ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR- CASE STUDY

THE CASE UNDER STUDY TITLED- DIFFERENT STROKES, IS ABOUT TWO

PEOPLE, CHILDHOOD FRIENDS HAVING CONTRASTING PERSONALITIES
AND TRAITS. THE OBSERVATIONS ABOUT THE CASE PRESENTED HERE:

The story is about two friends, John and Shekhar who did their schooling
and higher education together and landed up in the same company in the
same department. However, the two had a different personalities
described below.
John, who was an extrovert had a large circle of friends and enjoyed
socializing. He could speak on any topic and was a part of all gatherings
and parties. He focussed on managing relationships rather than delivering
output and was a highly successful Marketing Executive in his
Organisation.
Shekhar on the other hand, was shy, reserved and a voracious reader. He
liked to spend time by himself and avoided parties. He was a good
observant and could narrate any incident in minutest details. He was goal
oriented, success driven and managed to fulfil his objectives despite
difficulties.
Gordon Allports Trait Theory Defines traits by studying individuals in
depth and focuses on the distinctive qualities of their personalities.
Accordingly there are three different types of traits as follows:

Cardinal Traits: A trait that dominates ones personality.

Central Traits: Generalized traits that form the building blocks of our
personality
Secondary Traits: The traits that are sometimes related to attitudes
or preferences and often appear only in certain situations or under
specific circumstances.

As per Gordon Allports theory, the following differentiating personality

traits are observed in the two characters under study:
Type of Trait

John

Shekhar

Cardinal Trait
Central Traits

Secondary
Traits

EXTROVERT
ACHIEVEMENT ORIENTED
PRACTICAL
SHY AND RESERVED
CONSIDERATE
AND DREAMER, DREAMT OF
CARING
BIG THINGS
PATIENT, RELAXED
OBSERVANT
LEARNT BY DISCUSSING WORKAHOLIC
POPULAR IN HIS TEAM
POSSESSED LEADERSHIP
QUALITIES
FOCUSSED
ON
STRICT WITH DEADLINES
RELATIONSHIP
BUILDING
LACKED A SENSE OF AUTOCRATIC
AND
URGENCY.
WAS
EXHIBITED
BUSINESS
ACCUSED OF BEING
LIKE ATTITUDE.
APATHETIC,
AND WAS PERCEIVED TO BE
DISENGAGED.
AGGRESSIVE WITH HIS
WAS PERCEIVED BY HIS
TEAM MEMBERS
BOSS TO BE WASTING
TIME AND DISTRACTING
OTHERS.

Taking the above factors into consideration and according to McRae and
Costas Big 5 Theory, Shekhar possesses a CONSCIENTIOUS PERSONALITY,
while John possesses an EXTROVERT PERSONALITY.
Shekhar could not perform well in Marketing Department
and Reserved person who liked to be alone. He was not a
was Authoritative with the team members. However,
Oriented, Success Driven Workaholic and a Voracious
possessed the qualities necessary to be successful
Development Department.

as he was a Shy
Team Player and
he was a Goal
Reader. So, he
in Research &

CONCLUSION: Two persons with CONTRASTING PERSONALITIES, no matter

how well they know each other or for how long they know each other, will
find it difficult to work together unless they alter their personalities to
some extent and keep their differences aside in order to achieve the
ultimate goal of the organization.