Meaning, types, theories

2. Personality – Definition
 Refers to a set of unique characteristics that makes an
individual different from others .

3. PERSONALITY
Personality is the combination of Inner and Outer Quality of
a Human Being interacting with each other.
Here OB helps the organization to Perceive the Employee
Personality towards the Organization.
Some personality traits are positive:
Being honest no matter what the consequences are is one personality trait people should
aspire to.
Having responsibility for all of your actions and being a little bit of a perfectionism are
also personality traits.
Adaptability and compatibility are great and can help you get along with others.
Having the drive to keep going, and having compassion and understanding are positive
personality traits.
Patience is a virtue and also another trait.
Getting up the courage to do what’s right in those tough situations and loyalty to your
friends and loved ones are also personality traits.

4. Personality:Its Basic Nature and Role in
Organizational Behavior.
Personality:The unique and relatively
stable patterns of behavior, thoughts
and emotions shown by individuals
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5. What is Personality?
Personality
The sum total of ways in which an individual reacts
and interacts with others.
Personality Traits
Enduring characteristics
that describe an
individual’s behavior.
Personality
Determinants
• Heredity
• Environment
• Situation

6. Nature of personality
 Has both internal and external elements
 It is relatively stable
 Inherited and shaped by the environment .
 Strikingly different from one individual to another

7. Major Personality Attributes
Influencing OB
 Locus of control
 Machiavellianism
 Self-esteem
 Self-monitoring
 Risk taking
 Type A personality

8. Locus of Control
Locus of Control
The degree to which people believe they are
masters of their own fate.
Internals
Individuals who believe that they control what happens to
them.
Externals
Individuals who believe that what happens to them is
controlled by outside forces such as luck or chance.

9. Personality Characteristics
in Organizations
Locus of Control
Internal External
I control what
happens to me!
People and
circumstances control
my fate!

10. Personality Characteristics
in Organizations
Self-Efficacy - beliefs and expectations about one’s ability to
accomplish a specific task effectively
Sources of self-efficacy
 Prior experiences and prior success
 Behavior models (observing success)
 Persuasion
 Assessment of current physical & emotional
capabilities

11. Personality Characteristics
in Organizations
Self-Monitoring
A personality trait that measures an individuals ability to adjust
his or her behavior to external, situational factors.
 High self-monitors
 flexible: adjust
behavior according to
the situation and the
behavior of others
 can appear
unpredictable &
inconsistent
 Low self-monitors
 act from internal states
rather than from
situational cues
 show consistency
 less likely to respond to
work group norms or
supervisory feedback

12. Machiavellianism
Conditions Favoring High Machs
• Direct interaction
• Minimal rules and regulations
• Emotions distract for others
Machiavellianism (Mach)
Degree to which an individual is pragmatic,
maintains emotional distance, and believes that ends
can justify means.

13. Self-Esteem and Self-Monitoring
Self-Esteem (SE)
Individuals’ degree of liking or disliking themselves.

14. Personality Characteristics
in Organizations
Self-Esteem
Feelings of Self Worth
Success tends
to increase
self-esteem
Failure tends
to decrease
self-esteem

15. Risk-Taking
 Risk Propensity
 Aligning managers risk-taking propensity to job requirements should
be beneficial to organizations
 High Risk-taking Managers
 Make quicker decisions.
 Use less information to make decisions.
 Operate in smaller and more entrepreneurial organizations.
 Low Risk-taking Managers
 Are slower to make decisions.
 Require more information before making decisions.
 Exist in larger organizations with stable environments.

16. Personality Characteristics
in Organizations
Positive Affect - an individual’s tendency to
accentuate the positive aspects of oneself, other
people, and the world in general
Negative Affect - an individual’s tendency to
accentuate the negative aspects of oneself, other
people, and the world in general

17. Theories of personality

18. Type Theories
 Classification on the basis of body structure : Kretschemer
and Sheldon : Short person ( Endomorphs ) and heavy
muscular ( Mesomorphs )
 Classification on the basis of psychological factors : By
Carl Jung : Introverts and extroverts .

19. Trait theory
 Enduring attribute of a person that appears consistently in
varied situations.
 Done through personality Inventory Questionnaire

20. Psychoanalytic Theory
 Sigmund Freud
 Composed of Three elements – Id , Ego , superego
 Id- Latin word for “It”.- innate component –mental agency
containing everything that is inherited, present at birth and is in
instincts -raw , animalistic, unorganised , obeys no rule, basic to
individual life –
 Justifies the primary principle of human life ie immediate
discharge of psychic energy( libido) and is based on the pleasure
principle – may be through imagination at times.
 Ego: Develops out of Id to satisfy the real world – Tests the reality
 Superego : Systems of values , ethics , norms and attitude which
are reasonably compatible – strive for perfection

21. Social Learning Theory
 Two types of learning : Learning through experience
or through reinforcement and learning through
observing others
 Regard situation as an important determinant of
behaviour .
 Individual Determinants of behaviour :
Competencies, Cognitive strategies, Outcome
expectations ,Subjective value outcomes , Self
regulatory systems and plans

22. Humanistic approach
 Rogers Self Theory : Phenomenology is the study of
individual’s subjective experiences, feelings and private
concepts as well as his view of the self and that of the
world .
 Maslow’s Self actualization Theory

23. Work-Related Aspects of Personality
The “Big Five” Dimension of Personality and
organization behavior:
1.Conscientionusness: a dimension ranging from careful,
thorough, responsible, organized, self-disciplined
2.Extraversion-Introversion: a dimension ranging from
sociable, talkative , assertive and active.
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24. 3.Agreeableness: a dimension ranging from good natured,
gentle, cooperative, forgiving and hopeful.
4.Emotional Stability: a dimension ranging from anxious,
depressed, angry, emotion, insecure and excitable.
5.Openness to Experience: a dimension ranging from
imaginative, narrow, crude and simple at the other.
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The Big Five Model of Personality Dimensions

25. Personality Types
-Type A behavior pattern: pattern of behavior involving
high levels of competitiveness, time urgency and
irritability, workaholic etcc
-Type B behavior pattern: pattern of behavior
characterized by a casual, laid-back style the opposite of
the type A behavior pattern.

26. Personality Types
• Realistic
• Investigative
• Social
• Conventional
• Enterprising
• Artistic
Personality-Job Fit Theory
(Holland)
Identifies six personality
types and proposes that
the fit between personality
type and occupational
environment determines
satisfaction and turnover.

27. Personality Types
Proactive Personality
Identifies opportunities, shows initiative, takes action,
and perseveres until meaningful change occurs.
Creates positive change in the environment, regardless
or even in spite of constraints or obstacles.