The Behaviour Effect

Watching the programme ‘House’ the other night I was struck by a the way Cameran delivered the line “If that’s what you want” to her husband and colleague Chase.  She placed the emphasis on the word ‘you’.  The meaning was clear.  She was making a point about who’s opinion she thought Chase was expressing.  She suspecting (rightly!) that Chase had been manipulated into the opinion by the irrepressible House.  Emphasising ‘you’…she stressed that Chase should be sure it was indeed his opinion and not someoneelses.

It got me thinking about the tone of voice we use and which word we place the emphasis on.  Repeat Cameran’s line to yourself, “If that’s what you want”. Say it five times, each time emphasising a different word.  How does that change the meaning of the sentence.?

When the word ‘if’ is stressed…you sound as though you are questioning the person’s opinion.  It sounds as there is doubt about the surety of the statement, that there is room to maneuver.  When ‘that’ is stressed, its the content that is being questioned…when ‘want’ is stressed, the line sounds confident and strong, with little additional meaning.

When was the last time you made a statement and it was taken the wrong way?  or misunderstood?  Can you remember how you delivered the statement?  Where you placed the emphasis?  It may be that the person on the receiving end read more into the sentence than you meant.  In the above example, placing emphasis on the wrong word might lead the other person to think that their opinions are in doubt.

Think of the type of thing you say in work – practice changing emphasis – what happens?  Here are some examples that can have a very different meaning depending on what word is stressed.  Practice saying them out loud…what happens to the meaning?

• You did that well this time
• Have you read the procedures for this process?
• Is this the result you intended?
• What do you think?
• How’s it going today?
• You seem to be doing a great job
• Tell me what you think about this situation?
• We are glad to have you on our team
• Does this work meet the standard you have set for yourself?
• What can I do to help you?
• Feel free to come to me when you have a question or problem

An additional hint….be careful of raising the pitch and tone towards the end of a sentance.  As we raise our pitch towards the end of a question…using the technique to convey a statement can make you sound less confident, unsure of your position and ulitmately less trustworthy.

In Gone with the Wind, Rhett Butler’s famous line, “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn” was stated with emphasis on the word ‘give’ because it was not deemed appropriate for him to emphasis ‘damn’.  Are there times when you changed emphasis because of how you would sound….how it would be understood??

What is employee well-being?  What does it actually means for organisations?

We are all aware of how current economic conditions have affected our workplaces.  We also realise that as a result of our changing surroundings…employees and management are behaving differently.  Feeling good about the work we complete has a massive impact on quality and performance.  We know this due to the research that has been completed but more significantly we know this from personal experience.  Ever been unhappy in a role?  Ever felt not appreciated by your peers or manager?  What effect did your emotions have on your work?  Did you give it your best all the time?  I think you get the idea!

So, how in practical times can we use this experience to ensure our own employees do not feel like this and enjoy a healthy environment?  Peter Warr, in his book ‘Psychology at Work’ outlines 9 main groups to examine.

1.  Opportunity for personal control

Do employees have autonomy?  This does not have to be total but could be a small amount for a particular work activity.  How much discretion have employees?  What role do they have in decision making?

2.  Opportunity for skills use

Are employees skills actually being used?  Are they valued for the skills they have?

3.  Externally generated goals

Do employees understand the demands of the job, the task?  Are there measures in place for workloads? What responsibility do they have?  Have targets been set?

4.  Variety

Is there a possible means of varying role?  How repetitive are the tasks completed?  Is there variety of location?

5.  Environmental clarity

Have the consequences of certain behaviours been provided?  Is there job security?  Is there information about the required behaviours and their role within the organisation or team?

6.  Availability of money

Have you benchmarked pay?  What competition is there?  What level of income does pay place employees on?

7.  Physical Security

Have you Health and Safety procedures in place?  Is there good working conditions?  What temperature is the office?  How much noise is present?  Do employees have adequate equipment?

8.  Opportunity for interpersonal contact

How much interaction do employees have each day?  Is there adequate provision for privacy if required?  Do employees have good relationships?  Is there social support?  Good communications?

9.  Valued social position

What status do employees have?  How much emphasis is placed on job importance?  Are the jobs that employees do meaningful?  Do employee have self-respect?

When talking about employee well-being it is important to distinguish between job-related feelings and non-job but there is so much that managers can take into consideration in order to ensure employee satisfaction and well-being.  The associations between employee well-being and performance are incredibly significant.  Enthusiasm, alertness, attention, interest, determination and inspiration are all impacted.  We simply cannot ignore them, we must take note and apply this knowledge to the environment we create for our employees.

How much of an impact do you believe someone watching you has on your behaviour?  Does it matter who is watching?

Research completed by Newcastle university demonstrated that people put almost 3 times the amount of money into an honesty box for hot drinks when the poster with prices featured eyes rather than flowers.

As humans, our brains are programmed to recognise faces and even though the eyes were only on a poster, it still had the effect of modifying behaviour.  Those purchasing drinks had the feeling they were being watched so they were more likely to place anhonest amount in the honesty box.

The perception on the public of being watched clearly had an impact on their behaviour.

How can this research be used?  Can we apply this knowledge in organisations or in the public arena?