The Organisational Behaviour subject group

Studying the impact of behaviour within organisations 

The Organisational Behaviour (OB) group is focused on 2 essential objectives: 

  1. to promote our basic understanding of individual and group behaviour at all levels within organisations 
  1. to translate our scientific research into practical implications with significant executive and corporate value. 

To achieve and promote our integrative approach of both basic and practical research we focus on developing local, national, and international collaborations with leading scholars (in OB and other related fields), business leaders, and major corporations.

Organisational Behaviour concept.

Key research and teaching areas

The Organisational Behaviour group’s current research interests include the following topics:

  • Leadership and emotions  
  • Psychometric measurement, big data, and people analytics 
  • Decision making 
  • Cross-cultural management 
  • Creativity and innovation 
  • Teams 

Our group uses a variety of research methods, largely (but not exclusively) drawing on experimental, survey, archival, and qualitative data collected in international contexts. In addition to conducting basic research, the group is dedicated to making the translation from science to practice. We strongly encourage that scholarly publications are accompanied with practitioner publications documenting on the implications of our basic scientific studies.  

The group runs the Experimental Laboratory at Cambridge Judge Business School and is active in the PhD programme and welcomes involvement at all levels, from hosting visiting professors to working with student research volunteers.

Teaching

Faculty members of the Organisational Behaviour group teach at the undergraduate, MBA, Executive MBA and executive education levels, including courses such as organisational behaviour, negotiations, and leadership.

Members

Meet our members including faculty, research and teaching staff, PhD students, and honorary appointees.

View faculty

View research and teaching staff

View PhD candidates

View honorary appointments

Subject group head

Andreas Richter

Professor of Organisational Behaviour

PhD (Aston University)

Publishing output

The Organisational Behaviour group is focused on conducting rigorous and cutting-edge research that is published in major Organisational Behaviour outlets, such as:

  •  Academy of Management Journal 
  • Journal of Applied Psychology 
  • Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 
  • Organizational Behaviour and Human Decision Processes 
  • Organization Science

Selected publications

The group also publishes in managerial and practitioner-focused outlets such as Harvard Business Review.

Industry and policy engagement 

The Organisational Behaviour (OB) group frequently engages with companies and organisations on collaborative research projects, benefitting those on the field while also leading to academic publications in top journals.

The OB group can help you conduct an assessment of your organisation’s culture, climate and creative potential. We can support you in developing the leadership and decision-making capacity of your team leaders and managers and help identify ways to improve employees’ morale and motivation. While these are examples based on existing projects the group has been involved in, faculty members welcome proposals for new projects and contributions.

Download the "Supporting organisations with behavioural insights" brochure 

Research seminars

The Organisational Behaviour group regularly offers developmental internal seminars as well as seminars with external speakers.

Members of the University of Cambridge are welcome to attend the research seminars organised by the group.

Upcoming seminars

Join our Organisational Behaviour seminar with Professor Zhen Zhang, Cox School of Business.

Past seminars

2024

Join our Organisational Behaviour seminar with Dr Kevin Kniffin, SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University.

Join our Organisational Behaviour seminar with Professor Brian Gunia, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School.

2023

Michaelmas term

An Organisational Behaviour seminar with Dr David Hagmann, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

An Organisational Behaviour seminar with Professor Alexandra Gerbasi, University of Exeter.

Lent term

6 March 2023 | 10:30-12:00, Room W2.01, Cambridge Judge Business School

Mobility shocks and organisational creativity: the benefits of cultural toolkits with highly affiliated elements

Frédéric Godart, Associate Professor, INSEAD

9 March 2023 | 14:30-16:00, Seminar Room 4, Simon Sainsbury Centre, Cambridge Judge Business School

The production and dissemination of management scholarship: a model for transforming our field

