Strengthening the Focus on Business Results: The Need for Systems Approaches in Organizational Behavior Management

Abstract

Current Organizational Behavior Management (OBM) research and practice may be characterized as either behavior focused or results focused. These two approaches stem from different origins and have different characteristics. The behavior-focused approach stems from applied behavior analysis (ABA) methods and emphasizes direct observation of and intervention on target behaviors of employees. In contrast, the behavioral systems approach encourages a shift from focusing on behavior exclusively toward focusing more on business results. A systems-oriented, results-focused approach toward Organizational Behavior Management is suggested as a means of making the field more relevant to the concerns of the business world.

KEYWORDS:

• systems
• business results
• behavior
• organizational performance

The author was a faculty member of the Department of Behavior Analysis at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas, at the time of the writing of this article. He is now with Aubrey Daniels International of Atlanta, Georgia.