Work Behaviours and Performance
4.1 Work Behaviours
One of the important objectives of the field of organizational behaviour is to understand why people behave the way they do. Which behaviours are we referring to here? We will focus on four key work behaviours: job performance, organizational citizenship behaviours, absenteeism, and turnover. These are not the only behaviours OB is concerned with, but understanding these key behaviours and the major influences over each will give you more clarity on how to analyze other workplace behaviours. We summarized the major research findings about the causes of each type of behaviour in the following figure.
Job Performance
Job performance, or in-role performance, refers to the performance level on factors included in the job description. For each job, the content of job performance may differ. Measures of job performance include the quality and quantity of work performed by the employee, the accuracy and speed with which the job is performed, and the overall effectiveness of the person performing the job. In many companies, job performance determines whether a person is promoted, rewarded with pay raises, given additional responsibilities, or fired from the job. Therefore, job performance is tracked and observed in many organizations and is one of the main outcomes studied in the field of organizational behaviour.
What Are the Major Predictors of Job Performance?
Under which conditions do people perform well, and what are the characteristics of high performers? These questions receive a lot of research attention.
It seems that the most powerful influence over our job performance is our (1) general mental ability, or cognitive abilities. Our reasoning abilities, verbal and numerical skills, analytical skills, and overall intelligence level seems to be important across most situations. It seems that general mental ability starts influencing us early in life; it is strongly correlated with measures of academic success (Kuncel, Hezlett, & Ones, 2004). As we grow and mature, cognitive ability is also correlated with different measures of job performance (Bertua, Anderson, & Salgado, 2005; Kuncel, Hezlett, & Ones, 2004; Salgado et al., 2003; Schmidt & Hunter, 2004; Vinchur et al., 1998). General mental ability is important for job performance across different settings, but there is also variation. In jobs with high complexity, it is much more critical to have high general mental abilities. In jobs such as working in sales, management, engineering, or other professional areas, this ability is much more important. Whereas for jobs involving manual labor or clerical work, the importance of high mental abilities for high performance is weaker, yet still important.
(2)How we are treated within an organization is another factor determining our performance level. When we feel that we are being treated fairly by a company, have a good relationship with our manager, have a manager who is supportive and rewards high performance, and we trust the people we work with, we tend to perform better. Why? It seems that when we are treated well, we want to reciprocate. Therefore, when we are treated well, we treat the company well by performing our job more effectively (Colquitt et al., 2001; Colquitt, Scott, & LePine, 2007; Podsakoff, MacKenzie, & Bommer, 1996).
Following the quality of treatment, (3) the stress we experience determines our performance level. When we experience high levels of stress, our mental energies are drained. Instead of focusing on the task at hand, we start concentrating on the stressor and become distracted trying to cope with it. Because our attention and energies are diverted to deal with stress, our performance suffers. Having role ambiguity and experiencing conflicting role demands are related to lower performance (Gilboa et al., 2008). Stress that prevents us from doing our jobs does not have to be related to our experiences at work. For example, according to a survey conducted by Workplace Options, 45% of the respondents said that financial stress affects work performance. When people are in debt, worrying about mortgage or tuition payments, or having trouble paying for essentials such as gas and food, their performance suffers (Financial stress, 2008).
(4) Our work attitudes, specifically job satisfaction, are moderate correlations to job performance. When we are satisfied with the job, we may perform better. This relationship seems to exist in jobs with greater levels of complexity and weakens in simpler and less complicated jobs. It is possible that in less complex jobs, our performance depends more on the machinery we work with or organizational rules and regulations. In other words, people may have less leeway to reduce performance in these jobs. Also, in some jobs people do not reduce their performance even when dissatisfied. For example, among nurses there seems to be a weak correlation between satisfaction and performance. Even when they are unhappy, nurses put substantial effort into their work, likely because they feel a moral obligation to help their patients (Judge et al., 2001).
Organizational Citizenship Behaviours
While job performance refers to the performance of duties listed in one’s job description, organizational citizenship behaviours involve performing behaviours that are more discretionary.