Professor Matthew Cronin, George Mason University

2022

Michaelmas term

15 September 2022 | 14:00-15:30, Room S2.01 (Seminar Room 4), Cambridge Judge Business School

Endorsement of creative ideas

Jing Zhou, Mary Gibbs Professor of Management, Jones Graduate School of Business

12 October 2022 | 13:00-14:30, Seminar Room 2, Simon Sainsbury Centre, Cambridge Judge Business School

The effects of piqued curiosity on boundary-spanning networking in organisations

Professor Tiziana Casciaro, Rotman School of Management

16 November 2022 | 10:00-11:30, Room W4.05, Cambridge Judge Business School

A legend in one’s own mind: the (missing) link between ambition and leadership effectiveness

Professor Francis Flynn, Stanford University

Easter term

20 May 2022 | 14:00-15:30, Room S2.01 (Seminar Room 4), Cambridge Judge Business School

Rejecting novel ideas: the role of manager status and territoriality

Vijaya Venkataramani, Associate Professor, R.H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland

8 June 2022 | 11:00-12:30, Seminar Room 2, Cambridge Judge Business School

Fear and courage in organisations

Jim Detert, University of Virginia

6 July 2022 | 09:00-10:30, Castle Teaching Room, Cambridge Judge Business School

Employee resource groups: member experiences and the role of allies

Professor Mary Zellmer-Bruhn, Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota

11 July 2022 | 09:00-10:30, Online

When do they care? The effects of negative media coverage and institutional ownership on human resource management systems

Professor Kaifeng Jiang, The Ohio State University

12 July 2022 | 09:00-10:30, Castle Teaching Room, Cambridge Judge Business School

Running head: promoting leader humility through recalling one’s mistakes

Professor Jasmine Hu, The Ohio State University

14 July 2022 | 09:00-10:30, Castle Teaching Room, Cambridge Judge Business School

The stickiness of work arrangements: a longitudinal study of workers in standard and nonstandard jobs

Professor Elizabeth George, University of Auckland

15 July 2022 | 09:00-10:30, Room W2.02, Cambridge Judge Business School

A relational demography model of respect

Professor Prithviraj Chattopadhyay, University of Auckland

Lent term

3 February 2022 | 12:00-14:30, Room W2.01, Cambridge Judge Business School

Unlocking creative potential: reappraising emotional events facilitates creativity for conventional thinkers

Chris Bauman, Associate Professor, UCI Paul Merage School of Business

15 March 2022 | 15:00-16:30, Online

One-hit wonders versus hit makers: sustaining success in creative industries

Justin Berg, Assistant Professor, Stanford Graduate School of Business

2021

Lent term

2 February 2021 | 14:00-15:30, Online

The bias for talent in recruiting attracts narcissistic job seekers

Professor Dan Cable, London Business School

16 February 2021 | 14:00-15:30, Online

Seeing value in novelty: the role of managers’ social networks on idea valuation and endorsement

Dr Vijaya Venkataramari, Associate Professor, University of Maryland

10 March 2021 | 14:00-15:30, Online

Putting the “teams” back into virtual teams

Professor Lucy Gilson, University of Connecticut

13 April 2021 | 14:00-15:30, Online

Conversational receptiveness: improving engagement with opposing views

Michael Yeomans, Assistant Professor, Imperial College Business School

2019

Michaelmas term

1 November 2019 | 10:00-11:30, Room W4.03, Cambridge Judge Business School

Impact of manager sex on employee ideas: towards a social psychological theory of idea quality

Dr Niranjan Janardhanan, LSE

Easter term

24 June 2019 | 12:30-14:00, Room W4.05, Cambridge Judge Business School

Using people’s everyday language to understand their thinking styles, emotional states and connections with others

Professor James W. Pennebaker, University of Texas at Austin

2 July 2019 | 12:00-13:00, Room W2.01, Cambridge Judge Business School

Stepping stone or dead end: how work arrangements shackle or enable workers

Dr Jing Zhu, Nanyang Business School

3 July 2019 | 12:00-13:30, Room W2.01, Cambridge Judge Business School

Reflections on publishing in top journals

Professor Jason Shaw, Nanyang Business School

16 September 2019 | 12:30-14:00, Room W4.05, Cambridge Judge Business School

“Who are you going to call?” Network activation in creative idea generation and elaboration

Professor Jill Perry-Smith, Emory University

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