Individual Behavior and How it Impacts Performance

Human  behavior,being the most complex phenomenon,is most difficult to assess in quantifiable terms.However,since behavior constitutes a set of responses to external and internal stimuli,some relationship between a given stimulus and its predictable response can be established.Responses would reflect psychological structure of the person and may be a result of a combination of both biological and psychological processes.It is  a system by which a human being senses external events and influences,interprets them,responds to them in an appropriate manner and learns from these responses.

    Kurt Levin,a psychologist says that people are influenced by a number of diversified factors,both genetic and environmental,and the influence of these factors determines the pattern of individual behavior.His conception goes as "the field theory"wherein he suggests that:

                                         B=F(P,E)

So that behavior(B)is a function(F)of the person(P)and environment(E)around him.

There  are two factors that have a direct bearing on human behavior.One is the person himself with regard to some characteristics acquired by birth or by family background.The other is the environment to which the person is exposed and the environmental forces that are constantly impacting his personality and behavior.Both these factors are interlinked and behavior cannot be explained in itself by either of the two factors,independent of the other factor.

                     Behavioral characteristics are considered to be both inherited and learned.Inherited behavioral characteristics include psychological espects,intelligence,sex,age and religion.Learned characteristics include a person's perception about his surrounding environment,his attitudes towards life itself and towards other people,his personality and his ethical values.Both the inherited as well as learned characteristics together have and important bearing on the behavoir of a person,and knowing the extent of the influences of these factors on the person,his behavior may be predictable at least in general terms.

              The external environment is known to have a considerable effect on a person's behavior as a response to a particular stimulus in the external environment.For example,if a particular situation in the environment is hostile to a person's values and established behavior may temporary change as a response to such a situation.For example,some of the coolest people have been knows to lose temper under certain hostile situations.

                       Behavior can be considered as an input-output system.This concept assumes that behavior is not simply a random phenomenon but is goal directed so that a measurable co-relation exists between the goals and behavior.The external stimulus and input excites the internal processes to activate and the behavior responses occur.This means that behavior related to performance and productivity.

      Performance is a reflection of three characteristics.These are an individuals "capacity"to perform,his "willingness" to perform and the extent and nature of the organizational support.While organizational support basically provides an "opportunity" to perform which does affect behavior to some degree,the capacity and the willingness are directly associated with human behavior.

  Whether,in organizations "opportunity" is provided to the deserved or fitting people is a fundamental question asked in most of the socially underdeveloped countries.