Organizational Behavior

Organizational behavior (OB) or organisational behaviour is "the study of human behavior in organizational settings, the interface between human behavior and the organization, and the organization itself." OB research can be categorized in at least three ways, including the study of (a) individuals in organizations (micro-level), (b) work groups (meso-level), and (c) how organizations behave (macro-level).

Chester Barnard recognized that individuals behave differently when acting in their organizational role than when acting separately from the organization. Organizational behavior researchers study the behavior of individuals primarily in their organizational roles. One of the main goals of organizational behavior is "to revitalize organizational theory and develop a better conceptualization of organizational life".

Miner (2006) pointed out that "there is a certain arbitrariness" in identifying "a point at which organizational behavior became established as a distinct discipline" (p. 56), suggesting that it could have emerged in the 1940s or 1950s. He also underlined the fact that the industrial psychology division of the American Psychological Association did not add "organizational" to its name until 1970, "long after organizational behavior had clearly come into existence" (p. 56), noting that a similar situation arose in sociology. Although there are similarities and differences between the two disciplines, there is still much confusion as to the nature of differences between organizational behavior and organizational psychology.

As a multi-disciplinary field, organizational behavior has been influenced by developments in a number of allied disciplines including sociology, industrial/organizational psychology, and economics as well as by the experience of practitioners.

The Industrial Revolution is the period from approximately 1760 when new technologies resulted in the adoption of new manufacturing techniques, including increased mechanisation. Max Weber, with his famous iron cage metaphor, raised concerns regarding the waning of the religious and vocational significance of work, and the rise of a thorough-going efficiency that has made the system of working arrangements a kind of prison, stripping the worker of his or her individuality. The industrial revolution led to significant social and cultural change, including new forms of organization. In analyzing one of these new organizational forms, Weber described bureaucracy as an organization that rested on rational-legal principles and maximized technical efficiency.

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