ORGANIZATION BEHAVIOR

Assignment on
What is the key biographical Characteristics and how
are the relevant to Organization behavior?
Prepared by: Faizan Ch
Submitted To: Prof. Shahbir Ahmad
Program: M.Com-1

SUPERIOR COLLEGE OKARA

Define of Biographical characteristics

Biographical characteristics are personalities or characters that
influence a person. These characters normally affect a person in one
way or the other within an organization or within the society.

Biographical characteristics
Age:
1) Older workers bring experience , judgment, a strong work ethic and commitment
to quality
2) Effect of age on turnover:
The older you get = less likely to quit
Reasons: fewer job opportunities, higher benefits
3) Effect of age on absenteeism:
Older employees = lower rates on avoidable absences
4) Effect of age on productivity:
Unrelated
Reason: some decay due to age, offset by gains due to experiences
5) Effect of age on satisfaction:
Tends to increase among professionals
Tends to decrease among nonprofessionals during middle-age and rises
in later years.

Race: (the biological heritage used to identify ones self)

1) Some scholars argue that it is not productive to discuss race for:
Policy reason (divisive issue or can cause disagreement)
Biological reason (large percentage are a mixture or races)
Genetics and anthropological reason (anthropologists and evolutionary
scientists reject concept of distinct racial categories)
2) Contentious issue: differences exist, but could be more culture-based than racebased
3) Racial differences in cognitive ability tests continues to be hotly debated

Gender:
1) No consistent male-female differences in problem solving ability, analytical skills,
competitive drive, motivation, sociability, or learning ability
2) Women are more willing to conform with authority
3) Men are more aggressive and more likely to have expectations of success
4) Women with preschool children prefer part-time work, flexible work schedules
and telecommuting to accommodate family responsibilities
5) Issue on absenteeism, no significant difference
Tenure: (length of service)
1) Most recent evidence demonstrates a positive relationship between seniority and
job productivity
2) Tenure (work experience) appears to be a good predictor of employee
productivity
3) In terms of both frequency of absence and total days lost at work. tenure is the
single most important explanatory variable
4) Potent variable in explaining turnover
5) Longer a person in a job = less likely to quit
6) Past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior
7) Tenure and job satisfaction are positively related
8) Stable predictor of job satisfaction than chronological age
Religion:
1) People of different religion faith conflict, so manger need to be sensitive.
Sexual Orientation:
1) Federal law does not protect against discrimination (but state or local laws may)
2) Domestic partner benefits are important considerations
Gender Identity:
1) Focus on employees who change gender, i.e. transgender.