Personality Attributes at

Workplace

By: N. P. Sharma
Personality Attributes at Workplace
• Due to the interactions of many determinants,
people may develop certain dispositional
quality which may heavily influence their
regular lifestyle.
• This quality is also called the dimension of
personality or personality attribute.
• There are certain personality factors found
very important to consider for work
performance and related behavior. These are
taken as like cardinal traits of employee’s
behavior.
 Personality Attributes
• Machiavellianism
• Self –esteem
• Self monitoring
• Risk taking
• Type A/B personality
• Locus of Control
 Machiavellianism
• Machiavellianism describes an individual that has an
immoral reputation for dealing with others to
accomplish his/her own objectives, and for
manipulating others for his/her own purpose
(Christie and Geis, 1970).
• They maintain emotional distance with sub-ordinates
• They believe on ends can justify means and say that
“if it works use it” and ignore the rules in many times
• They are productive in job, have bargaining skill and
success in commissioned sales.
• Seek power
 Cont..
• Machiavellian employs aggressive, manipulative,
exploiting and devious moves to achieve
personal or organization objectives (Calhoon,
1969).
• The needs, feelings or rights of others in the
organization are secondary for them.
• The term Machiavellianism was developed through a
political doctrine of Niccolo Machiavelli. His philosophy
says that the leader should be loyal in communication
or in front of others but should be exploiting and
pressuring from the backside to be successful in politics.
 Self-Esteem
• Self esteem is how you regard or value
yourself in terms of your job, your
accomplishments, your relationship with your
peers and your family and your place in the
society.
• It is actually the image you have of yourself.
• Having high self esteem means you have a
high regard for yourself while low self esteem
means you perceive no value of yourself.
 Self-esteem cont..
• Self esteem is an important diamension of every
individual because it influences and determines success
in your personal life and in your career.
• People with high self-esteem are usually people who are
happy and confident.
• They posses internal locus of control and take
responsibility of own work.
• A person with high self esteem will do the right thing
even if exposed to the wrong set of people. A person
who regards himself highly will not follow what other
people are doing because he has his own discernment of
what is right and wrong.
 Self-Monitoring
• Self-monitoring involves self observation and
self-control guided by situational cues to the
social appropriateness of the behavior.
• The skill includes: self-representation,
situational orientation, field dependent,
aware of social expectation, good observer,
good judgment, easily mix-up etc.
• Too high self-monitoring people change their
face immediately according to the need of the
situation. Others use to say them opportunist.
 Self-monitoring cont…
• High self-monitors get successes in the
occupations like play, supervisor, manager,
observer, mobilizer, machine operator,
mediator etc.
• They are found successful in many jobs and
get promotions quickly.
• They have best skill of interpersonal
communication .
 Improving Self-monitoring Skill
• Self-monitoring skill is an effective tool for
assisting individuals in achieving desired
behavior change goals.
• Self-monitoring skill is an individual’s process
of tracking particular behavioral patterns.
• Although self-monitoring techniques can be as
simple as keeping a diary, such techniques can
also be used to capture additional information
that provides the context for an individual’s
behaviors.
 Risk Taking
• Risk taking personality can be understood by the
willingness to take the chances.
• Risk takers enable to thrive in situation that others find
stressful. We generally say them brave personality. The
characteristics of the personality are:
• Willingness to take chance
• Do decision faster than others and quick action.
• They always become ready to face coming problems
• They are ready to do difficult task that other persons
feel stressed and they are bold people
• They prefer achievement oriented managerial task
 Risk-taking cont…
• Tenzing Sherpa and Sir A. Hillary can be taken
as the risk taking personality.
• Donald Trupm-a real state developer-(one of
the richest person in the world) never feared
to take the chances.
• Certain jobs demand the risk-taking people
like real state, foreign employment manpower,
stock exchange etc.
• Extra-ordinary achievers are always the risk-
taking people.
 Type-A Personality
Friedman & Rosenmen (1974) got this idea at
first.
Especially concerned for workplace situation
because it seems directly relevant to work
output.
 Characteristics of Type A Behavior (TAB)
• Time Urgency and Impatience, as
demonstrated by people who, among other
things,
• get frustrated while waiting in line,
• interrupt others often,
• walk or talk at a rapid pace,
• and are always painfully aware of the time and
how little of it they have to spare.
 Characteristics of Type A Behavior (TAB)
• Free-Floating Hostility or Aggressiveness,
which shows up as impatience, rudeness,
being easily upset over small things, or ‘having
a short fuse’.
• Physical Characteristics:
Facial Tension (Tight Lips, Clenched Jaw, Etc.),
Tongue Clicking or Teeth Grinding, Dark Circles
Under Eyes, Facial Sweating (On Forehead or
Upper Lip)
 Type B Personality
• Patience,
• Relaxes easily,
• Easy-going,
• Calm,
• May avoid confrontation,
• Not quick to anger
• Slow work etc.