Behavioral Approach to Management
The behavioral management theory had a profound influence on management by focusing on understanding the human dimensions of work. It is also called human relations movement as behavioral theorists focused on managing productivity by understanding factors of worker motivation like their needs and expectations, personality, attitudes, values, group behavior, conflict, and group dynamics. It advocated the use of psychological techniques to motivate employees.
The behavioral school of management emphasized what the classical theorists ignored which is the human element of the workplace. While classical theorists only viewed the organization from a production perspective, the behavioral theorists also focused their study on an individual’s attitudes, behaviors, and group dynamics in the workplace culture.
Hawthorne Studies
The behavioral approach emerged primarily as an outcome of the Hawthrone studies. Many Parke Follet, Elton Mayo, and his associates, Abraham Maslow, Douglas MCgradgor, and Chris Angyris were the major contributors to this school. As part of these studies, the researchers concluded that the workers worked harder because they thought that they were being monitored individually.
This study established the behavioral change that happened due to an awareness of being observed, resulting in active compliance with the supposed wishes of researchers, because of special attention received, or positive response to the stimulus being introduced.
Elton Mayo's experiments showed an increase in worker productivity was produced by the psychological stimulus of being singled out, involved, and made to feel important. Researchers hypothesized that choosing one's own coworkers, working as a group, being treated as special, and having a sympathetic supervisor were the real reasons for the productivity increase.
One interpretation was that "the six individuals became a team and the team gave itself wholeheartedly and spontaneously to cooperation in the experiment. Hawthorne Effect can be summarized as “Employees will respond positively to any novel change in a work environment like better illumination, clean work stations, relocating workstations, etc. Employees are more productive because they know they are being studied.
These findings made Mayo and Roethlisberger conclude that a leader has not only to plan, decide, organize, lead, and control but also consider the human element. This includes the social needs of being together and being recognized for the work interaction of the group members with each other and their wellbeing. A good leader ought to keep the above aspects in his style of working with people and supervising their work.
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
Abraham H Maslow (1908-1970), the psychologist, theorized that people were motivated by a hierarchy of needs. Maslow (1943) focused on human needs. Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory that explains that people are motivated by five basic categories of human needs. These needs are physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization.
His theory rested on three assumptions:
- All of us have needs which are never completely fulfilled
- Through our acts, we try to fulfill our unsatisfied needs
- Human needs occur in the following hierarchical manner:
- Physiological needs;
- Safety or security needs,
- Belonging needs or self-fulfillment needs
According to Maslow, once needs at a specific level have been satisfied, they no longer act as motivators of behaviors. Then the individual strives to fulfill needs at the next level. Managers who accepted Maslow's hierarchy of needs attempted to change their management practices so that employees' needs could be satisfied.
This theory established the principle that a leader's behaviors can be conditioned in a manner that one can have a specific response to specific stimuli. The behavioral theory promotes the value of leadership styles with an emphasis on concern for people and collaboration. It promotes participative decision making and team development by supporting individual needs and aligning individual and group objectives.
It helps managers evaluate and understand how their behavioral style as a manager affects their relationship with the team and promotes commitment and contribution towards organizational goals. This theory helps managers find the right balance between different styles of leadership, and helps them decide how to behave as a leader, depending on concerns for people and for productivity.
Suggested Reading and Resources
Related Links
You May Also Like
-
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory that explains that people are motivated by five basic categories of human needs. These needs are physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization. There is a little scientific basis for this concept of a hierarchy of needs.
-
Teams are part of the modern organizational culture. Whether you are a team leader or a team member, having a better understanding of how teams work, and being able to identify where the team is in the process, is a critical part of ensuring the team is ultimately successful. Start with the basics and understand what a team is and what role they play in an organization.
-
The concept of management refers to the process of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, coordinating, and controlling to achieve organizational goals. It is the management of human, physical, financial, and other valuable resources of the organization in an effective and efficient manner to achieve business objectives.
-
In today's business world, proficiency in management skills is essential for career growth and success. Managerial skills can be defined as attributes or abilities that are essential for every leader and manager to succeed and fulfill specific tasks expected from them by the organization.
-
All the teams are dynamic in nature and they take time to come together, they form, develop, and grow in stages, over a period of time. Teams go through five progressive stages: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing and Adjourning. In this article, we want to introduce you to these stages of team development and certain strategies that you can use to help the team grow and develop in each of these stages.
-
The ten most important qualities that define a good leader are self-awareness, interpersonal and communication skills, ethical values, organizational consciousness, self-confidence, adaptability and flexibility, imagination and creativity, focus & result-orientation, continuous self-development and accountability and ownership for his actions. These ten qualities of leadership every good leader should possess to a certain extent and must continually strive to develop them.
-
In today's innovation-driven economy, understanding how to generate great ideas has become an urgent managerial priority. Managers need to encourage and champion ideas and need to help their organizations incorporate diverse perspectives, which spur creative insights and facilitate creative collaboration by harnessing new technologies. Innovation is the embodiment, combination, and/or synthesis of knowledge in original, relevant, valued new products, processes, or services.
-
Productivity is defined not in terms of the number of goods produced, but in terms of value-added per employee. Customers don’t really buy goods and services but in fact, they buy a value - something they value. The future is all about tangible products fulfilling intangible needs. Ideas like this can transform a business and provide them a competitive advantage to thrive in the future.
-
Emergent leadership occurs when a group member is not appointed or elected as leader, but rather that person steps up as the leader over time within-group interactions. Have you ever faced challenges in getting accepted into your new role of position as a leader? Groups don't automatically accept a new "boss" as a leader. Emergent leadership is what you must do when taking over a new group. Learn more about emergent leadership.
-
Taylor’s Scientific Management
Taylor’s theory of scientific management aimed at improving economic efficiency and labor productivity. Taylor had a simple view that money motivated people at work. He felt that workers should get a fair day's pay for a fair day's work, and that pay should be linked to the amount produced. He introduced the differential piece rate system, of paying wages to the workers.
