Individual and group behavior is affected by a wide variety of variables, no matter what setting the subjects find themselves in. Within an organization, there are many levels that craft behavioral patterns: culture, management techniques, human psychology and individual communication all contribute to the development of organizational behavior. In short, organizational behavior refers to the study of behaviors within a business-oriented organization. The study can examine individual employee behavior, behaviors regarding employees as a whole, or behaviors of the entire organizational structural team.

How organization guide and influence behavior is a multi-layered investigation that can be approached from many angles. Often, individual employee behavior is studied within an organizational environment, as well as the behavioral interactions between coworkers in a group. Other times, scientists examine the overarching behaviors attributed to the entire organization – how it functions, its policies, its ethics and its interactions with other organizations. By observing employees and organizations, as well as using theoretical techniques and other experiments, scientists can determine exact kinds of behaviors within organizations. Effectively, an organizational structure becomes a culture. The behaviors of individuals within that culture are guided by the goals, ethics and standards of the organization. In a similar way, the entire organization interacts with other businesses in a certain way, as it aligns with their organizational culture. Education, values and beliefs can all affect the behavior of an organization.

There are many theories within the study of organizational behavior. One popular theory concludes that organizational success relies on identical employer-employee behaviors. This includes similar ethical codes, policies and goals that guide general behavior and decision-making. When employers utilize this behavioral theory, they are able to structure their organizational behavior so that all employees at every level are working towards a similar outcome. Motivation is also a key element to consider when studying organizational behavior. Employees that have more motivation to succeed within a company’s framework are more likely to have effective, organizationally aligned behaviors than those with less motivation. Other factors in determining organizational behaviors include the political structure of a company (do employees share in decision-making?), managerial techniques, stress levels and personality.

Understanding organizational behavior has helped many companies and corporations produce effective, reliable management strategies and cohesive, smooth-running work environments. Organizational behavior research has also helped develop a variety of solutions to organizational needs, including effective team-building workshops, decision-making models, motivational tools and paths to performance improvement. With the help of organizational behavior research, organizations are moving towards a friendlier, more community-oriented and profitable future.