Organizational behavior (OB) is the study of how people interact within a workplace environment, and its principles are applied to help businesses streamline and optimize their operations. In a broader sense, OB extends to the study of how individuals interact with organizations and how organizations adapt or adjust in response. It is a field in the broader field of management studies and has become a critical component of modern organizational management.

The study of OB is a complex multidisciplinary endeavor, incorporating knowledge from both the hard sciences, like psychology, sociology, and anthropology, as well as the softer sciences, like linguistics and organizational culture. OB is largely concerned with the overlap between human psychology and the larger organizations and the environment. Good organizational behavior includes taking into account the behaviors, emotions, and motives of all individuals involved in the organization.

OB concepts are often applied to various aspects of the organization, including hiring, employee motivation, performance management, and team building. The primary goal of OB is to understand, predict, and influence behavior within organizations. In order to achieve this, OB practitioners conduct exercises and research on workplace factors such as workplace climate, job design, communication, and leadership in order to improve company performance.

The best-known study of organizational behavior is the Hawthorne Effect, which argues that individuals change their behavior when they are aware they are being observed and studied. Moreover, the Hawthorne Effect has been used to demonstrate how organizations can use motivation, reinforcement and consistency to maximize individual and group productivity.

Overall, the study of organizational behavior utilizes methods from the social sciences in order to develop a better understanding of human behavior within the context of organizational environments. By doing so, organizational behavior helps to improve processes, motivate personnel, and increase performance levels. It is a growing field with academia and industry alike increasingly recognizing the potential of OB in improving organizational performance.