Models of Individual Behavior :-

Table of Contents

Models of Individual Behavior :-

1). X and Y Model:-

X model opines that human being does not like to work by their inherent nature. They must be controlled and directed externally to do works. They normally try to avoid responsibilities assigned to them. They work only due to fear of punishments. They have limited ambitions. This model thought human as a machine.

Y model opines that people enjoy doing work inherently. They are self controlled and directed towards work. They inherently search and accept responsibilities. They work because they have drive to fulfill their commitments towards achievement of their organization goals. They have unlimited ambitions. People are complete natural person than machine. 

So, organization should behave employees understanding their type either "X" type or "Y" type. Organization must control and direct lot to X type employee. They should create autonomous and supportive environment to Y type employee.

2).Self Actualization Model:-

Maslow opines that after fulfilling physiological, security, social, self esteem needs of individual another needs arises that is self actualization needs. This model says that individuals realize their creative, intellectual and social potential through internal drive than external rewards, money, status and power. They try to convert their ability, talent and skills to create something for self satisfaction. The major points of this model are such as:-

(i). Self actualization is the final goal of a man. It is the last needs of hierarchy.
(ii).All other needs is satisfied if his self actualization need is fulfilled.
(iii).Various changes in individual behavior can be felt in the process of self actualization.
(iv).Man moves from immaturity to maturity through the self actualization process.
(v).Human being is self inspired and self regulated.
(vi).Management cannot motivate and threaten individuals after certain level by giving any incentives.
(vi).Man is not immature. If man left autonomous, he will try to innovate new things.

Organization should provide creative, challenging and innovative tasks to employees. So, they can feel sense of achievements. But it is challenging for management to assigning self actualization related opportunities.

(3). Social Model:-

Human being is part of society. So, social factors influence us. We always try to maintain social interconnection.  We are interested in conversation, sociability, exchange of feelings & grievance, companionship, belongingness, love, affection and friendship etc. Elton Mayo introduced this model. Major points of this model are such as:-

(i).Man is highly influenced by social needs. He tries to maintain social interconnection.
(ii).Man is more reactive to pressure and restrictions of his society than organizational pressure and restrictions.
(iii). Man gives more worth to social interconnection than financial benefits given by organization.
(iv). Standard of individual's performance is also guided by social standards too.
(v).Man enjoys showing himself as a member of group than as an individual.
(vi).Group leaders plays crucial role in assigning responsibility and applying group norms.

So, manager should keep attention toward feeling and interconnection of employees with their group and society while dealing them.

(4).Complex Model:-

This model believes that human behavior never follows the certain set trends it is because human behavior is influenced by many complex variables. These variables are not anticipatable in nature. Human behavior cannot be tracked even in certain situations and in certain assumptions. Cause-effects relationship established between variables and behavior cannot predict individual behavior due to individual diversities. So, every human being has different behavioral trends. Major points of complex models are such as:-

(i). Human being is very complex and diversified in nature.
(ii). Different people have different hierarchy of their needs.
(iii). Constant job experiences teaches human being new motives.
(iv).Varying organizations, group and division provides different motives to workers.
(v). Workers reacts differently to different strategies enforced by management.

This model believes that human behavior is complex in nature. Needs and personal characteristics of people are different. So, organization should try to adjust working environment with these different variables. Due to which individual behavior becomes favorable to organization.

(5).Economic Model:-

This theory believes that human behavior is influenced by money. They can be motivated to increase organizational outputs by providing incentives according to piece rates and bonuses. Major points of this model are such as:-

(i).Employees work for financial incentives.
(ii).Increase in financial incentives increases their performance.
(iv).Employees are money puppets who can be fooled, inspired and regulated in an organization by financial incentives.
(iv).Perceptions of workers are irrational but these must be regulated to acquire self interest and make rational.
(v).Organizational setting must be established to nullify and regulate human's perceptions and unpredictable features.

According to this model, workers can be inspired to perform better by providing financial incentives. Financial reward makes sound industrial relation. Organization get better performance and worker get more money.

(6).Organizational Model:-

This model believes that workers should be devoted for group and organization. They must be crazy for working on organizational interests and supporting their co-workers. This type of workmanship of employees is called organization model. This model is introduced by William Whyte. The major points of this model are such as:-

(i).Single person is like monkey's tail neither stick nor weapon. Isolated or single person has no meaning.
(ii).Individual can only create something when he join group with synergistic results.
(iii).Human tries to be social. He tries to live with families, relatives, partners and other social members.
(iv).There should be no disputes between society and their individuals.
(v).The goal of being social is achieved with of help of science.
(vi).Disputes between the needs of individuals and needs of society  can be settled by drawing equilibrium using the scientific methods.
(vii).Science can help to remove all barriers due to conflicts between individual and society.

