Security - The Psychology of Business Success
An article by Michelle Johnston shows quite clearly how an individual manager's psychology affects the way they relate to others which in turn has a profound effect on the success of their business. Carrying out her research at Cornell University, Johnston surveyed 229 small business owners and/or managers. She asked them about patterns of delegation as well as about their overall view of relationships with others.Not surprisingly she found the two to be related. Specifically:
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People who were secure about others reported the highest levels of delegation.
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People who avoided close personal relationships reported the lowest levels of delegation.
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People who were anxious about their relationships with others (both wanting to relate but fearful of getting hurt) fell in the middle.
She went on to interview in more detail 159 of her sample. She found that secure managers, in comparison to the avoidant and anxious, tended to:
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See employees as more reliable.
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Report significantly lower rates of employee turnover.
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Be less likely to have difficulty finding new employees.
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Be less likely to report conflict with employees.
In addition the three types of manager ran three different types of organisation as follows:
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Secure managers ran organisations that were decentralised.
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Avoidant managers ran organisations that were centralised.
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Anxious managers ran organisations that were disorganised.
The conclusion is that people's general views of relationships, not surprisingly, have a profound impact at work. It seems quite clear that having a more secure view will help a person behave to others at work in a way that is motivating. At the simplest level, people who tend to be avoidant or anxious would be advised to challenge their views of other people and be more discriminating between those who can and cannot be trusted. In a new relationship,they should start off, like the secure people, by giving others the benefit of the doubt. People who are trusted tend to be trustworthy; treating people with suspicion tends to cause them to give up and leave. In this way,the less secure person gets caught up in a vicious circle. Breaking out of the circle will lead to greater happiness in life and success at work.
Reference
Johnston, M. A. (2000) Delegation and organizational structure in small businesses: Influences of manager's attachment patterns. Group and Organizational Management, 25, 4-21.
Newsletter: 2003