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A Results-Oriented Approach
All organizations need to achieve some relevant outcomes, or results. A
dominant goal for many is to be productive, so this results orientation is a
common thread woven through organizational behavior. Productivity - at
its simplest, is a ratio that compares units of output with units of input,
often against a predetermined standard.
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Social Responsibility
Responsibility to others arises whenever people have power in an
organization.
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Social Systems
From sociology we learn that organizations are social systems; activities
therein are governed by social laws as well as psychological laws. People
have roles and status. Two types of social systems exist side by side in
organizations. One is the formal (official) social system, and the other is
the informal social system.
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Structural Forces
Four Key Sources - Defines the formal relationship and use of people in
organizations.
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Supportive Approach
This is another name because the manger's primary role changes from
control of employees to active support of their growth and performance.
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A Systems Approach
This approach to viewing managers compels mangers to take a holistic
and synthesizing view of the subject, as a result managers need to
interpret people- organizations relationships in terms of the whole
person, whole group, whole organization, and whole social system.
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Technological Forces
Four Key Sources - Provides the resources with which people work and
affects the tasks they perform.
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Three Keys to Success - Practice
Managers apply theories and research into practice, which is the
conscious application of conceptual models and research results in order
to improve individual and organizational performance at work.
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Three Keys to Success - Research
Research - Is the process of gathering and interpreting relevant evidence
that will either support a behavioral theory or help change it.
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Three Keys to Success - Theories
Theories offer explanations of how and why people think, feel, and act as
they do. Theories identify important variables and link them to form
tentative propositions that can be tested through research.
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Unethical Manipulation of People
A significant concern about organizational behavior is that its knowledge
and techniques can be used to manipulate people unethically as well as
help them develop their potential. They could use what they know about
motivation or communication in the manipulation of people without
regard for human welfare. 

The Philosophy of organizational behavior is supportive and oriented

toward human resources, it seeks to imporve the human environment
and help people grow toward their potential.
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What is the Basic Approaches of the book?
Organizational behavior seeks to integrate the four elements of people,
structure, technology, and environment. It rests on an interdisciplinary
foundation of fundamental concepts about the nature of people and
organizations.