Review of A Primer on Organizational Behavior (Paperback)

This book is like most Organizational Behavior (OB) or Organizational Psychology textbooks in the sense that it is modular, overviews most of the major areas of research in the field, and is fairly easy to read. It does have a few unique pros & cons:

Pros:
1) Has a GREAT set of appendices reviewing basic statistics and explaining how to read an OB research article. This makes this book a good choice for teachers who want to pair textbook readings with source readings.
2) Emphasizes application more than many OB textbooks and pulls in recent research.
3) Has a low price point for an OB textbook, although it honestly should be cheaper given the absolute lack of frills (paperback, all B&W, some diagrams but no pictures).

Cons:
1) Several important topic areas are absent, like job attitudes (covered in three pages with no mention of specific attitudes like satisfaction, commitment, etc.)
2) Neglects micro issues in general -- about halfway through Ch 3 the focus shifts to macro, system-wide concerns and never looks back.

Overall, this textbook might be a good pick if you are more interested in macro aspects of OB, if your course is focused more on lecture or outside readings, and if textbook cost is a concern.

Product Description
This book introduces the reader to terms and concepts that are necessary to understand OB and their application to modern organizations. It also offers sufficient grounding in the field that enables the reader to read scholarly publications such as HR, CMR, and AMJ. This edition features new material on emotional intelligence, knowledge management, group dynamics, virtual teams, organizational change, and organizational structure.

From the Back Cover
Why Use a Primer on Organizational Behavior, 4th ed? Your Colleagues Say It Best! The most appealing advantage of this text for my students is the authors clear writing style. Moreover, the organization and comprehensiveness of coverage is impressive. Up-to-date topics, concise treatment, and consistent ethical emphasis foster a good integration and understanding of management and OB. -Howard E. Mitchell, The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania I would like to commend the authors for the treatment given the research process in OB. Overall, I would describe the approach taken by Bowditch and Buono as both refreshing and superior to the competition. -Anthony Chelte, Western New England College My students really enjoy the "no nonsense" approach taken by Bowditch and Buono. The authors cover a lot of ground and support their positions with an impressive amount of evidence drawn from the scientific and management literature. -Mark C. Butler, San Diego State University I adopt this book because of its research explanations and its quick but effective coverage of the field. It fills an important missing niche in our OB textbooks. -William P. Ferris, Western New England College--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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