Old vs. New Psychology in Business: How Management Paradigms are Changing

In a rapidly changing business world, psychology plays a key role in shaping organizational effectiveness and employee satisfaction. The traditional approach, called " old psychology ", is giving way to modern methods, which can be called "new psychology". What are the key differences between these two paradigms? Let's follow this step by step.

Old Psychology: Compliance and Control

The old psychology in business is based on the concept of compliance, where employee motivation is mostly based on external stimuli-a stick and a carrot. Here are the key elements of this philosophy:

1. External MotivationQuestioner: In companies that use the old psychology, employee motivation is reward and punishment. This system assumes that employees need external incentives to work effectively. Rewards for good results and punishments for mistakes are designed to control their behavior.
2. Treatment Of Employees: Employees are treated like children, paying great attention to following the rules and regulations. The manual imposes numerous rules, and any deviation from the norm is severely punished.
3. Setting Goals: Goals are set by management and are often arbitrary. Employees do not influence the goal setting process, which leads to a sense of lack of control over their own work.
4. Culture of BlameQuestioner: In companies based on the old psychology, when something goes wrong, the culprits are sought out. The blame culture is pervasive, leading to a fear of taking risks and avoiding responsibility.
5. Management Diseases: These organizations often have management issues such as distrust, inefficiency, and high operating costs. These problems are called the seven deadly diseases of management.

New Psychology: Creativity and Internal Motivation

Unlike the old psychology, the new psychology focuses on creativity and internal motivation. Here are the main elements of the new approach:

1. Internal Motivation: The new psychology focuses on internal motivation that comes from within employees. It assumes that people work effectively when they are motivated by their own goals and desires, rather than external stimuli.
2. Treatment Of Employees: Employees are treated as adults responsible for their work rules. They are free to make decisions and are encouraged to innovate and be independent.
3. Setting Goals: In the new psychology, employees themselves set goals that correspond to the mission and vision of the leaders. Such a system promotes engagement and a sense of responsibility for results.
4. A Culture Without Guilt: Companies using the new psychology focus on analyzing mistakes and learning from them. When something goes wrong, they ask, " What happened? What can we learn?", instead of looking for the culprits.
5. Solving Management ProblemsThe new psychology effectively addresses many management problems, such as distrust or inefficiency. Organizations that use this approach are more flexible, innovative, and efficient.

Transition from Old to new psychology

Most textbooks and consulting institutions in business continue to promote strategies based on the old psychology. Organizational structures and processes in many companies and governments are still rooted in this outdated paradigm. Although more and more research shows the effectiveness of intrinsic motivation and approaches based on new psychology, changing the paradigm takes time and conscious effort.

Conclusions

Moving from a compliance approach to creativity requires changes in organizational thinking and culture. Companies that adopt a new psychology experience more engaged employees, better results, and more innovation. It's worth investing in internal motivation and developing a no-blame culture to achieve sustained success.

The future of business lies in the new psychology. This is an approach that not only increases efficiency, but also creates a healthier and more sustainable work environment.