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Chapter Two: Personality
Personality: a relatively stable set of psychological characteristics that influence the way an
individual interacts with his/her environment and how he/she feels, thinks, and behave.
OR a personal style of dealing with the world.
→ Where does personality come from?
● genetic disposition
● longterm learning history
→ Personality susceptible to changes through adult learning experiences.
Three approaches to personality and OB:
1. Dispositional Approach: Focuses on individual dispositions and personality.
● However, research shows inconsistent/mixed findings that failed to support usefulness of
personality as a predictor of OB and job performance.
● Therefore, less personality research is done and less usage of personality tests for job
selection.
2. Situational Approach: Factors in work environment that may predict and explain.
● Characteristics of OB such as reward and punishment influence people’s feelings,
attitudes, behaviours.
● However, individuals react differently to the same environment due to personality
difference.
3. Interactionist Approach: OB is a function of both dispositions and the situation.
● Used to predict and understand OB, must know something about an individual’s
personality and the setting in which he/she works.
● widely accepted perspective.
“weak” vs. “strong” situations.
→ weak: not always clear how a person should behave; loosely defined rules, weak
reward and punishment contingencies
**Dispositional personality approach works best here.
.
→ strong: there are clear expectations for appropriate behaviour, defined roles, rules, and
contingencies.
**Situational personality approach works best here.
Explain Interactionist Approach:
→ Trait Activation Theory: traits lead to behaviour only when the situation makes the need for
that particular trait salient. Otherwise the trait is latent.
● key concept: fit: putting the right person in the right job, group, or organization and
exposing different employees to different managenent styles.
●
FIVEFACTOR MODEL OF PERSONALITY:
1. Extraversion: sociable, outgoing, energetic, joyful, assertive, enjoys socializing and
interpersonal interaction.
VS. Introversion: not necessarily “shy”, avoids social situations, harnesses energy from being
alone.
2. Emotional Stability (neuroticism): degree to which a person has appropriate emotional
control.
● high emotional stability (low neuroticism): self confident, high selfesteem.
● low emotional stability (high neuroticism): self doubt, depression, anxious,
hostile, impulsive, insecurity, stress,
3. Agreeableness: extent to which a person is friendly and approachable.
● more agreeable: warm, considerate, altruistic, friendly, cooperative, sympathetic,
eager to help.
● less agreeable: cold, aloof, argumentative, inflexible, uncooperative, uncaring,
intolerant, disagreeable.
4. Conscientiousness: degree to which a person is responsible and achievement oriented.
● more conscientious: dependable, positively motivated, orderly, self discipplined,
hardworking, achievement striving.
● less conscientious: irresponsible, lazy, impulsive.
5. Openness to Experience: extent to which a person thinks flexibly and is receptive to new
ideas.
● more open: tends toward creativity and innovation, intellectual, curious,
imaginative, has broad interests.
● less open: favour the status quo.
→ Beware of judging what is the BEST personality
Top end generally seen as more desirable but there are benefits to the opposite traits as
well.
→ #1 thing you want in employees regardless of the job is CONSCIENTIOUSNESS, but the rest
are contingent and depend on the occupation.
OTHER DIMENSIONS OF PERSONALITY:
1. Locus of control (LOC): a set of beliefs about whether one’s behaviours is controlled
mainly by internal or external forces.
● higher internals: believes that the opportunity to control their own behaviour
resides within themselves.
They see stronger links between the effort they put into their jobs and the
performance level that they achieve.
● high externals: believes that the external forces determine their behaviour.
They see the world as an unpredictable, chancy place in which luck and fate
control destinies.
2. SelfMonitoring: extent to which people observe and regulate how they appear and
behave in social settings and relationships.
● low selfmonitors: not so concerned about fitting in with those around them,
● high self monitors: take great care to observe and control the images that they
project, tune in to social and interpersonal cues and regulate their behaviour and
selfpresentation according to these cues.
Selfmonitoring and OB?
High selfmonitors:
● perform well in occupations that call for flexibility and adaptiveness in dealing
with diverse consistencies.
● more involved in their jobs, perform at a higher level, more likely to emerge as
leaders.
● more likely to change employers and location, and receive more promotions than
low selfmonitors.
3. SelfEsteem: degree to which a person has a positive selfevaluation.
● high selfesteem; have favourable self images, tend to have higher job
performance, and do better in ambiguous and stressful situations.
● low selfesteem: have unfavourable self images, uncertain about the correctness
of their opinions, attitudes, behaviours, look to others for information and
confirmation, and react badly to negative feedback as it lowers their subsequent
performance
→ Behavioural Plasticity Theory: people with low selfesteem tend to be more
susceptible to external and social influences than those who have high selfesteem (more
pliable)
NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN PERSONALITY:
1. Affectivity:
● positive affectivity: experience positive emotions and moods; view the world in a
positive light, including themselves and other people. Thus, higher job
satisfaction, performance, creativity, etc.
● negative affectivity: experience negative emotions and moods; view the world in
a negative light. Overall negative views, distressed, depressed, unhappy, etc.
→ Overlap between positive affectivity and extraversion but NOT between negative
affectivity and introversion.
**Introversion is NOT about fear and anxiety.
2. Proactive Personality: stable personal disposition that reflects a tendency to take personal
initiations across a range of activities and situations and to effect the change in one’s
environment.
3. General SelfEfficacy (GSE): belief in the ability to perform successfully in a variety of
challenging situations.
4. Core SelfEvaluation (CSE): combination of selfesteem, GSE, LOC, and emotional
stability. It is a broad personality concept that consists of more specific traits that reflect
the evaluations people hold about themselves and their self worth.