2024-
2025
Organizational
behavior
D0T33A
GEBRUIKER
,Introduction
Organizational behavior: the study of how people act in organizations, why they act as they do, and
what we can do to predict and manage their behavior.
➔ 3 levels of analysis
o Individual
o Group/ team
o Organization
Groups and teams
Create a dream team:
- Relationship to deadlines (someone who wants to start early vs someone who waits)
- Preferred topic (ppl should be interested in the topic)
- Desired grade/ outcome = performance norm
- Educational background/knowledge => diversity works best
- Team roles (Belbin)
- 1 person who speaks fluent English
- 2 ppl who like& are able to debate
Groups ≠ teams:
- Groups: a collective of ppl
o Research on groups: based on social psychology & describes natural behavior
patterns
o Example: all Erasmus students in class, a department in a company
- Teams: more applied; members depend on each other to succeed (interdependence).
o Research on teams: based on organizational behavior & prescribe how teams should
be composed & managed
o Teamwork: result > individual inputs
o Teams need coordinated collective effort => one shared result
o Example: football team
Student groups vs teams:
- Group:
o Student works in isolation
o All student’s work is integrated at the end
o Verry little coordination
- Teams
o Students interact frequently& collaborate
o Aim for consensus
o Share same goal
o Team identity
o Result= cohesive
1
, I. Group properties (groepseigenschappen)
1) Size
- Small groups: better for concrete problem
- Big groups: better for problem solving
- 12 - …: generate diverse input
- 6-7: doing productive work with input
Social loafing: the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than when
working individually.
Example: Ringelmann’s rope-pulling experiments
How to prevent social loafing?
Causes of social loafing:
- Dispersion of responsibility: everyone is responsible
- Re-establishing equity: we will end up with same output, but I’m not wanting to put more
input/effort than the rest of the team
- Free rider: count on others
How to prevent it?
- Create group identity: think as a team
- Increase competition → 1 group wins
- Fill team with team players
2) Cohesiveness
Cohesiveness= how close ppl are
➔ Relationship between group/team cohesiveness& productivity depends on group/team’s
performance-related norms
Cohesiveness
Close friends Just work together
Likely to perform Likely to perform
high performance
best moderately well
Performance norm
Likely to perform Likely to perform
Ok with 50%
poorest moderate → low
How to increase group/team cohesiveness?
- Keep group small (< 7)
- Team goals
- Rewards
- Spend time together
- Increase group status
- Stimulate competition
- Physically isolate the group (e.g. teambuilding) Met opmerkingen [ev1]: Create cohesiveness
2
, 3) Diversity
Diversity on different aspects:
- Surface level: skin tone, appearance, gender (when you see someone)
- Deep level: attitude, norms, values Met opmerkingen [ev2]: Diversity levels
People tend to think ppl who look different are harder to work together with
Not true, they do have a slower start, but it gets you more open minded => diverse output,
diverse thinking
o conflict is needed for good decision making
more similar groups => less creative
Cognitive diversity
Cognitive diversity = big plus →ppl with other studies, other expertise etc.
diversity of:
o knowledge
o perspective: you look at a problem differently
o interpretation: you categorize a problem differently
o heuristics: different ways of generating a solution
o predictive models
4) Norms
Conformity pressures: as a group member, you desire acceptance by the group=> you’re susceptible
to the group’s norms
- Makes ppl feel safe
- Creates sense of community
- Reference group= a group that’s important to an individual, to which he belongs or hopes to
belong, and with whose norms he is likely to conform
Types of norms:
- Performance norms
- Appearance norms (ex. Boss → suite& tie)
- Social arrangement norms
- Resource allocation norms Met opmerkingen [ev3]: Group norms, member norms
To fit in → adhering to norms = crucial
Norms need to be mutually shared => in the beginning they’re discussed
New people aren’t informed about the norms => observe
Norms should be re-evaluated => not all of them have good outcomes (Hawthorne studies)
3
2025
Organizational
behavior
D0T33A
GEBRUIKER
,Introduction
Organizational behavior: the study of how people act in organizations, why they act as they do, and
what we can do to predict and manage their behavior.
