CONCEPTURAL MODELS

Five Frameworks & OB

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 Five Frameworks & OB Framework

 Various approaches to human behaviour is

discussed as “Frameworks”
 Because most of these approaches fall short of
being comprehensive theories of human
behaviour
 Taken together, however, they provide
background information important in developing
a specific conceptual model of OB.
 Freudian Psychoanalytic; Existentialistic;
Cognitive; Behavioristic;Social Learning &
Specific Model of OB.

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 Freudian Psychoanalytic
 Relies on a psychoanalytic or conflict view
of human behaviour
 Oldest explanation in western culture -
conception of people being in constant
inner conflict
 The conflict model portrayed primitive
humans’ constant inner struggle between
good & evil. More comprehensive,
systematically based conflict view stems
from Sigmund Freud – summarized in
Psychoanalytic framework.
 Psychoanalytic approach primarily used
clinical techniques (free association &
psychotherapy)
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 Freudian Psychoanalytic
 Through the clinical techniques,
Freud noted
 The patient’s behaviour could not
always be consciously explained.
 The major motivating force in humans
is unconscious in nature
 The personality structure can be
explained within the unconscious
framework by three interrelated (often
conflicting) psychoanalytic concepts:
ID, EGO & SUPEREGO

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 Freudian in Perspective
 Freud’s Model Characterized by the
conflicting personality constructs (Id, Ego
& Superego) & unconscious motivation
 Psychological adjustment occurs only
when the ego properly develops to
resolve the conflicts stemming from the id
& superego
 Ego concepts implies that humans are
rational
 But the id, superego & unconscious
motivation give the impression that
humans are very irrational

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 FREUDIAN IMPACT
 Had great influence on treatment
techniques for the mentally ill
 Contributed to the understanding of
human behaviour in general
 Made impact on OB:
 Creative Behaviour – certain ages of the
creative process is unconscious
 Dissatisfied behaviour of employees – day
dreaming, forgetting, apathy, rationalization,
absenteeism, tardiness, sabotage & alcoholism
or drug abuse – analyzed in psychoanalytic
terms.
 OC techniques, group/team development rely
to some degree on this thought
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 EXISTENTIALISTIC FRAMEWORK
 The best-known American spokesman - Rollo
May. May and Sartre,
 Rollo May views people as suffering from
“Unconstructive” OR “Neurotic” anxiety -
as the “shrinking of consciousness, the
blocking off of awareness;
 when prolonged leads to a feeling of
depersonalization & apathy"
 This feeling of "depersonalization and
apathy" is similar to Durkheim’s “Anomie”.
 existentialists see a breakdown of
traditional norms & the ties that individuals
traditionally had with society.
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 COGNITIVE FRAMEWORK
 Tolman felt
 Behavior was purposive: directed toward a
goal.
 In his laboratory experiments, he found that
animals learned to expect that certain events
will follow one another.
• For example, animals learned to behave as
if they expected food when a certain cue
appeared.
 Thus, learning consisted of the expectancy
that a particular event will lead to a particular
consequence. S – S connections

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 BEHAVIORESTIC FRAMEWORK

 Skinner - through his operant conditioning

 Explained the consequences of a
response (emitted) than could eliciting
stimuli.
 Emphasized the importance of the
response-stimulus (R-S) relationship. The
organism has to operate on the
environment in order to receive the
desirable consequence.
 For Skinner, behavior is a function of its
consequences.

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 SOCIAL LEARNING FRAMEWORK
 A Behavioral approach - Recognizes - behavior as
the appropriate unit of analysis.
 Bandura explains that, "it is largely through their
actions that people produce the environmental
conditions that affect their behavior in a reciprocal
fashion. The experiences generated by behavior
also partly determine what a person becomes and
can do, which, in turn, affects subsequent
behavior. "

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 Reciprocal determinism in social learning.

PERSON

BEHAVIOR ENVIRONMENT

(Source: Adapted from Albert Bandura, Social Learning

Theory, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 1977)

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STIMULUS ORGANISM BEHAVIOUR CONSEQUENCE
Organizational Organizational Organizational Organizational
environment participants B behavior & behavioral

Structure Cognitive Dynamics

processes
Classical Org. Groups Dynamics
theory Perception Communication
Neo Classical Personality Conflict
theories Motivation Stress
Modern Learning Power
Theories Politics
Leadership
Processes Applications
Selection
Decision Appraisal
Control & Organizational
Communication Development
Self-Management
Career Dev.

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