por Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X @ File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . of 13 Q + | Page view A Read aloud | (T) Add text | Draw Highlight Erase 13 Human Problems in Organizations safety. As several people coordinate their efforts, however, they find that together they can do more than any of them could have singly. The largest organization, society, makes it possible, through the coordination of the activities of many individuals, for all of its Human Problems members to fulfill their needs. One basic idea underlying the concept of organization, then, is the idea of coordination of effort in the service of mutual help. In Common Goals Organizations In order for coordination to be helpful, however, there must 2 exist some goals to be achieved, and some agreement concerning these goals. A second important idea underlying the concept of organization, then, is the idea of achieving some common goals or purpose through coordination of activities. Division of Labor In order to understand organizational psychology, we must first un- As we are all aware, organizations exist within larger organiza- derstand something about organizations. What is an "organization" tions. The entire world consists of many cultural and linguistic and how does one think about it? What kinds of human problems groups. Within those groups there are societies and nations tied arise in organizations? together not only by a common language and culture, but by com- It is surprisingly difficult to give a simple definition of an mon political and economic goals. Within each society or nation organization. All of us have spent our lives in various organiza- there exist economic, political, religious, and governmental organiza tions-schools, clubs, community groups, companies and business tions and institutions. Within each of these larger units, we have concerns, government agencies, hospitals, political parties, and many smaller units-individual business concerns, political parties, churches. Yet is is not easy to state just what constitutes an organiza- churches, county seats, and cities. And within each of these units, tion. Let us examine some of the ideas proposed by sociologists and we have smaller groupings of people which also constitute organiza- political scientists as a context for this discussion. tions-production and sales departments within a company, factions and cliques within a political party, a choir within a church, a police department within a city. WHAT IS AN ORGANIZATION?' According to some theories, these progressive differentiations arise out of the fundamental notion of division of labor, the third Coordination property common to human organizations. Tied up with the concept of coordination and the purposeful achievement of mutually agreed- First of all, it is important to recognize that the very idea of upon goals is the idea that such goals can best be achieved if organizing stems from the fact that the individual alone is unable to different people do different things in a coordinated fashion. Human fulfill all of his or her needs and wishes. Individuals, particularly in societies have found that they can best achieve their goals if they modern society, find that they are lacking either in ability, strength, divide up among their members the various tasks that need to be time, or endurance to fulfill their basic needs for food, shelter, and accomplished. Hopefully, the division is on the basis of different innate talents or skills, but this is not necessarily so, since people 1 The ideas outlined in the next few pages were originally drawn from Blau and Scott (1962), Etzioni (1961), and March and Simon (1958). More recent can be trained to do different things. analyses will be reviewed in Chapters 11 and 12. The idea of division of labor is closely linked to the idea of 12 OLIOOL ENG 22:57 music 2 0 O IN 22-03-2022ODE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X CA File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 2 of 13 Q + Page view | A Read aloud | (T) Add text | \\ Draw " Highlight Erase 14 Organizational Psychology 15 Human Problems in Organizations differentiation of function. Organizations can best achieve their vari- the commonly agreed-upon goals. The most typical, though by no ous goals by differentiating on the basis of types of tasks, geographi means the only, form of such integration, is a hierarchy of cal location, goals and subgoals to be achieved, talents available authority-some system for superordinate subgroups or individuals within the organization, or any other logical rationale. In analyzing a to ensure that there is coordination among the parts through guid- total society, for example, we distinguish between the economic ing, limiting, controlling, informing, and in other ways managing system and its component organizations, and the political system, the activities of those parts. along with the various government organizations which comprise it. The idea of coordination implies that each unit submits to some A society's economy serves the function of providing food, shelter, kind of authority for the sake of achieving a common goal. If each goods, and services for its members through organizations that at the unit pursues its own self-interest and disregards the activities of same time provide jobs and money to enable participants to purchase other units, coordination has by definition broken down. However, goods and services. A political system, on the other hand, serves to the idea of submitting to some kind of authority does not necessarily regulate the society, to provide for the safety and protection of its imply external control. Coordination can, in principle, be achieved members, and to coordinate the various other institutions of the by voluntary self-disciplining activities such as those engaged in by society. A third vital function is served by the educational system: two children operating a seesaw. The kind of authority implied by the maintenance and continued growth of the society through creat- coordination thus can range from complete self-discipline to com- ing, conserving, and passing on knowledge to future generations. plete autocracy. But some kind of controlling principle to ensure Thus each segment of society can be viewed as fulfilling a different integration is an essential idea underlying organization. function in the interests of total shared goals. As we all know from daily experience, authority in most organ- The same analysis can be applied to a single business organiza- izations is usually embodied in a complex hierarchy of positions or tion where it is even easier to see the logic of separating into ranks. Ideally each position is supposed to have defined for it an different organizational units the functions of inventing and design- area of responsibility and, theoretically, has the authority to ensure ing products (Research and Development, Engineering), locating that its part of the job will be done in accordance with a more potential customers and selling the product to them (Marketing and comprehensive plan. Coordination is thus implemented by the laying Sales), manufacturing the product (Production), generating the out of a kind of blueprint of who is responsible for what. This money necessary to build the production facility and pay employees, blueprint is usually, but not necessarily, constructed by the highest and determining the selling price of a product based on the cost of ranking members on the basis of rational criteria of job division and production (Finance and Accounting), hiring and training the people coordination that promote the overall goal. who will perform each of the functions (Personnel), providing for delivering the finished product to the customer (Distribution), servic- ing it after it is sold (Field Service), and so on. As we will see, such A PRELIMINARY DEFINITION simple formulas for the division of labor no longer work optimally as OF ORGANIZATION organizations have become more complex. Seeing the organization as a complex set of interdependent groups has led to a much more intricate model of differentiation. However, an initial analysis of any The basic ideas presented above can be put together into a prelimi organization can be made in terms of the disparate functions per- nary definition of an organization. This definition is very similar to formed by different members or subgroups of that organization. what early organization theorists used as their final definition. As we will see later, when we bring a systems and a developmental point of view to bear, the definition will have to be modified substantially Integration to fit what we can observe in real organizations all around us. An organization is the planned coordination of the activities of The fourth and final concept needed to understand organiza- a number of people for the achievement of some common, explicit tions is closely related to the idea of differentiation and division of purpose or goal, through division of labor and function, and through labor. If different parts are doing different things, some integrative a hierarchy of authority and responsibility. function is needed to ensure that all elements are working toward One important point in this definition which has not yet been OLIOBL ENG 22:57 nusic N 2 0 O IN 22-03-2022ODE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X CA File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 3 of 13 Q + | Page view | A Read aloud | (T) Add text | Draw v Highlight Erase 16 Organizational Psychology 17 Human Problems in Organizations discussed is that the object of coordination is activities, not people. limit themselves merely to the performance of these activities. Two As has been pointed out by many organization theorists, notably workers on an assembly line are only supposed to do their particular Chester Barnard (1938), only some of the activities of any given job; yet they may wish to talk to each other, to have lunch together, person are relevant to the achievement of a particular goal. In fact, to share gripes about their job and boss, and in various other ways the same person can belong to many different organizations because establish relationships above and beyond the formally required ones. in each one only some of his or her activities are relevant. From the Such relationships tend to arise in all formal organizations. As we point of view of an organization, therefore, it is sufficient to spell out will see, many of the important psychological problems of organiza- the activities or roles which must be fulfilled in order to achieve the tions arise from complex interactions between formal and informal goal. In a business organization, someone must purchase the raw organizations. materials, someone must design the product, someone must build it, and someone must sell it. Which particular person fulfills the role A MODEL OF FORMAL ORGANIZATIONS may be quite irrelevant to the concept of organization, though it will clearly be relevant to how well the organization actually operates. Because an organization is fundamentally a pattern of roles and If one asks a manager for a rundown of his or her organization, the a blueprint for their coordination, it exists independently of particu- person will typically produce an "organization chart," which depicts lar people and can survive in spite of 100 percent turnover of in a two-dimensional way (1) the different hierarchical levels and (2) membership. If the role expectations are recorded either in docu- the different functional areas which derive from division of labor. ments or in the memories of managers, parents, or teachers, the Figure 2.1 shows a typical chart for a simple business organization. organization will continue from generation to generation with new PRESIDENT members fulfilling the roles. In principle, the organization itself will only change when the blueprint itself is changed-that is, when the roles are redefined by higher authorities or by occupants of those Etc . VP VP VP VP VP roles. Sales Production Finance Personnel Engin. An organization, as we have defined it, is what sociologists term a formal organization, to distinguish it from two other types-a social organization and an informal organization. Social organiza- tions are patterns of coordination that arise spontaneously or im- plicitly out of the interactions of people without involving rational Fig. 2.1 A typical organization chart of a business. coordination for the achievement of explicit, common goals. A group of friends may coordinate their activities to a high degree and have However, if one were to interview members of the organization about common implicit goals such as "having a good time," but they are how the work of the organization was actually carried out day to not a formal organization. If they choose to make their goals explicit day, and how status and importance were defined in the organiza- and formally agree to certain patterns of coordination in order to tion, one would find that the organization chart gives a very in- ensure having a good time, and if they establish some hierarchy to complete and possibly inaccurate description of what actually goes ensure proper coordination, they would become a formal organiza- on. Instead, one needs a more complex picture such as the one in tion. In society, there are many patterns of social organization, such Figure 2.2, which depicts three basic dimensions of an organization as the family, clubs, gangs, and communities. They should be distin- (Schein, 1971): guished from formal organizations like business concerns, schools, hospitals, churches, unions, and prisons. the hierarchical dimension, which reflects relative ranks in a manner similar to the organization chart The term informal organization refers to those patterns of coor- 2. a functional dimension, which reflects the different types of work to be dination that arise among members of a formal organization which done depicted as the different pie-shaped sectors in the cone diagram are not called for by the blueprint. The organizational blueprint 3. a dimension of inclusion or centrality, reflected in the degree to which requires the coordination of only certain activities. But, for a variety any given person is nearer to or farther from the central core of the of reasons, the human actors who fulfill organizational roles rarely organization. OLIOOL music ENG 22:57 IN 2 0 O 22-03-2022ODE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X CA @ File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 4 of 13 Q - + Page view A Read aloud | (T) Add text | Draw v Highlight Erase 19 Human Problems in Organizations can be leveled off in terms of rank, and can even be stuck in a given functional area, yet still move into more central influential positions in the informal system of the organization. The process of socializa- tion into organizational roles is premised on this dimension of cen- trality-how much the organizational member is entrusted with organizational secrets and given access to decision making whether or not his or her formal rank warrants it. Using the concepts and models presented thus far, let us next review what kinds of psychological or human problems arise in Sales organizations. As we will see, many of these problems reflect the Etc. Marketing Prod. Rank complex interaction between rank levels, functional groupings, and shifting formal and informal organizational systems. In order to fully understand human problems in organizations it is necessary to con- stantly remind oneself that not only do they arise from a multitude of complex interactions, but that those interactions themselves Inclusion or centrality Sales change over time as both the individuals who make up the organiza- tion and the organization itself change, grow, and develop. Etc. Marketing Production Function HOW IS AN ORGANIZATION CREATED? Fig. 2.2 A three-dimensional model of an organization. It is a fact of organizational life that one not only has a certain Organizations begin as ideas in the minds of people. Though it will kind of work and a certain rank or formal status, but one can also not be the focus of attention in this book, it must be recognized that vary in the degree to which one is trusted and permitted to influence the first human problem of any organization is the process of how key decisions even from a position of low rank. In a classic study one or more people convert an idea into a blueprint for a set of done in the 1950s, Melville Dalton (1959) showed that organizations activities to be performed by two or more other people. The inventor not only generated informal groupings which cut across various in the garage who decides to build his or her invention by getting functional and hierarchical boundaries, but that such groupings were together five workers in a shop; the social organizer who starts a new essential to the running of the organization. High-level managers club or political organization on campus; the religious leader who often checked out key decisions with low-level foremen or even obtains a following by preaching and eventually establishes a workers whom they had come to know well over the years or with church; the young teacher with a vision who decides to start a whom they shared outside activities, bypassing many levels of the school of his or her own are all creating new organizations. organizational hierarchy. Such foremen or workers, then, can be If the organization is successful in accomplishing its goal of thought of as possessing a high degree of centrality in the organiza- building a following or in creating demand for a new product or tion even at a low rank level. service, it will survive, grow, and become established. The founders The centrality dimension is particularly important if one takes a or entrepreneurs who build an organization may move on or die, or developmental view of organizations, because it is possible for infor- be forced out by new managers who have a new vision of how the mal groupings to arise over time which are in no way reflected in organization should operate. If the organization continues to be suc- the formal organization chart. From the organizational/managerial cessful, it will survive successive generations of leadership and al- perspective it is crucial to understand how such informal groupings most take on a life of its own. Such stability results when arise and what role they play in the running of the organization. organizations go beyond fulfilling their original goals and take on From the individual career perspective it is crucial to recognize that larger functions-they become employers, they provide membership a career moves along all three of these dimensions and that a person and identities for their employees, they come to play a role in the 18 OLIOBL ENG 22:58 music IN 22-03-2022ODE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 5 of 13 Q + Page view | A Read aloud | () Add text | Draw " Highlight Erase 20 Organizational Psychology 21 Human Problems in Organizations community, and they develop ideologies and myths about them- the key norms and rules of conduct are, and how to behave with selves which usually include the assumption that they should sur- respect to others in the organization-what is often referred to as vive and grow. On the other hand, when an organization such as a "learning the ropes." The new recruit must learn where to be at business cannot maintain its basic or primary function of providing specified times, what to wear, what to call the boss, whom to consult a product or service at a reasonable profit for the owners, it "goes if he or she has a question, how carefully to do a job, and endless bankrupt" and ceases to exist as an organization, even though the other things which insiders have learned over time. former members may "reorganize" into a new entity. Similarly, so- The broad problem of bringing people into an organization can cial, religious, or political organizations cease to exist when they be broken down into two subproblems. First, it should be noted that guy lose too much of their following or get in the way of other more a policy of recruitment, selection, training, socialization, and alloca- powerful organizations. tion designed to get the best performance out of people does not right If one wants to understand the process of organizational cre- automatically ensure that the individual needs and expectations . the ation, one should read the biographies of entrepreneurs and great these people bring to the organization will in fact be met. Thus, one leaders.2 Formal research on the creation of organizations is notice- of the major dilemmas of organizational psychology arises because ably scant, though some efforts to study entrepreneurship have been policies and practices that ensure organizational effectiveness may undertaken and will be reviewed in the chapter on motivation and often leave individual needs unsatisfied, or worse, create problems leadership. What is important to note is that most of us encounter above and beyond the ones people brought with them. Employees full-blown organizations, entities that have already developed rou- may become alienated, insecure, and bitter if the organization fails to tines, norms, ways of doing things, traditions, rules, job descriptions, fulfill minimum needs for security, maintenance of self-esteem, and a unique vocabulary, and other patterns which have to be learned by opportunities to grow and develop. new members. Because the organization is a "given," one of its The fundamental question is, then, How can organizational major processes is that of recruiting, training, and hiring new em- policies or social practices be developed which will permit some ployees. From the point of view of the individual, this same process reasonable matching of human needs and organizational demands? is one of learning how to get along, being "socialized" into the Or, if these are fundamentally incompatible, psychologists must ask culture of the organization, or-as some sociologists have labeled the what other social institutions exist now or should in the future exist process-"breaking in" to organizations (Van Maanen, 1976). to ameliorate the problems created by individual-organization con- flicts. Second, the allocation and effective utilization of human re- further RECRUITMENT, SELECTION, TRAINING, sources can be pursued by two fundamentally different strategies SOCIALIZATION, AND ALLOCATION based on entirely different assumptions (Haire, 1959). One strategy the OF PEOPLE TO JOBS which has come to be identified with personnel psychology, puts its emphasis on selecting the person to fit the job. The job is considered fun Organizations are blueprints for human activities, but they do not a constant while the human being is considered a variable. People function until people have been recruited to fulfill the specified roles can be selected and trained. From the total pool of human resources ofgod, and to provide the specified activities. Therefore, the first and per- one can attempt to find those people who already fit organizational haps major human problem of any organization is how to recruit requirements or who can at least be trained to fit them. The other 1001 employees, how to select, train, and socialize them, and how to approach, identified originally with engineering psychology, puts its allocate them to jobs for most effective role performance. Training in emphasis on redesigning the job and its physical environment to fit this context refers to the teaching of technical skills needed to the limitations and capacities of the human being. The person is perform the job; by contrast, socialization refers to the process of considered a constant while the job is considered a variable. Ideally, teaching the new recruit how to get along in the organization, what the job would be designed in such a way that any person could 2 For two interesting yet contrasting examples, one could compare Chandler's perform it. Both approaches can work and have worked in the past. (1962) analysis of several American industries and Speer's (1970) analysis of How, then, should one balance the testing-selection approach Germany under Hitler. with the engineering and job-redesign approach in order to maxi- OLIODL ENG 22:58 music N IN 22-03-2022ODE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 6 of 13 Q + | Page view | A Read aloud | (T) Add text | Draw v Highlight Erase 22 Organizational Psychology 23 Human Problems in Organizations mize both the human potential available to organizations and the tional role, in that every role is basically a set of behavioral expecta- fulfillment of individual needs tions (Kahn et al., 1964). The psychological contract implies further One of the key themes throughout this book is that it is possible that each role player, that is, employee, also has expectations about to maintain both these perspectives-the perspective of the indi- such things as salary or pay rate, working hours, benefits and priv- vidual attempting to use organizations for the fulfillment of his or ileges that go with a job, guarantees not to be fired unexpectedly, her needs, and the perspective of the manager attempting to use and so on. Many of these expectations are implicit and involve the human resources optimally to fulfill organizational needs. These di- person's sense of dignity and worth. We expect organizations to treat vergent, yet overlapping issues are further complicated by the devel- us as human beings, to provide work and facilities which are need- opmental perspective, because both the needs of the organization fulfilling rather than demeaning, to provide opportunities for growth and those of its members change over time and with experience. and further learning, to provide feedback on how we are doing, and Therefore, solutions worked out by an organization at one point in so on. Some of the strongest feelings leading to labor unrest, strikes, its history may not be applicable at another point. Instead, we will and employee turnover have to do with violations of these aspects of see that individual-organizational interactions are in constant, dy- the psychological contract, even though the public negotiations are namic flux (Schein, 1978). often over the more explicit issues of pay, working hours, job secur- ity, and so on. UTILIZING AND MANAGING HUMAN The organization also has more implicit, subtle expectations- that the employee will enhance the image of the organization, will RESOURCES be loyal, will keep organizational secrets, and will do his or her best on behalf of the organization (that is, will always be highly moti- The Psychological Contract vated and willing to make sacrifices for the organization). Some of Once people have been recruited, selected, trained, and allo- the greatest disappointments of managers arise when a valued em- cated to jobs, the organization must focus on creating conditions that ployee seems to have become less motivated or "unwilling to put out will facilitate a high level of performance over a long period of time, for the company." and also permit individual employees to meet some of their own Here again we find that a developmental perspective can pro- most important needs through membership and work in the organi- vide the key to understanding these issues. The psychological con zation. Traditionally, this problem has been attacked by searching tract changes over time as the organization's needs and the out and cataloging the motives and needs of workers, and relating employee's needs change. What the employee is looking for in a job these to the incentives and rewards offered by the organization. As at age 25 may be completely different from what that same employee studies have accumulated, it has become apparent that the problem is looking for at age 50 (Hall, 1976; Schein, 1978). Similarly, what is complex and can better be conceptualized in terms of a "psycho- the organization expects of a person during a period of rapid growth logical contract" entered into by both the individual and the organi- may be completely different from what that same organization ex- zation. pects when it has leveled off or is experiencing economic decline. The notion of a psychological contract implies that there is an For example, at the beginning of the career, people's needs and unwritten set of expectations operating at all times between every expectations revolve very much around "self-tests." They need to member of an organization and the various managers and others in learn whether they can, in fact, contribute to an organization, that organization.' This idea is implicit in the concept of organiza- whether they have the skill and strength to do certain kinds of work whether they can make a contribution (Schein, 1964). They, there 3 The concept of psychological contract is an extension of all that has been fore, expect the organization to provide them with challenges to try written by social philosophers about social contracts. In the organizational out their skills and are most disappointed if they are kept too long in sphere it was first discussed in detail by Argyris (1960) and by Levinson (1962). The same idea is implicit in March and Simon's (1958) "inducement-contribu- meaningless training assignments or at tasks they regard as menial. tion" model and has been worked out in some detail by Homans (1961) in his If this happens, neither they nor the organization can learn what social exchange theory of elementary social forms. Kotter (1973) has tested the idea by measuring both the employees' and supervisors' expectations and devel- their talents really are. oped workshops to permit resolutions of possible mismatches in those expecta- At a later carcer stage, needs and expectations shift to identify tions. ing an area in which the person can experience a sense of contribu- OLIOOL video ENG 22:58 music N IN 22-03-2022ODE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X CA File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 7 of 13 Q + Page view | A Read aloud | (T) Add text | Draw " Highlight Erase 24 Organizational Psychology 25 Human Problems in Organizations tion and also develop this area of specialization; in turn, the implies that others really have no choice because they are not strong individual expects the organization to recognize his or her contribu- enough to be self-determining or do not have access to the resources tion in various ways (Dalton, Thompson, & Price, 1977). In mid- they need. It is what sociologists would call "nonlegitimate career when we are most productive we also expect the most in authority." Legitimate authority, on the other hand, implies the will- terms of recognition and rewards. At a later career stage, as we level ingness on the part of subordinates to obey rules, laws, or orders off and begin to contribute less visibly, our needs for reassurance because they consent to the system by which the rules, laws, or rank and for security may rise, and the expectations implicit in the psy- were arrived at-that is, they grant the person in authority the right chological contract may shift toward being "taken care of," not being to dictate to them. Authority is legitimate when there is consensus "put out to pasture" or thrown out the door. Retired people often among the members of an organization or a society about (1) the complain that their psychological contract was violated dramatically basis on which a rule or law is to be derived, and/or (2) the system because they had many good years of contribution left, their com- by which a person is to be put into a position of authority. In other pany was their whole life, they had really devoted themselves to it words, a law will be obeyed only if there is consensus on the for decades, and felt that in return the company "owed" them some- method by which laws are made, and a foreman will be obeyed by thing more than being put out of work at an age when they felt they workers only if there is consensus among the workers that the pro- could still contribute. motional system by which one gets to be a foreman is fair. It is For its part, the organization needs and expects higher levels of consent to the total system which permits subordinates to tolerate motivation and effort when it is a young, struggling concern or in a and take orders even from an occasional bad boss. severe competitive battle with other organizations. It expects more The organization can enforce its side of the psychological con- loyalty when it is under attack or in trouble and more "steady tract through the exercise of power and the use of authority. How performance" in stable times when it feels it is offering a long-range can the employee enforce his or her side of the contract? Depending sense of security to its employees. upon the total circumstances, the employee has a range of options: Both individual employee and manager forge their expectations quitting the organization, reducing involvement in the work, going from their inner needs, what they have learned from others, tradi- on strike, sabotage, and/or attempts to influence the situation on his tions and norms which may be operating, their own past experience, or her own behalf. For employees to feel comfortable as members of and a host of other sources. As needs and external forces change, so the organization, they must be able to believe that they have some do these expectations, making the psychological contract a dynamic power to influence their own situation, to enforce their side of the one which must be constantly renegotiated. Though it remains un- contract, to ensure that if the organization does not meet their expec- written, the psychological contract is a powerful determiner of be- tations in some crucial area that they have, at least, the power to be havior in organizations. listened to, and, at most, the power to leave without severe penalty. The actual mode of influence-whether as a free agent intro- Power and Authority ducing innovations or as a member of a union-is not as important as the fundamental belief on the part of employees that they have One key element of the psychological contract is the organiza- some power to influence the situation if their side of the psychologi- tion's expectation that a new member will accept the authority cal contract is not met. The pattern of authority and influence that system of that organization. Deciding to join implies acceptance of develops in a given society or organization will depend upon the the basic rules that constitute the organization's authority system. actual basis on which the consent of the members rests. Let us turn Within defined areas the person must be willing to accept the dic- now to an analysis of several different bases of consent. tates of some other person or some written rules, to accept limita- tions on his or her own behavior, and to curb personal inclinations if Bases of Legitimate Authority they go against rules or orders (Schein & Ott, 1962). Authority is not the same thing as power. Pure power implies Many theories and conceptual schemes have been proposed to the ability to actually control others through the exercise of naked explain the different bases on which authority can rest. I have al- strength, the manipulation of rewards or punishments which are ready indicated that pure power or nonlegitimate authority can rest meaningful to others, or the manipulation of information. Power on the possession of strength (which would include weapons) or on OLIOBL ENG 22:58 music IN 22-03-2022DE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X CA File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 8 of 13 Q + Page view A Read aloud | (T) Add text | Draw v Highlight Erase 26 Organizational Psychology 27 Human Problems in Organizations the control of certain rewards and punishments (giving a raise for had to shift to a rational-legal principle-that everyone would con- compliance or firing someone for noncompliance) or on the control sent to a common set of laws and to the procedures set forth for of information. However, to really understand organizations we must obtaining such laws. Once there was consensus on how the laws understand the bases of legitimate authority-that is, the bases on were to be obtained, individual members of society would have to which members of organizations arrive at a consensus voluntarily to agree to abide by whatever laws were made. This process would submit to authority. One of the earl the earliest and still best analyses of such maximize "rationality" in the sense of attempting to derive laws that bases of authority was that of the German sociologist Max Weber "made sense," were in the interests of the majority, protected human (1947), who attempted through these concepts to understand the rights, and provided a system for rulership based on demonstrated evolution of political systems. competence. 1. Tradition. Most early political systems beyond those that As we know, this principle or basis of consent does not always rested on pure power derived their stability from the acceptance on produce perfect laws or competent leaders. But it is a principle that the part of the governed of a belief that the ruling group had the is less subject to arbitrary whims on the part of whoever happens to right to rule, and this right was embodied in the traditions and be in a position of power. Once the members of a society have norms of the society. Such traditions usually included myths about agreed to be ruled by law, there is at least a mechanism, however the "divine" origins of rulers and included principles of succession imperfect, of removing leaders or managers who are too incompetent such as the right of the eldest son to claim the throne upon the death or too willing to use pure power for illegitimate ends. What needs to of the king. Authority at lower levels derived from the delegation on be underlined is that the consensus on which this whole system the part of the king or high priest to others in the society. What rests is a consensus to be ruled by a legal process. Such a process is made the system "right" or "fair" was the belief in the traditions always vulnerable to a dictator who can establish himself or herself surrounding the idea of monarchy. Once there ceased to be consen- by the use of pure power; however, even a "benevolent" dictatorship sus about such traditions, the seeds of revolution were sown. The is inherently unstable in today's world, because it does not rest on system was only as strong as the basic consensus about it. the consent of the governed and does not provide for a consensually We can see the organizational counterpart of such a system in validated means of determining succession. Consequently, most our own society if we examine our own attitudes about the "rights" modern-day societies and organizations tend toward some kind of of inheritance. In many organizations it is considered legitimate for rational-legal system in order to avoid the arbitrariness and in- the founder to pass on high positions of rank to members of the stability which results once a traditional system has been abandoned family, and workers will accept such authority even if they question In the United States these principles are expressed through a the competence of the individual in the position. Such a system for system of legislation and the election of officials based on a rational acquiring managerial authority is not too common in the more in- assessment of their abilities, motives, and prior service. Applied to dustrialized, economically developed portions of the world, but it is organizations, authority based on