Personality Theory: Unlocking Workplace Behavior & its Benefits to HR - Essay Sample

Introduction

The psychology of individuals in the workplace provides an important basis for predicting behavior displayed at work. The tools of psychology especially the theories have contributed to the research on the work behavior in various organizations. The focus of this paper is the advantages of applying the theory of personality in understanding individuals and their differences in a work environment, and their usefulness to HR professionals

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Personality

Personality has a broad definition and does not describe the outward display of a behavior. It widely describes behavior patterns resulting from a dominant though of the individual, which makes them exclusive. External factors can affect how personality traits can be expressed, the personality of an individual is expected to remain the same as the person grows older.HR managers and occupational psychologists need to understand the characteristics of a personality based on psychological evidence because they deal with diverse people daily. The first characteristic of personality is its organization and uniqueness, the ability of the personality to be influenced by the environment and its great effects on the behavior of an individual

Theories of Personality Explaining Individual Difference

Biological Theories

The biological theories argue that the behavior displayed and the uniqueness of a personality is due to the genetic and cognitive differences of individuals (Hall, Lindsey, and Campbell). The researchers have discovered a link between heredity and personality. The theory was made famous by a theorist named Eysenck, who based his judgment on the difference of genes among the introverts and the extroverts.

The Behavioral Theory

The theory argues that a personality is as a result of an individual interacting with the environment to create a conbditiuoning.B.F.Skinner and J.B.watson are the major proponents of this theory(Hall,lindzey, and Campbell). They suggest that conditioning one's behavior to an environment produces the desired personality for that environment.

The Psychodynamic Theory

The theory links personality t the way an individual grows up. It is based on psychoanalysis which describes personality as a result of a childhood experience at providing solutions to internal conflicts.

The Humanistic Theory

The theory argues that a personality is a result of the free will of a person. It describes a person as a free being who can make a decision based on preference and needs.

Importance of Understanding Theories of Personality at the Workplace for Professional HR /Line Manager

There are several advantages of understanding the theories for people in professions such as Human Resource Management and Occupational Psychologists.

It helps the HR professional to understand the motives of an employee at the workplace. The manager gets to understand the things that the employee loves or hates and gets the best method to motivate or direct them. When the professional HR applies the concept of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) on the employees or teammates, they understand the preference of people, especially when making a decision(Reis and Mitra,pp1581-1593). According to the indicator, perception occurs in four categories namely: Thinking/feeling, introversion/extraversion, thinking/feeling, judging/perception. This will lessen the conflict that may arise in the workplace.

Another advantage of understanding the theories is that the professionals can swiftly assign tasks and offer informed decisions on workers to promote or demote. According to the trait-type approach of psychology on personality. Individuals possess different traits that make them naturally aggressive or not. The psychometric tests show that some people are poor performers in different environments. This knowledge is useful because workers with passion and interest in particular tasks can be assigned the duties more often. This will not only optimize productivity but the happiness and the satisfaction of the order at the assigned duty.

It enables the professionals to be proactive about the issues and the challenges that the employees might be facing. The knowledge of the theories is important in predicting what a person would react in a certain situation at a workplace, hence appropriate measures to handle them. According to the psychoanalytic approach to understanding personality, a person at a younger age is faced with a challenge of deciding between natural biological drives and the expectations of the society(Shockley and Allen,pp131-142). The way a person reacts to change or a situation, in reality, is as a result of his decisions when facing the internal conflict at a younger age. Some employees cannot handle new changes in leadership and take longer to adapt to changes.

The theories are helpful in a work environment because the professionals can build a high performing team, especially when selecting a workforce for a special assignment or promotion. This is achieved by understanding how individuals learn differently so that a proper training scheme is drawn(Nikolaou). When the needs of the different persons are meet during training, the skill gap is closed. It maximizes the quality of the service being delivered.

Finally, the HR and the managers must understand the theories, so that they can solve misunderstandings that might arise between employees in a working environment. The individual difference, dictates the relationship between two individuals, when the personalities are not compatible, there is no cooperation and conflict may arise(Edwards). An extrovert, working with another extrovert would work well because they would feel like responsive and impulsive. The case is different when the same person is working with an introvert who would feel like the person is loud, talkative and proud. A professional with the knowledge of the theories are adequately prepared for the conflicts

References

Edwards, M.R., 2010. An integrative review of employer branding and OB theory. Personnel Review. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/00483481011012809/full/html?src=recsys

Hall, C.S., Lindzey, G. and Campbell, J.B., 1957. Theories of personality (No. 04; BF698, H3.). New York: Wiley. http://www.loyno.edu/courses/syllabi/PSYC-A440-0022015F.pdf

Nikolaou, I., 2003. Fitting the person to the organization: examining the personalityjob performance relationship from a new perspective. Journal of Managerial Psychology. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/02683940310502368/full/html

Reiss, M.C. and Mitra, K., 1998. The effects of individual difference factors on the acceptability of ethical and unethical workplace behaviors. Journal of Business Ethics, 17(14), pp.1581-1593. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1005742408725

Shockley, K.M. and Allen, T.D., 2010. Investigating the missing link in flexible work arrangement utilization: An individual difference perspective. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 76(1), pp.131-142. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001879109000931