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Chapter 2: Individual Differences, Mental Ability,
and Personality
Individual Differences
● Managers influence the feelings, thoughts,
and behavior of employees. That's why they
need to know the individual differences of
their employees.
● Refer to the variation in how people respond
to the same situation based on personal
characteristics.
● Each person is different from all others and
that these differences are usually substantial
rather than meaningless.
Consequences of Individual Differences
1. People differ in productivity
● Productivity refers to the rate of
output per worker. It differs from
person to person.
● Example: if the rate of output in a
sales office is measured in terms of
number of units sold by each
salesman, it cannot be expected that
everyone will sell the same number of
units for a given period.
2. People differ in quality of their work
● Some individuals will not be contented
in making products of mediocre
quality, while others will just strive to
produce outputs that barely passed
standard equipment.
● accuracy, competence of work, quality
3. People react differently to empowerment
● Empowerment means giving
someone the power to do something.
● Some people may feel happy if he is
provided with responsibility; others will
feel uncomfortable and will prefer to
just follow orders.
● Negative impact: gina laktan personal.
Dapat kung work, work lang.
4. People react differently to any style of
leadership
● Some people will prefer a leader with
a democratic style, while some will
need close supervision from their
superiors.
5. People differ in terms of need for contact with
other people
● Some will need more contact, while
others can work alone the whole day.
Other people cannot be productive
unless they meet people as they work.
● Example: Salesmen are in need of
frequent interactions with other
people. In contrast, there are those
who can perform jobs in research
laboratories where contact with others
is minimal.
6. People differ in terms of commitment to the
organization
● Those who are highly committed tend
to produce high quality output while
those who are less committed are less
concerned about output and
attendance.
7. People differ in terms of level of self-esteem
● Low self-esteem- less productive;
avoid accepting more responsibilities.
● High self-esteem- many great
inventions, literary work, and
discoveries are being made.
What Makes People Different from Each Other
1. Demographic (or diversity)
 Gender
- The differences in the perception of male
and female roles.
Sex and Gender Difference
● Evidence suggests that there are few
differences between men and women in such
factors as ability and motivation that will affect
their job performance.
● Gender differences in communication
patterns have been noted. Men typically
communicate to convey information or
establish status.
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● Women are more likely to communicate to
establish rapport and solve problems.
● A researcher has noted that men are more
likely to value equity, whereas women opt for
equality.
Qualitative Differences Between Male and Female
Employees
Male Female
- Is defined as a set of values, practices, traditions or
beliefs a group shares, whether due to age, race of
ethnicity, religion or gender. Other factors that
contribute to workplace diversity and cultural
differences attributable to work styles, education
or disability.
- Refers to the learned and shared ways of thinking
and acting among a group of people or society.
- Differences in job performance and behavior are
sometimes caused by differences in culture.

Able to delegate Both intuitive and rational 2 Dimensions of Culture

effectively A. Social Culture - which refers to the social
environment of humans - created beliefs, customs,
Confident in their Challenge-seeking
knowledge and practice that define conventional
capabilities
behavior in a society.
Strong decision Persuasive, with High EQ
making skills B. Organizational structure- is the set of values,
beliefs, and norms that is shared among members of
Ask for what they Equality minded
an organization.
want

Vocal about their Strong team players 2. Aptitude and Ability

achievements  Lower aptitude and ability = more cost
 Aptitude - the capacity of a person to learn or
Proactively network Give praise and
acquire skills.
encouragement
- Example: Talents
 Ability - individual's capacity to perform the
various tasks in a job.
 Generational Differences and Age - Ability of a person to do something
- Changes in values over generations - Skill- potential to do something
- Differences in the ages also bring expectations of exceptionally well.
differences in behavior of workers
** A person's overall abilities are made up of two set
of factors:
● Physical
● Mental

 Physical Ability
 Capacity of the individual to do tasks
demanding stamina, dexterity, strength,and
similar characteristics.

 Culture
- Refers to the learned and shared ways of thinking PHYSICAL ABILITIES DESCRIPTION
and acting among a group of people or society 1. Dynamic Strength Ability to exert muscular
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force repeatedly or intelligence, and involves performing physical
continuously over time understanding complex accomplishments, such
2. Trunk Strength Ability to exert muscular concepts and thinking as flexibility,
strength using the trunk. critically. coordination, basic motor
3. Static Strength Ability to exert effort skills.
against external objects. It is related to the skills of It is related to the
4. Explosive Strength Ability to expend a the mind. capabilities of the
maximum of energy in physical structure.
one or a series of It plays a vital role in It gains importance for
explosive objects. complex jobs with successfully doing less-
5. Extent Flexibility Ability to move the trunk demanding information skilled and more
and back muscles as far processing requirements. standardized jobs.
as possible. Intellectual ability is the Physical ability is the
6. Dynamic Flexibility Ability to make rapid, ability of the mind – i.e. ability of the body – i.e.
repeated flexing how clever, intuitive, etc. how strong, agile, etc. a
movements. a person is. person is.
7. Body Coordination Ability to coordinate the Types of intellectual Types of physical ability
simultaneous actions of ability are number are dynamic strength,
different parts of the attitude, verbal static strength, trunk
body. comprehension, strength, explosive
8. Balance Ability to maintain perceptual speed, strength, extent flexibility,
equilibrium despite inductive reasoning, dynamic flexibility, body
forces pulling of balance. deductive reasoning, and coordination, balance,
9. Stamina Ability to continue memory. and stamina.
maximum effort requiring
prolonged effort over
time.

