blog




  • Essay / Understanding Discipline: Definition, Concept, Components

    The first thing most people associate with the concept of discipline is the act of punishment. This is so because, in its narrowest sense, discipline refers to imposing sanctions for “bad” behavior. It is important to be aware of this conceptual bias from the outset. The negative impression that is evoked by talking about discipline is only part and not the whole of the understanding of discipline. Webster's Unabridged Dictionary gives the meaning of the word “discipline” in relation to an organization as “rule-compliant behavior; Prompt and voluntary obedience to orders from superiors. The Oxford Illustrated Dictionary gives the meaning of “Entrained condition, order maintained among persons under control or command; Train obedience and control. In short, it can be said that this is behavior that meets acceptable standards. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Discipline means order, obedience and maintenance of proper subordination among employees and control or restriction of the freedom of the individual. It implies a state of order in an organization and a good appreciation of the superior-subordinate relationship. It is both training that corrects, shapes and strengthens Individual and Collective behavior. It is also an attitude of mind and a product of culture and environment. Therefore, the discipline cannot be fully addressed at the organizational level alone. The sociocultural environment is as important as the intra-organizational environment in combating discipline. Émile Durkheim, the famous 19th century French philosopher, spoke of two distinct types of solidarity that he noticed between individuals in a given society. He called the first “mechanical solidarity,” which he meant when people think and act in the same way. The second, which he calls “organic solidarity,” refers to the fact that people think and act in tandem as if they were different parts of the same organism. Durkheim believed that when human beings demonstrate mechanical solidarity, discipline is less pronounced than when they demonstrate organic solidarity. Fundamentally, this analysis highlights the importance of having a common goal in front of people, to enable them to work in tandem, as opposed to a competing goal that people can fight for. Corresponding to these forms of solidarity, Durkheim proposes two distinct forms of justice to deal with deviant behavior. These are “repressive justice” and “restitutive justice”. Repressive justice focuses more on punishing the guilty and applies more to organizations that exude mechanical solidarity. Restitutive justice, on the other hand, focuses more on the corrective aspects of discipline, which emphasize how to bring back the deviant member (body part) of the organization to contribute in tandem to the common goal. In an organization, discipline is a condition of the company in which the constituent members of the company conduct themselves according to standards of acceptable behavior, and involves acceptance of the various standards set by the organization in its rules and practices by all members. participating individuals and groups. It actually means an attitude on the part of group members aimed at conforming to a defined pattern of behavior, which usually confirms the codified rules of the organization. “Discipline”, in its positive aspect, is understood as an environment in whichIndividual members of the Organization voluntarily practice a standard of conduct focused on values ​​and morality, codified to achieve the goals and objectives of an Organization. An attitude of self-discipline is created and maintained. This is achieved by clear, fair and equitable rules, by raising awareness among individual members and by observing the rules in a demonstrably uniform manner in practice. If the working relationship is otherwise good, most employees in an organization exercise a considerable degree of self-control. Sir Edmund Burke had observed: "Society cannot exist unless a power of control of the will and appetite is placed somewhere and there is less of it there." is inside, the more there must be outside. What he said about society is also true with respect to a group of people in any organization with a defined purpose. When there is a lack of self-discipline in the behavior of an individual member of the Organization, which affects the Organization, it becomes necessary to discipline the offending member with a view to bringing him back into the mainstream and this is what is often referred to as the negative aspect of discipline. In the current context, negative discipline is understood as “indiscipline management” which is a tool in the hands of the employer to instill discipline. In any given group of individuals in an organization, there may be some who, for various reasons, deviate from the expected norm. behavior, which requires a constructive program of discipline to deal with these violations. A constructive discipline program must be developed around the following essential elements: Formulation of a set of clear and reasonable rules, carefully published and administered; Impartial application of the Rules by means of announced warnings and sanctions, of a corrective nature, proportionate and uniform in their application; Supervisory leadership informed about disciplinary rules and procedures, but firm in handling disciplinary matters and, in itself, a good example of employee behavior; An impartial and uniform procedure for the investigation of apparent infractions, the procedure of which is subject to the control of higher levels of management and includes a system of appeal against disciplinary decisions considered to be unfair. The Hot Stove Rule While addressing the corrective aspect of discipline, that is, disciplinary action in an organization, it would be beneficial to keep in mind the positive approach proposed by Douglas McGregor in his “hot stove rule” in which he draws an analogy between touching a hot stove and that of disciplinary measures. A stove lit when hot is in itself a warning to everyone not to touch it. The rules of the Organization, their wide publicity and their application must be such as to clearly warn all those who are governed by it not to violate them. The hand that touches the hot stove is immediately burned and there is no time interval between touching the stove and the burning sensation. Likewise, disciplinary measures must follow the misconduct with such close proximity that the person being prosecuted receives a clear message that the action taken against him concerns only the declared misconduct and nothing else. Where there is undue delay in initiating disciplinary action for misconduct, it is sometimes stated (this creates the impression) that the action initiated is motivated by some other undisclosed reason. The burn that results from contact with a hot stove is always constant and proportionate. If a person touches a hot stove with just one finger, that finger alone will be burned and the extent of the burn will depend on how long the hot stove was touched and how long the hot stove was touched..