➔ 3 levels of analysis
o Individual
o Group/ team
o Organization
Groups and teams
Create a dream team:
- Relationship to deadlines (someone who wants to start early vs someone who waits)
- Preferred topic (ppl should be interested in the topic)
- Desired grade/ outcome = performance norm
- Educational background/knowledge => diversity works best
- Team roles (Belbin)
- 1 person who speaks fluent English
- 2 ppl who like& are able to debate
Groups ≠ teams:
- Groups: a collective of ppl
o Research on groups: based on social psychology & describes natural behavior
patterns
o Example: all Erasmus students in class, a department in a company
- Teams: more applied; members depend on each other to succeed (interdependence).
o Research on teams: based on organizational behavior & prescribe how teams should
be composed & managed
o Teamwork: result > individual inputs
o Teams need coordinated collective effort => one shared result
o Example: football team
Student groups vs teams:
- Group:
o Student works in isolation
o All student’s work is integrated at the end
o Verry little coordination
- Teams
o Students interact frequently& collaborate
o Aim for consensus
o Share same goal
o Team identity
o Result= cohesive
1
, I. Group properties (groepseigenschappen)
1) Size
- Small groups: better for concrete problem
- Big groups: better for problem solving
- 12 - …: generate diverse input
- 6-7: doing productive work with input
Social loafing: the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than when
working individually.
Example: Ringelmann’s rope-pulling experiments
How to prevent social loafing?
Causes of social loafing:
- Dispersion of responsibility: everyone is responsible
- Re-establishing equity: we will end up with same output, but I’m not wanting to put more
input/effort than the rest of the team
- Free rider: count on others
How to prevent it?
- Create group identity: think as a team
- Increase competition → 1 group wins
- Fill team with team players
2) Cohesiveness
Cohesiveness= how close ppl are
➔ Relationship between group/team cohesiveness& productivity depends on group/team’s
performance-related norms
Cohesiveness
Close friends Just work together
Likely to perform Likely to perform
high performance
best moderately well
Performance norm
Likely to perform Likely to perform
Ok with 50%
poorest moderate → low
How to increase group/team cohesiveness?
- Keep group small (< 7)
- Team goals
- Rewards
- Spend time together
- Increase group status
- Stimulate competition
- Physically isolate the group (e.g. teambuilding) Met opmerkingen [ev1]: Create cohesiveness
2
, 3) Diversity
Diversity on different aspects:
- Surface level: skin tone, appearance, gender (when you see someone)
- Deep level: attitude, norms, values Met opmerkingen [ev2]: Diversity levels
People tend to think ppl who look different are harder to work together with
Not true, they do have a slower start, but it gets you more open minded => diverse output,
diverse thinking
o conflict is needed for good decision making
more similar groups => less creative
Cognitive diversity
Cognitive diversity = big plus →ppl with other studies, other expertise etc.
diversity of:
o knowledge
o perspective: you look at a problem differently
o interpretation: you categorize a problem differently
o heuristics: different ways of generating a solution
o predictive models
4) Norms
Conformity pressures: as a group member, you desire acceptance by the group=> you’re susceptible
to the group’s norms
- Makes ppl feel safe
- Creates sense of community
- Reference group= a group that’s important to an individual, to which he belongs or hopes to
belong, and with whose norms he is likely to conform
Types of norms:
- Performance norms
- Appearance norms (ex. Boss → suite& tie)
- Social arrangement norms
- Resource allocation norms Met opmerkingen [ev3]: Group norms, member norms
To fit in → adhering to norms = crucial
Norms need to be mutually shared => in the beginning they’re discussed
New people aren’t informed about the norms => observe
Norms should be re-evaluated => not all of them have good outcomes (Hawthorne studies)
3