 Mental Ability
- aka intellectual
- Also referred to as intelligence.
- Capacity to do mental activities, such as
thinking, reasoning, and problem solving.
- Intelligence is capacity to acquire and apply
knowledge.

Components of Intelligence
INTELLECTUA L PHYSICAL ABILITY  A standard theory of intelligence explains
ABILITY that intelligence consist of a g (general)
Intellectual ability is the Physical ability is the factor along with s (special) factors that
capacity to do activities capacity to do tasks that contribute to problem-solving ability.
like thinking, reasoning, demand stamina,  The g factor helps explain why some people
and problem-solving. desired, strength and perform so well in so many different mental
similar characteristics. tasks (the have the right stuff).
Intellectual ability is Physical ability is doing
doing with the mind. with the body. Special Factors
It is a measure of It is the capability of 1. Verbal comprehension – the ability to
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understand the meanings of words
2. Word fluency – the ability to use words
quickly and easily
3. Numerical – the ability to handle numbers,
mathematical analysis
4. Spatial – the ability to visualize forms in
space, manipulate objects mentally
5. Memory – The ability to recall for symbols,
words, numbers etc.
6. Perceptual speed – the ability to perceive
visual details, identify similarities and differences
7. Inductive reasoning – the ability to discover
a rule or principle and apply it in problem solving
The Triarchic Theory of Intelligence
 Emphasis on Practical Intelligence
 The theory holds that intelligence is composed
of three different subtypes: analytical, creative,
and practical.
 Practical intelligence incorporates the ideas of
common sense, wisdom, and street smarts.
 Analytical intelligence (also called fluid
intelligence) may decline from early to late
adulthood.
 However, the ability to solve problems of a
practical nature (crystallized intelligence) is
maintained or increased through late adulthood.
So being older makes you wiser.
Multiple Intelligence
 People know and understand the world in
distinctly different ways, or look at it through
different lenses.
 The eight intelligences or faculties are:
linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical,
spatial, body/kinesthetic, intrapersonal,
interpersonal, and naturalist.
 The profile of intelligences influences how an
individual will best learn, and to which types of
jobs he/she is best suited.
3. Personality
 Refers to the sum total of ways in which an
individual reacts and interacts with others.
 The ways are the patterns of behavior tat
are consistent and enduring
Personality Differences
 Personality characteristics contribute to success
in many jobs, and many job failures are caused
by personality problems.
 Personality refers to the persistent and enduring
behavior patterns of an individual that are
expressed in a wide variety of situations.
 The personality of an individual is a result of
both hereditary and environmental factors
Environmental Factors
 Cultural factor
– which refers to the established norms,
attitudes, and values that are passed along from one
generation to the next and creates consistency over
time.
 Social Factor
– Which refer to those that reflect family life,
religion and the many kinds of formal and informal
groups in which the individual participants throughout
his life.
 Situational factors
– which indicate that the individual will
behave differently in different situations.
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Eight Major Personality Factors and Traits organizational life.
All eight factors a substantial impact on job behavior
and performance

1. Neuroticism (reflects emotional instability versus

emotional stability)
2. Extraversion
3. Openness (well-developed intellect)
4. Agreeableness (friendly and cooperative)
5. Conscientiousness (dependability and
thoroughness)
6. Self-monitoring of behavior (adjusting how we
appear to others)
7. Risk taking and thrill seeking (craving constant
excitement)
8. Optimism (a tendency to experience positive
states)

Emotional Intelligence
 How effectively people use their emotions has a
major impact on their success.
 Emotional intelligence refers to qualities such as
understanding one’s feelings, empathy for
others, and the regulation of emotion to enhance
living.
 Deals with ability to connect with people and
understand their emotions
 Self-awareness
 Self-management
 Social awareness
 Relationship management
 High emotional intelligence is associated with
the ability to cope with job setbacks.
 Emotional intelligence underscores the
importance of being practical minded and having
effective interpersonal skills to succeed in