ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR

S T E P H E N P. R O B B I N S

Employee Attitudes
LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Definition of attitudes.
2. Contrast the three components of an attitude.
3. Types of attitudes.
4. Theory of Cognitive Dissonance.
5. Summarize the relationship between attitudes
and behavior.
6. Definition of Job Satisfaction.
7. Measuring Job Satisfaction.
8. Effects of Job Satisfaction.
9. Employee Responses to Job Dissatisfaction.

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 Definition of Attitude

Attitudes are evaluative statements– either favorable or

unfavorable– about objects, people, or events.

They reflect what we feel about something,

When you say “I like my job,” You are expressing your

attitude about work.

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The Components of Attitude

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Examples of the Components of an Attitude

1. Cognitive Component = Evaluation

My manager gave a promotion to a coworker who
deserved it less than me. My supervisor is unfair.

2. Affective Component = Feeling

I dislike my supervisor.

3. Behavioral Component = Action

I am looking for other work; I have complained about the
manager to the MD.

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 Types of Attitude
Most of the OB researches have looked at four types of
attitudes:

1. Job Satisfaction
2. Job Involvement
3. Organizational Commitment
4. Work Engagement

1. Job Satisfaction:
Job Satisfaction is a positive feeling about one’s job resulting
from an evaluation of its characteristics.
A person with a high level of job satisfaction holds positive
feelings about his job, while a dissatisfied person holds
negative feelings.
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Types of Attitude

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Types of Organizational Commitment
1. Affective commitment
2. Continuance commitment
3. Normative commitment

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Types of Organizational Commitment
 Affective commitment is your emotional
attachment to an organization. If you have a high
level of affective commitment, you enjoy your
relationship with the organization and are likely to
stay. You stay because you want to stay.

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Types of Organizational Commitment
 Continuance commitment is the degree to which
you believe that leaving the organization would be
costly. If you have a high level of continuance
commitment, you will stay with an organization
because you feel that you must stay.

 For example, you may feel quitting your job may lead to an
unacceptable length of unemployment. On the other hand, you
may feel you will lose a certain degree of status if you leave a
well-respected organization such as a top law firm or research
company.

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Types of Organizational Commitment
 Normative Commitment
Normatively committed employees feel that leaving their
organization would have disastrous consequences to
organization or its employees, and feel a sense of guilt
about the possibility of leaving.

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Work Engagement
 Work engagement is most often defined as a
positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind that is
characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption.

 Vigor (energy)
 Dedication (enthusiastic)
 Absorption (engrossed)

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 Vigor refers to high levels of energy and mental resilience
while working.

 Dedication refers to being strongly involved in one's work.

Enthusiastic and dedicated towards your work.

 Finally, absorption is characterized in terms of being fully

concentrated on and happily engrossed in one's work.

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The Theory of Cognitive Dissonance

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The Theory of Cognitive Dissonance
Example:
You don’t like smoking. But you are working in British
American Tobacco (BAT).
You tell your children to brash their teeth everyday. But
you don’t.

One researcher – Leon Festinger – argued that any

form of dissonance/inconsistency is uncomfortable and
individuals will attempt to reduce the dissonance.

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The Theory of Cognitive Dissonance

Desire to Reduce Dissonance:

The desire to reduce dissonance depends upon:

a. The importance of the elements creating dissonance.

b. The degree of influence the individual has over the

elements.

c. The rewards involved in the dissonance.

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 The A-B Relationship

Research indicates that the attitudes (A) significantly

predict behaviors (B).

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 Definition of Job Satisfaction

Job Satisfaction is the degree to which an individual

holds a positive feeling about his/her job resulting from
an evaluation of its characteristics.

A person with a high level of job satisfaction holds

positive feelings about his job, while a dissatisfied
person holds negative feelings.

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 Measuring Job Satisfaction

The following two methods are widely used:

1. Single Global Rating Method

–This method involves a response to a single question,
such as “ All things considered, how satisfied are you
with your job?”.
–Respondents circle a number between 1 and 5 that
corresponds to answer from ‘highly dissatisfied’ to ‘highly
satisfied’.

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 Measuring Job Satisfaction

2. Summation Score Method

This method identifies key elements in a job and asks
for the employee’s feelings about each element.

Typical elements are the nature of the work,

supervision, compensation and benefits,
promotion opportunities, job security, working
environment, and relation with co-workers.
Respondents rate them on a standardized scale.

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The Effect of Job Satisfaction on Employee
Outcomes

 Satisfaction and Productivity

– Satisfied workers aren’t necessarily more productive.
– Worker productivity is higher in organizations with
more satisfied workers.

 Satisfaction and Absenteeism

– Satisfied employees have fewer avoidable absences.

 Satisfaction and Turnover

– Satisfied employees are less likely to quit.

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Job Satisfaction and OCB
 Satisfaction and Organizational Citizenship
Behavior (OCB)
– Satisfied employees who feel fairly treated by and are
trusting of the organization are more willing to engage
in behaviors that go beyond the normal expectations of
their job.
 Satisfaction and Deviant Workplace Behavior
(DWB)

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Responses to Job Dissatisfaction

EXHIBIT 3-6

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How Employees Can Express Dissatisfaction

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THANK YOU

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