1.4 Signposting Each Chapter

We begin Chapter 1 with an introduction to International Organizational Behavior where we define the field of organizational behavior; the three different levels that represent this field that also makes its nature interdisciplinary; the historical foundations of the field and lead into the need to understand International Organizational Behavior in today’s work environment. We then provide a cursory overview of research methods that are used in this field to demonstrate its variety and depth in approaches and focus.

In Chapter 2 we focus on the individual level of organizational behavior highlighting personality, attitudes, social perception and the attribution process, and the Theory of Experiential Learning and individual preferred learning styles. We included Experiential Learning in this text for two reasons: it is the most influential learning theory used in managerial and leadership development and it provides an understanding of the diverse ways in which people learn which can be applied to the classroom environment. Chapter 3 goes on to highlight motivation theories and the relation between learning styles and motivation.

We abstract upwards into the group (or team) level in Chapter 4 where we begin with the basic definition of group (or teams) and the importance of working in teams. Here we present the foundational work on teams leading to the most recent approaches to team learning and development. We believe that understanding what groups (or teams) are, how they function, learn, and develop can inform both faculty and students to create a nurturing (challenging and supportive) team environment in the classroom.

Chapter 5 introduces the meaning and importance of leadership and provides some of the influential theories of leadership that emerged from the 1920s. We also included the importance of understanding leadership development from a competency vantage point and how this approach has led to the emergence of executive coaching.

In Chapter 6, we discuss the basic elements of the communication process, the different types of communication networks that exist within the organizational environment and some of the obstacle to effective communication. We close this chapter by describing various methods to improve organizational communication including how to create the right conversational spaces that is applicable to organizations and the classroom.

This flows into a discussion of managing power and conflict in Chapter 7 where we include understanding "power" as a concept, the various manifestations of power and strategies to use power effectively. We then discuss the types of conflict, how to manage conflict and most importantly the power of reframing conflict through understanding the underlying needs or perspectives in such situations.

In Chapter 8, we present and describe various decision-making models, how this affects creativity and innovation in the group (or team) environment and also incorporating learning styles into decision making. We also present some ethical issues around decision making processes.

Chapter 9 focuses on managing stress and enhancing well-being in the workplace. In the workplace setting and in the classroom environment, stress is a common experience and therefore important to deal with as part of the text. We discuss the concept of stress, the stress response, intrinsic and extrinsic sources of stress and their consequences for health and performance. We then discuss some individual- and organizational-level stress management techniques.

Based on the recent global events that we experience today, we dedicated Chapter 10 to the topic of Managing by Values. We show how Managing by Values (MBV) evolved from Managing by Objectives (MBO) which, in turn, evolved from Managing by Instruction (MBI). We present the existing model of MBV and the principal steps to change at the organizational level.

Bearing in mind that most students would be preoccupied with the possibility to of landing a job, we devote Chapter 11 to "Managing Careers in Global Contexts". We outline how individuals can prepare for the world of work, career stages, how organizations support career development, and offer some guidelines for managing one’s career in today’s work environment.

In Chapter 12, we discuss the emergent area of diversity and cross-cultural issues. We begin the chapter with the meaning of workplace diversity and the global trends that make this an important aspect in the world of work. We highlight the benefits of workplace diversity and also how we can create diversity as part of organizational culture.

We dedicate our final chapter (Chapter 13) to the emerging trends in International Organizational Behavior beginning with a focus on productivity to that of work-life balance. We also discuss the effects of technology in the work environment and how business leaders are managing the technological developments within the work environment. We then focus on organizational learning and development, ethics and ethical behavior in the work environment and the emergence of the organizing process at the nexus of business and society.