We all know an employee who always goes the extra mile, right? That one person who goes above and beyond for their co-workers and the company. They may not even know it themselves, but what they’re demonstrating is called organizational citizenship behavior.
Organizational citizenship behaviours (OCB) are voluntary behaviours employees perform to help others and benefit the organization. Helping a new co-worker understand how things work in your company, volunteering to organize the company picnic, and providing suggestions to management about how to improve business processes are some examples of citizenship behaviours. These behaviours contribute to the smooth operation of business.
What are the major predictors of citizenship behaviours? Unlike performance, citizenship behaviours do not depend so much on one’s abilities. Job performance, to a large extent, depends on our general mental abilities. When you add the education, skills, knowledge, and abilities that are needed to perform well, the role of motivation in performance becomes more limited. As a result, a motivated individual will not necessarily translate into a person performing well. For citizenship behaviours, the motivation-behaviour link is clearer. We help others around us if we feel motivated to do so.
Benefits of OCB
We’ve already mentioned a few benefits of organizational citizenship behavior above, but here is a (non-exhaustive) overview:
- OCB can boost employee morale
- It increases people’s levels of work meaningfulness. OCB allows employees to feel more control over their activities, as well as feel good about helping others. Both these components could lead people to experience work meaningfulness.
- It is good for employee performance and productivity; in fact, research shows that OCB positively predicts performance
- It creates better social interactions between employees
- It reduces stress
- It creates a sense of community among employees
- It is good for your Employer Brand
Absenteeism
Absenteeism refers to unscheduled absences from work.
When employees are habitually absent from work without good reason, that’s absenteeism. Authorized absences — scheduled vacations and family emergencies, for example — don’t count as absenteeism. Absenteeism is easy to spot because employees aren’t physically present in the office.
Example #1: Peter suffers from depression, but he doesn’t recognize the symptoms. Frequently tired and feeling generally demoralized, he regularly calls in sick.
Example #2: Aman’s colleague, Steve, often criticizes his performance at work and makes unwanted advances when his line manager isn’t on site. Feeling intimidated, he stays away from the office.
Absenteeism is costly to companies because of its unpredictable nature. When an employee has an unscheduled absence from work, companies struggle to find replacement workers at the last minute. This may involve hiring contingent workers, having other employees work overtime, or scrambling to cover for an absent co-worker.
What causes absenteeism? First, we need to look at the types of absenteeism. Some absenteeism is unavoidable and is related to health reasons. For example, reasons such as lower back pain, migraines, accidents on or off the job, or acute stress are important reasons for absenteeism (Farrell & Stamm, 1988; Martocchio, Harrison, & Berkson, 2000). Health-related absenteeism is costly but dealing with such absenteeism by using organizational policies penalizing absenteeism is both unreasonable and unfair. A sick employee who shows up at work will infect coworkers and will not be productive. Instead, companies are finding that programs aimed at keeping workers healthy are effective in dealing with this type of absenteeism. Companies using wellness programs that educate employees about proper nutrition, help increase exercise, and reward them for healthy habits are related to reduced absenteeism (Parks & Steelman, 2008).
Presenteeism
When employees are present but not productive, that’s presenteeism. Instead of completing tasks efficiently, they stare into space, chat, browse the internet or take extended breaks away from their desks. Presenteeism is more difficult to define than absenteeism: employees are physically there, but they’re mentally unengaged.
Example #1: Margarita has been ill for a while, but she doesn’t have any more sick days and she can’t afford to take unpaid time off. She attends work, but her performance is subpar.
Example #2: Prashant is the most experienced attorney at his firm. He has the flu, but he comes into work anyway because he isn’t comfortable handing off cases to his colleagues. Prashant is unable to give of his best.
Turnover
Turnover refers to an employee leaving an organization. Employee turnover has potentially harmful consequences, such as poor customer service and poor companywide performance. When employees leave, their jobs still need to be performed by someone, so companies spend time recruiting, hiring, and training new employees, all the while suffering from lower productivity. Yet, not all turnover is bad. Turnover is particularly a problem when high-performing employees leave, while a poor performer’s turnover may actually give the company a chance to improve productivity and morale.