rational consensus is expressed in still quite common in less developed countries where organizational the idea of promotion based on merit (ability plus past performance authority functions much like parental authority, leading to a kind of and experience), and in the idea that authority ultimately derives unquestioned paternalism (Davis, 1971). The psychological contract from a person's expertness or competence, not family connections. is basically that the manager/parent will "take care" of his or her money, or political power. What the boss is expert at might be quite employees and, in return, the employees will be loyal and produc- different from what the subordinates are expert at, as when a re- tive. Who gets to be a manager will be primarily a matter of the search manager supervises ten research chemists. The boss may particular traditions within that culture, but typically authority is know less technically but presumably knows more about how to passed down along family lines. manage a research group. The acceptance by the chemists of their 2. Rational-legal principles. The replacement of traditionally boss's authority ultimately rests on their perception of him or her as based monarchies by more parliamentary democratic political sys- a better manager, and on their belief that the person achieved his or tems was facilitated by the concept that the members of a society her position by a legitimate promotional process. should have some voice in selecting the system by which they .3. Charisma. Whereas both tradition and rational-legal princi- would be governed, and possibly even in selecting the people who ples invest a given office or rank with authority, Weber noted that would govern them. For this idea to work, the basis of legitimacy many kinds of political or religious movements were based on cer- OLIODL music ENG 22:59 IN 22-03-2022ODE Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X CA @ File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 9 of 13 Q - + Page view | A Read aloud | (T) Add text | Draw v Highlight Erase 28 Organizational Psychology 29 Human Problems in Organizations tain compelling personal qualities of an individual leader. One can and societies therefore develop systems of education and testing cite many instances in history of magnetic personalities being able to followed by apprenticeships, internships, licensing, and accredita- capture a following by virtue of mystical, magical, divine, or simply tion to ensure that those who claim to be expert are in fact expert. extraordinary powers attributed to them. Commonly cited examples But it should be noted that those systems of education and accredita- would be Jesus Christ, Gandhi, Hitler, and, most recently, J. F. tion must themselves be perceived as legitimate if one is to have Kennedy and Martin Luther King. Such leaders elicit a strong emo- confidence in the expert. Thus, the pure rational model also rests on tional response from their followers and, like the Pied Piper, can a rational-legal system which reflects some consensus on how to often get their followers to do things they would not ordinarily do define competence. simply by the force of their personality. A milder, yet similar phenomenon can be seen in organizations To illustrate how complicated the bases of authority really are where certain leaders or managers elicit the loyalty of their subordi from a psychological point of view, one need only pose to a group nates on a very personal basis. All of us have at times obeyed orders the following problem: An airliner crashes on a jungle island; the and followed leaders simply because we trusted them completely pilot is partially injured and knows nothing of survival in a jungle and accepted their word as dogma, even if they had neither the setting or how to build a raft. Who should be in charge-the pilot, expertise nor the legitimacy of an official rank. Psychologically we the co-pilot, a passenger with vast experience in jungle survival, a often follow such leaders because they set a very vivid example passenger with a very strong personality who can pull the demor- which enables us to identify with them, that is, to attempt to become alized survivors together, someone who is elected by the survivors, a more like them. Thus the ability of a leader to get followers to team of several of the above? Should issues be settled by majority identify with him or her is one of the most powerful bases for rule? How should the group deal with someone who is physically eliciting loyalty and subordination. very strong or possesses a gun and demands on that basis to be in One of the major problems with charisma as a basis for charge? What the discussion typically reveals is that one cannot authority is that it does not provide as clear a principle of succession clearly answer the question of who should have authority until one as tradition-based or rational-legal systems do. If the leader dies or has in the group some consensus on what the basis of authority loses the charismatic properties, there is no clear basis for choosing a should be. Until such consensus is achieved, there is a great proba- successor. Thus, charismatically-based systems or organizations have bility of chaos and disorganization. the same problem as dictatorships-they are only stable during the Psychologists have become interested in the bases on which lifetime of the leader. We can see examples of this instability in the power, or, as I have preferred to call it, authority, rests and have power struggles that developed following the death of Lenin in the developed a typology similar to the sociological one (Cartwright, U.S.S.R. and Franco in Spain, or in several Latin American dictator- 1959). The two typologies are shown in Table 2.1 and can serve to ships. By contrast, both monarchies and rational-legal systems have summarize this discussion. What sociologists have termed nonlegifi ji clearly defined successions, the one based on family ties and the mate authority has been labeled variously by psychologists as coer- other on written agreements, or laws. cive power, or the power to reward or punish; what sociologists have 4. Pure rational authority- expertness. - The ultimately rational called rational-legal authority corresponds to the psychologists' posi- basis on which to obey or follow someone is if that person possesses tion power; charisma has been broken down into two psychological some specific information, competence, or expertness in relation to constructs-personal power, based on the potency of the leader, and some problem we are experiencing. Such expertness is, in principle, referent power, based on the ability of the leader to elicit imitation independent of a person's personality, social origin, or official posi- or identification in the follower: finally, pure rational authority corre- tion. We accept the authority of the scholar in relation to his or her sponds to expert power. Tradition as a basis of authority has no clear field of study, the authority of the doctor, the automobile mechanic psychological counterpart. the television repairman, and others upon whom we are dependent I have inserted this discussion of authority and its bases in when things need to be fixed. Ideally, authority would always rest order to underline the point that an organization cannot function on such pure competence. The problem of building an organization unless its members consent to the operating authority system, and on this basis is that it is not always possible to judge competence or that this consent hinges upon both parties' upholding the psycholog- expertness, especially in relation to complex tasks. Organizations ical contract between them. If the organization fails to meet its video ENG 22:59 IN 22-03-2022por Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X @ File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 10 of 13 Q - + Page view | A Read aloud | () Add text | Draw " Highlight Erase 31 Human Problems in Organizations Table 2.1 money and the goal of the engineering department to design a good product, and so on. Each of these units may then subdivide its task Sociological Bases of Authority and Psychological Types of Power in order to accomplish its goals most efficiently. For example, the marketing and sales department may choose as a means of accom- Nonlegitimate authority Coercive power Reward-punishment power plishing its task a division into different sales forces to sell to different kinds of customers. As each of these is created, what was a Traditional authority -No counterpart concept means for the total sales force becomes an end or goal for the Rational-legal authority Position power subunit. Similarly, manufacturing may divide into several plants making different products, and what is a means for the total man- Charismatic authority Personal power Referent power ufacturing group becomes a set of goals for each of the plants, and so on down the line. Rational authority Expert power The total organization, then, can be seen as a system of "means- ends chains" wherein the means for personnel at a higher rank in members' expectations and, at the same time, cannot coerce them to the organization's hierarchy become the ends for groups directly remain, they will most likely leave. Thus, the problem of motivation below them. The master blueprint of the organization often specifies and organizational incentives or rewards is best thought of as a only the first level of means to be employed, giving a certain amount complex, continuous bargaining situation between the organization of freedom to the next lower level to develop its own suborganiza- and its members. This ongoing negotiation involves the decisions of tion. This situation creates the possibility-in fact, the likelihood- whether to join, how hard to work, and how creative to be, as well that different parts of the organization will begin to operate at cross- as feelings of loyalty and commitment, expectations of being taken purposes with one another, overlap in function, or compete for care of and finding a sense of identity through one's organizational scarce resources such as "good" employees or a certain "share of the role, and a host of other decisions, feelings, and expectations. budget." Each subunit can develop its own purposes and goals as well (Mckelvey & Kilmann, 1975). In our business example. each plant COORDINATION AND INTEGRATION may decide that for optimal performance it needs its own engineer- AMONG THE PARTS ing department, which may conflict with the central engineering OF THE ORGANIZATION department's decision to have a common engineering policy imple- mented through a single, centrally controlled group of engineers. Or the various sales forces, in order to maximize their own sales, may As was pointed out earlier, division of labor is an essential aspect of promise customers certain variations of the product which are costly organization. Such a classificatory process is often initiated by spec- to manufacture-and thus may run into conflict with the decision of ifying the various means to accomplish a given end. Each of the manufacturing to minimize costs by standardizing the product as means specified becomes the goal of the group of individuals to much as possible. Competition for scarce resources could occur if whom it has been assigned. This suborganization then generates its each department inflates its budget in order to maximize its perform- own means for accomplishing its goals and makes these the goals for ance or if several departments each hoard their best people rather further suborganizations. Let us take a typical business example. In than making them available to other departments which may need order to survive and make a profit (the ultimate goal), the top level them more. The larger the organization and the mission to be accom- of management must create products and markets and must raise plished, the greater the potential lack of integration. Thus, one of the some money in order to manufacture the products and sell them (the major problems organizations face is the integration of their various basic means to be used to accomplish the ultimate goal). As these parts to ensure effective overall performance (Lawrence & Lorsch, means are made operational through the creation of marketing, sales, 1969). engineering, finance, and manufacturing departments, the various But why is this a psychological problem? Why should it be means become the primary goals of each of these subordinate depart- considered in a text on organizational psychology rather than in one ments. That is, it becomes the goal of the finance department to raise on organization theory per se? Why cannot integration be ensured 30 OLIOOL music ENG 22:59 IN 22-03-2022por Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 11 of 13 Q - + Page view | A Read aloud | () Add text | \\ Draw v Highlight Erase 33 Human Problems in Organizations 32 Organizational Psychology simply by a more careful overall organizational plan which allocates need to adapt both the system of differentiation and the methods of functions in such a way that duplication and competition are elimi- integration to the actual task to be performed and the characteristics nated? of the people performing it (Lawrence & Lorsch, 1969). One of the The answers to these questions all require an understanding of most basic ideas in modern organization theory is "form follows how informal organizations operate and how they affect the formal function." That is, one cannot really design an effective organization organization (Homans, 1950). As was pointed out above, even without a careful assessment of what the task or goals of that organi- though organizational roles demand only certain limited activities zation are to be, and there are many ways to integrate the effort of from each person, it is the whole person who comes to work. People the different parts of an organization other than the traditional hier- bring with them many attitudes, feelings, and perceptions which are archy of authority. The major dilemma in the design of organizations not anticipated by the organization and which do not clearly fit into is how to balance the gains of differentiation against the costs of its plan. As they work with others, they develop relationships with potential lack of integration, and how to invent organization designs them, informal agreements, and patterns of coordination, all of which optimize both. which go beyond those specified formally by the organization. In fact, such informal procedures often are developed precisely to cope with problems formal procedures and regulations fail to resolve. ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS, Often, people's perceptions, feelings, and attitudes as reflected SURVIVAL, AND GROWTH in informal procedures exhibit a strong loyalty to the subunit to which they belong and are shaped by the kind of work the subunit does. As people identify with a subunit, their self-esteem begins to The final set of human problems to be discussed concerns the rela- be tied to its performance, and it becomes increasingly difficult for tionship of organizations to their environments. All organizations them to understand and empathize with the problems of other units exist in multiple environments. They exist within the culture and or those of the organization as a whole. Increasingly, they may work social structure of the larger society, and they coexist in various for their own unit and become indifferent or hostile to other groups. relations to other organizations with similar purposes, as well as The formal organization often encourages this process by rewarding disparate social organizations and groups of people who may be competition between groups and stimulating esprit de corps within owners, managers, employees, customers, clients, or simply "the public at large." groups. An