Organisational Behaviour
Defining Personality
There are many ways in which different individuals have viewed personality. Robbins et al (2001, p. 99) define it as “the consistent psychological patterns within an individual that affect the way they interact with others and the situations they encounter”. Another definition provided by Huczynski and Buchanan (2007, p. 138) is that personality “is the psychological qualities that influence an individual’s characteristic behaviour patterns, in a stable and distinctive manner”.
Personality’s Role in Organizational Behaviour
With the abovementioned definitions of personality, there are a numerous reasons as to why this is of great interest when it comes to the study of Organizational Behaviour. One main reason is that job performance and career success are related to one’s personality as many managers have come to believe. Personality assessments or ‘psychometric tests’ are widely used by companies to assess an employee’s personality. A couple of the known approaches to these tests are nomothetic, the basis of the majority of the available psychometrics, and idiographic. The former is more objective and quantitative, which is mostly comprised of multiple-choice questions and hence easier to administer, while the latter rely on heavily on different assumptions about human psychology. (Huczynski & Buchanan 2007, p. 137)
Types of Personality Assessment Tools
Out of the many personality assessment tools available today, the four which will be further discussed will be the DISC Model, Jung’s Personality Type Matrix, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and Friedman and Rosenman’s Type A - Type B Personalities. There will be an overlay between the mentioned assessment tools and the others that have not been stated. (Richards n. d.) These assessments aid not only companies when it comes to appraising an employee but also are now available for individuals who want to measure their own capability and learn how to make the most of their
There are many ways in which different individuals have viewed personality. Robbins et al (2001, p. 99) define it as “the consistent psychological patterns within an individual that affect the way they interact with others and the situations they encounter”. Another definition provided by Huczynski and Buchanan (2007, p. 138) is that personality “is the psychological qualities that influence an individual’s characteristic behaviour patterns, in a stable and distinctive manner”.
Personality’s Role in Organizational Behaviour
With the abovementioned definitions of personality, there are a numerous reasons as to why this is of great interest when it comes to the study of Organizational Behaviour. One main reason is that job performance and career success are related to one’s personality as many managers have come to believe. Personality assessments or ‘psychometric tests’ are widely used by companies to assess an employee’s personality. A couple of the known approaches to these tests are nomothetic, the basis of the majority of the available psychometrics, and idiographic. The former is more objective and quantitative, which is mostly comprised of multiple-choice questions and hence easier to administer, while the latter rely on heavily on different assumptions about human psychology. (Huczynski & Buchanan 2007, p. 137)
Types of Personality Assessment Tools
Out of the many personality assessment tools available today, the four which will be further discussed will be the DISC Model, Jung’s Personality Type Matrix, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and Friedman and Rosenman’s Type A - Type B Personalities. There will be an overlay between the mentioned assessment tools and the others that have not been stated. (Richards n. d.) These assessments aid not only companies when it comes to appraising an employee but also are now available for individuals who want to measure their own capability and learn how to make the most of their
References: Huntley, C 2009, Movie analysis: “The devil wears Prada”. Retrieved October 29, 2010, from http://www.dramatica.com/story/film_reviews/reviews/devilwearsprada.htm Larson, P 2009, How personality can influence success Moore, T 2001, Type A. Encyclopedia of Psychology. Retrieved October 26, 2010, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g2699/is_0006/ai_2699000648/?tag=content;col1 Richards, DJ n The Myers & Briggs Foundation n. d., MBTI basics. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from http://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/ Topsynergy.com 2003, Anna Wintour – approach to life and appearances