Why do employees leave? An employee’s performance level is an important reason. People who perform poorly are actually more likely to leave. These people may be fired or be encouraged to quit, or they may quit because of their fear of being fired. If a company has pay-for-performance systems, poor performers will find that they are not earning much, owing to their substandard performance. This pay discrepancy gives poor performers an extra incentive to leave. On the other hand, instituting a pay-for-performance system does not mean that high performers will always stay with a company. Note that high performers may find it easier to find alternative jobs, so when they are unhappy, they can afford to quit their jobs voluntarily (Williams & Livingstone, 1994).
Work attitudes are often the primary culprit in why people leave. When workers are unhappy at work, and when they are not attached to their companies, they are more likely to leave. Loving the things they do, being happy with the opportunities for advancement within the company, and being happy about pay are all aspects of work attitudes relating to turnover. Of course, the link between work attitudes and turnover is not direct. When employees are unhappy, they might have the intention to leave and may start looking for a job, but their ability to actually leave will depend on many factors such as their employability and the condition of the job market.
A Pew research report highlighted that the COVID-19 pandemic set off nearly unprecedented churn in the U.S. labor market. Widespread job losses in the early months of the pandemic gave way to tight labor markets in 2021, driven in part by what’s come to be known as the Great Resignation. The nation’s “quit rate” reached a 20-year high in November 2021.
Majorities of workers who quit a job in 2021 say low pay (63%), no opportunities for advancement (63%) and feeling disrespected at work (57%) were reasons why they quit.
Roughly half say child care issues were a reason they quit a job (48% among those with a child younger than 18 in the household). A similar share point to a lack of flexibility to choose when they put in their hours (45%) or not having good benefits such as health insurance and paid time off (43%).
Key Takeaways
Employees demonstrate a wide variety of positive and negative behaviours at work. Among these behaviours, four are critically important and have been extensively studied in OB literature. Job performance is a person’s accomplishments of tasks listed in one’s job description. A person’s abilities, particularly mental abilities, are the main predictor of job performance in many occupa- tions. How we are treated at work, the level of stress experienced, work attitudes, and, to a lesser extent, our personality are also factors relating to one’s job performance. Citizenship behaviours are tasks helpful to the organization but are not in one’s job description. Performance of citizenship behaviours is less a function of our abilities and more of motivation. How we are treated at work, personality, work attitudes, and our age are the main predictors of citizenship. Among negative behaviours, absenteeism and turnover are critically important. Health problems and work-life balance issues contribute to more absenteeism. Poor work attitudes are also related to absenteeism, and younger employees are more likely to be absent from work. Turnover is higher among low performers, people who have negative work attitudes, and those who experience a great deal of stress. Personality and youth are personal predictors of turnover.
Exercises
- What is the difference between performance and organizational citizenship behaviors? How would you increase someone’s performance? How would you increase citizenship behaviors?
- Are citizenship behaviors always beneficial to the company? If not, why not? Can you think of any citizenship behaviors that employees may perform with the intention of helping a company but that may have negative consequences overall?
- Given the factors correlated with job performance, how would you identify future high performers?
- What are the major causes of absenteeism at work? How can companies minimize the level of absenteeism that takes place?
- In some companies, managers are rewarded for minimizing the turnover within their department or branch. A part of their bonus is tied directly to keeping the level of turnover below a minimum. What do you think about the potential effectiveness of these programs? Do you see any downsides to such programs
Conclusion
Work attitudes are our feelings toward our company and job. Job satisfaction and organizational commitment are related to many outcomes of interest, such as absenteeism, performance, and turnover. Therefore, companies track feelings toward work and try to create more positive attitudes. The main behaviours that contribute to organizational effectiveness are job performance, citizenship behaviours, absenteeism, and turnover. These behaviours are affected by a complex blend of personality and situational factors, and factors affecting these behaviours and work attitudes will be examined in more detail in other chapters of this book.