important part of the psychological contract, possibly the In order to survive at all, an organization must fulfill some part that most determines day-to-day behavior, consists of subgroup useful function. The common goals set by the architects of the norms. Ultimately, a person's basic sense of identity derives largely organization must result in some product or service which is useful from face-to-face contacts with members of a subgroup rather than to the members of the organization or to other organizations or to the from formal organizational rules. Thus it should not be surprising public at large. For example, Blau and Scott (1962) in their analysis that many of the intergroup or interunit difficulties which arise in of formal organizations use as the major basis for classification the organizations are the product of psychological forces ultimately re- criterion of who benefits from the existence of the organization. They flecting the characteristics of human beings. Such forces operate in define four classes of organizations: organizations toward the establishment of informal patterns which influence and alter the formal ones. Achieving greater integration, 1. Mutual-benefit associations: Those which benefit primarily the members of the organization, the rank and file (for instance, unions, clubs, therefore, involves not only a rational redesign of the formal organi- political parties, religious sects, professional societies). zation, but also psychological procedures to improve communication 2. Business concerns: Those which benefit primarily the owner-managers and mutual understanding among the subgroups within the organi- (such as industries, stores, banks, insurance companies). zation. 3. Service organizations: Those which benefit primarily their clients (for As we will see, one of the reasons why traditional definitions of example, hospitals, schools, social work agencies), organizations have not been very helpful in understanding what 4. Commonwealthizations: Those which benefit the public at large really goes on in organizations is that they have ignored the complex (government organizations, such as the Internal Revenue Service, De interplay between the formal and the informal organization, and the ense Department, police, fire department, and research organizations). OLIOOL music N ENG 22:59 IN 22-03-2022por Shine, Chapter 2.pdf X + X CA File | D:/Downloads/Shine,%20Chapter%202.pdf . . . 12 of 13 Q + Page view | A Read aloud | () Add text | Draw " Highlight Erase 34 Organizational Psychology 35 Human Problems in Organizations The survival of each type of organization ultimately depends on product safety, pollution, obligations to communities to provide em- its ability to continue to be of use to its prime beneficiary. The ployment, and what their ultimate role in society is to be. survival of an organization does not involve psychological problems These environmental forces not only demand creative thinking different from the ones already cited. To survive, the organization on the part of members of organizations, but they also involve a must continue to perform its primary task through the recruitment, more fundamental psychological problem. This problem can be con- proper utilization, motivation, and integration of the people in it. ceptualized as follows. Much of the present technological and social When we turn to the problem of organizational growth, change is unpredictable. We cannot accurately assess what will be however, we do uncover some new psychological problems. For the environment for organizations even a decade ahead. Therefore, if example, organizational growth in a business concern may well in- organizations are to adapt to such rapid and unpredictable change, volve the development of new products and new processes for mak- they must develop flexibility and the capacity to meet a variety of ing products in order to improve the company's competitive new problems. Such characteristics ultimately reside in the human position. New ideas for products and processes come from people. resources of the organization. If the managers and employees are The organization, therefore, faces the problem of how to create an themselves flexible, the organizational blueprint can be consciously environment and a set of management policies which will not only and rationally altered in the face of changing external situations, but get the primary task performed effectively but which will, in addi- if an organization's members are locked into a rigid pattern of re- tion, stimulate creative thinking and innovation. sponding, then altering the blueprint will be a useless exercise. The This is not a trivial problem because many of the procedures psychological problem for the organization becomes, therefore, how organizations develop to maximize their day-to-day effectiveness to develop in its personnel the kind of flexibility and adaptability lead to a psychological climate in which innovation and creativity that may well be needed for the organization to survive in the face of are actually punished. If such a climate has come into existence, a changing environment. how can an organization go about changing it without losing day-to- For example, the employee who ten years ago had a yen for day effectiveness? Should innovation and creativity be expected of pure mathematics and was encouraged by the company to pursue all members of the organization, or should it become the assigned this study may find himself or herself today suddenly occupying a task of a few members of a research and development group? If such key role in evaluating the merits of conversion to automatic data a group is created, how should people be recruited into it, how processing through electronic computers. If the organization is to should it be managed, and how should it relate to other parts of the make itself capable of adapting to and managing change, it may well organization? have as one of its major psychological problems the encouragement Problems of growth relate closely to problems of adapting to of diversity of skills and the psychological growth of its employees. and managing change. Today many organizations find themselves in Such psychological growth may not only make management of change a dynamic environment. Technological change, which is proceeding easier but may also ameliorate some of the other problems mentioned at an incredible rate, creates constant problems of obsolescence. above, such as how to motivate employees, how to create commitment Social and political changes occurring throughout the world create a to the organization, and, most important, how to create a situation in constant demand for new services and the expansion of presently which personal needs and organizational needs can both be satisfied existing ones. With the advent of computers and automation, the Finally, organizational flexibility will be increased if key man- nature of organizations themselves is changing, bringing new needs agers begin to develop attitudes and skills which permit them to uti- for highly educated and trained employees and managers far exceed- lize the findings of organizational psychology on behalf of the ing the present supply. Changing values in regard to the work ethic, development of the organization itself. As the field of organizational the proper role that work and family should play in a person's life, psychology develops, it is becoming increasingly clear that an organ- equal employment opportunities for women and members of minor- ization's health and effectiveness will depend ultimately upon its ity groups, all have changed the expectations of members of organi- ability to diagnose its own problems and to develop its own solu- zations about a reasonable and fair psychological contract. Various tions (Schein, 1969). The agents of planned change will necessarily government agencies and public groups have begun to challenge be key managerial pers