This model believes that there is no dispute between individual and organization. Individual should compromise in favor of group interest if there is any dispute. For that compromise, organization should take care of his individual interests.  Employees are ready to compromise their interests only when organization takes care of them.

 (7).MARS Model:-

Mars model opines that human shows certain behavior as a result of internal and external factors or both together. Elaborated form of MARS is motivation, abilities, role perception and situational factors. These four factors play vital mixed role in determining individual behavior and level individual work execution.  This model can be applied in various fields but it has been mostly used in business administration, social science, organizational psychology, organizational behavior, human resource management studies etc. These factors are determinants of individual behavior and consequences. If any of these 4 factors is lower in given condition, employee's performance will be low.

For example ,a teller assistant of commercial bank who is well known about what services he has to perform in his job (i.e. role perception) and have all infrastructure for teller operation (i.e. situational factors), he will be praised for fast service (i.e. motivation) but he does not know how to perform services technically (i.e. abilities) can't perform job.

(A).Motivation:-

Motivation is inner strength that influences the direction, speed and tolerance of individual's optional choice of behavior.

(a).Directions:- It is the ways of efforts to achieve goals.

(b).Speed:- It is the frequency of efforts kept to achieve goals.

(c). Tolerance:-It is the time given for keeping efforts to achieve goals.

For exam:-A supervisor motivates teller staff to fast and quality services.

(B).Ability:-

The capability or capacity of individual to execute different types of task in organization is regarded as ability.  Aptitudes, learnt capabilities, proficiency and right person.

(a).Aptitude:-It is the natural tendency of learning specific tasks quickly and performing better.

(b).Learnt capabilities:-This mental and physiological skills and knowledge that individual have acquired already.

(c). Proficiency:-It is competencies, abilities, capacities, values and individual characteristics and other features that help to bring superior performance.

(d).Matching the person:- Three ways to matching person to job are such as:-

 (i).Choosing the eligible person.

 (ii).Enhancing employee's skills through training and development program.

 (iii).Restructuring job to fit existing skills of employees.

For example:- Ram should perform 100 transactions  per day as a teller assistant in a bank but he completes 150 transactions per day. It is because he has fast typing and cash counting skills.

(C).Role Perceptions:-

Role perceptions is the understanding the behavior to be performed to acquire desire results. It is job duties given to individuals or expected from them. It is four types:-

(a).Understanding specific job assigned to them.
(b).Understanding the priorities of tasks and performance expectations.
(c). Understanding the behavior or procedures to complete assigned tasks.
(d). Clarifying role perceptions.

For example:- Every individuals must be clear about job assigned to them. For instance, the teller assistant cashes the check and the teller head authorizes the check.

(D).Situational Factors:-

Situational factors are not in control of employees for short time frame. Their behavior depends upon the situation through which they are going on. Situational factors are the changing consumer preferences and economic crisis arouse from external environment are beyond control of employee and organization. Other factors are people, time, infrastructural arrangement, budget are controlled by people within organization.

(8).Behavioral Model:-

Behavioral model opines that human being learn behavioral patterns. Human being learns behavior due to the cause of cognitive issues. Cognitive issues arise due to dysfunctional behavior patterns used or absorbed. Behavioral patterns are the outcomes of life experiences and environmental factors. This model focuses on observable behavior.

(9).Humanistic Model:-

This model opines that human being must be taken as complete natural person. They have free will, self actualization and self efficacy. Management should focus on utilizing their potentiality and maximizing their well being than focusing on their dysfunctions.

(10).Rational Model:-

Rational model opines that human have control on their behavior. They don’t perform certain behavior due to unconscious drives, tradition and environmental factors. They use wisdom to evaluate consequences and potential advantages of certain behavior before showing it.

(11). Emotional Model:-

Emotional model opines that emotion determines individual behavior. Generally emotions are of six categories:- anger, fear, joy, love, sadness and surprise. This six stimulus influences individual behavior. Employees can't be customer friendly while they are in anger, sadness or fear but they become customer friendly while they are happy, in joy or love, it is positive emotions. The by birth stimulus, superego and the ego influence individual behavior too.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Explain models of individual of behavior.
2. Explain MARS model.
3. What are the models of individual behavior. Explain them.
4.Explain any five models of individual behavior. Why do you choose them?