Organisational Behaviour

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Organisational behaviour is a multidisciplinary field that draws from a number of behavioural disciplines, mainly psychology, sociology, anthropology, economics and communication science. It studies individual and group interactions within an organisation and how these interactions affect the organisation’s performance towards its goals.

The study examines human behaviour at the individual, interpersonal and group levels, including the impact of several factors in an organisational structure on behaviour. The focus of the subject is on leadership roles, historical development in management, ethics and behaviour in multicultural contexts. The course examines the practices and methods within organisations that promote or impede effective behaviour.

Students pursuing a degree in organisational behaviour will be able to explain how individuals may differ across a range of attributes including their personality, values, perceptions and emotions. They will have the ability to analyse the implications of workplace diversity, including challenges and potential benefits and they will be able to analyse the role of team dynamics and composition in team performance.

Study levels:

There are a varied number of Universities offering courses in Organisational behaviour at the undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral level. However, in India, the course is only available at two levels. The first is of a master’s level, which is an MBA in Organisational Behaviour and the second is a doctorate in Organisational Behaviour.

Study programs within India and abroad include:

Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management
Bachelor’s Degree in Behavioural Studies
Bachelor of Arts in Human Resource Management
Bachelor of Science in Industrial-Organizational Psychology
Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Studies
Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Leadership
Graduate Certificate in Leadership and Negotiation
Graduate Certificate in Intercultural Competence for the Workplace
Pre-master’s degree in Work Psychology and Business
Master of Arts in Human Resource Management
Master of Science in Global Human Resource Management
Master of Science in Leadership and Organizational Psychology
Master of Science in Applied Behaviour Analysis
Master of Science in Organizational Studies
PhD in Organizational Behaviour
PhD in Organizational Behaviour and Human Resource Management

Course topics:

Introduction to Organizational Behaviour
Emotions and Moods
Motivation concepts
Diversity in organisations
Perception and Decision making
Group Behaviour
Work teams
Job design and employee reaction
Personality and Values
Leadership
Communication
Conflict and Negotiation
Power and Influence
HR policies and practices
Theories of work motivation
Organisational Structure
Change management
Organisational stress
Organisational Culture
Nature of management
Group Dynamics

Levels of Organisational Behaviour:

In the field of Organisational behaviour, there are three levels of focus and these are:

Individual Level – this focus is on organisational psychology and includes employee characteristics and behaviours. Examples of individual-level concepts include perception, motivation, personality, learning and attitude.
Group Level – This level includes social psychology and provides sociological insight into group dynamics and social interactions. Examples of group level concepts include teams, power, authority, conflict and politics.
Organisational level – at the organisational level, how a company behaves and engages in the market is considered. Examples of organisational level concepts are change management and organisational culture.

Employability:

Pursuing a degree in Organisational Behaviour leaves graduates with endless career opportunities. From human resources to getting hired by top corporates, graduates can choose to work in the teaching or research fields or even training and management. Other options include working in management and development, finance, IT sectors, product development, supply chains and many more.

Possible job profiles include: