Convenience

Chapter 9:
Basic Elements of Individual Behavior in Organizations
2 6 1
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centers who were classified as managers but who were expected to work extra
hours performing nonmanagerial jobs.
1
The relationships between people and their employers are growing increasingly complex.
Although most employees have relatively healthy and constructive relationships with their
organization and other employees in that organization, some employees, however, reflect
different profiles. Indeed, myriad different and unique characteristics reside in each and
every employee (and employer). These affect how they feel about the organization, how
they will alter their future attitudes about the firm, and how they perform their jobs.
These characteristics reflect the basic elements of individual behavior in organizations.
This chapter describes several of these basic elements and is the first of several chapters
designed to develop a more complete perspective on the leading function of management.
In the next section, we investigate the psychological nature of individuals in organizations.
The following section introduces the concept of personality and discusses several impor-
tant personality attributes that can influence behavior in organizations. We then examine
individual attitudes and their role in organizations. The role of stress in the workplace is
then discussed, followed by a discussion of individual creativity. Finally, we describe a
number of basic individual behaviors that are important to organizations.
UNDERSTANDING INDIVIDUALS IN
ORGANIZATIONS
As a starting point in understanding human behavior in the workplace, we must
consider the basic nature of the relationship between individuals and organizations. We
must also gain an appreciation of the nature of individual differences.