Livingston 1 Britny Livingston Becky Hayes COM 305/306 13 August 2013 Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory The Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory by Benjamin

Schneider states that individuals will like an organization if its members have the same values or interests in terms of personality. It also says that an organization will like a person who has the same values, interests and other attributes and vice versa. If the individual does not fit in with that organization they will most likely leave. This theory deals with the cognition of individuals when they are deciding to join an organization. Attraction-Selection Attrition Theory is part of organizational behavior, and organizational communication. I will be going beyond what the Attraction-Selection-Attrition model is and elaborating on the history and orientation, and methods of the model. Benjamin Schneider, a theorist from the University of Maryland, developed a theory that would change the way relationships and connections were formed. In 1987, Schneider organized the Attraction-Selection-Attrition theory (ASA). Benjamin Schneider published an article called People Make the Place in 1987 explaining his theory, how he came up with it and how it works. The ASA cycle is proposed as an alternative model for understanding organizations and the causes of the structures, processes, and technology organizations. (Schneider 437.) In his article, Schneider elaborates on the framework of the Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory. The ASA framework is developed through a series of propositions. (Schneider 437.) Some of the aspects of this theory that are needed to be explained deeper are, the difficulty of having change in different organizations, the utility of personality and interest for understanding organizational

Livingston 2 behavior, the genesis of organizational climate and culture, the importance of recruitment, and the need for person based leadership and job attitudes. The Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory is broken down into three parts, attraction, selection and attrition. Attraction is how an individual determines whether or not they want to join a certain organization. People are not randomly selected into organizations; instead, they select themselves into and out of the organization. (Li, Roloff 5.) An organization could be a college, a campus organization or a professional organization. Deciding to join a team at work would also be considered an organization. In the attraction process the individual goes through the pros and cons of joining the organization. They think of the personality traits, values, interests and other attributes that the organization and its members posses. At the same time, the organization does the same thing by looking at the personality of the individual. The selection process is when organizations select individuals who they think are compatible for many different kinds of jobs. Organizations end up choosing people who share many common attributes. At the same time, the individual chooses to join the organization. It is a two-sided process, for both the individual and the organization. The process of attrition is the opposite side of attraction. When and individual does not fit an environment they tend to leave it. (Schneider 442.) The people make the place, the article written by Benjamin Schneider in 1987, is the most appropriate title for this theory. The Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory is about the people and places in the organizational world. It states that the people define how an organization or place looks, feels and behaves. The attributes of people, not the nature of the external environment, or organizational technology, or organizational structure are the fundamental determinants of organizational behavior. It also states that organizational culture,

Livingston 3 climate and practices are determined by the people in the organization. As far as attraction, it has been said that individuals search for environments where they feel comfortable and where their personality matches up with others. Selection is when they find the certain spot where they fit they become a part of the organization. This is if the ideals, values and attributes of the organization are the same as the individual. Attrition is the opposite of attraction. When an individual does not match values with other members they tend to leave. Attrition is when the individual ultimately makes up their mind and tests themselves to see if they should stay or go. The Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory is part of organizational behavior in psychology. Organizational Behavior is the study of individuals and their actions within the context of the organization in certain areas of their lives, whether it is at work, school or extracurricular activities. If you read about organizational communication and organizational behavior you will see that it closely relates to the attraction-selection-attrition theory. In that, it explains how individuals think about their choices. We have been blind to the role of person effects as causes of organizational behavior because the fields of psychology and organizational behavior have been seduced into the belief that situations determine behavior. (Schneider 437.) The ASA theory is related to psychology in many ways. The main reason why it is connected with psychology is because it is all organizational behavior and cognition. It studies individuals and their actions within the context of the organization. This theory is part of socialization, where new members in organizations fit in a specific group. Socialization is a term used by sociologists, social psychologists, anthropologists, political scientists and educationalists to refer to the lifelong process of inheriting and disseminating norms, customs and ideologies, providing an individual with the skills and habits necessary for participating within his or her own society. During socialization, we learn the language of culture and we are born into the roles

Livingston 4 we are supposed to play in life. Socialization is important in the process of personality formation. While much of human personality is the result of our genes, the socialization process can mold it in particular directions by encouraging specific beliefs and attitudes as well as selectively providing experiences. When individuals are making their decisions based on the Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory they should carefully analyze every little thought and make sure that they will be happy when they make the decision. A lot of people agree with this theory and use it in their everyday lives. However, it has been argued that the people do not make the place. It is argued that the place selects the individual based on the personality aspects but the individual has no part in the decision process. Organizations routinely engage in activity to identify and select individuals from the applicant population that are somewhat homogeneous. By relying on established recruiting sources, and established screening and selection techniques (e.g. specific tests and minimum cut-off scores), organizations narrow the range of characteristics chosen applicants are likely to possess. In doing so, it appears that organizations often attempt to create, rather than stifle, homogeneity. (Ash, Bretz, Dreher 3.) The Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory is the perfect strategy for those interested in joining an organization. It is crucial for any organization to use this theory because the attraction and selection processes are very important when and individual is deciding to join an organization or when introducing new members into your organization. Both the individuals and the organizations have to follow a certain set of cognitive cues. It is hard not to be judgmental, the members of the organization have to be selective by not being judgmental but by basing the final decision on the values, interests and other attributes of the individuals.

Livingston 5 A situation that would particularly relate to the Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory would be joining an organization such as a fraternity or sorority. There are a series of steps an individual should take when joining a sorority. All of the steps fall into the confines of the Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory. When going through formal recruitment to join a sorority an individual has a lot of thinking to do, they have to pick and choose what qualities and values each sorority that they visit has that matches up with their values. Then the individual will choose the sorority that they want to join. After the selection process, the individual now has a chance to rethink their decision. If a person does not like where they are at or who they are with after they weigh the pros and cons, they will most likely leave. The attraction process of joining a sorority is very two-sided. The individual is deciding what sorority to choose and who they would fit best with and at the same time the organization is choosing who they think would best fit in their group. It is a complex process because there are a lot of pros and cons an individual has to think about. In one sorority the individual may like a lot of the women but they are unsure if the organizations values and beliefs fit their ideal organization and if the women in the sorority will get along with them in the long run. Also, the person may have the same beliefs and values as the organization but the members of the organization might not be nice or make them feel comfortable. However, most would say that the sorority has the harder part in the matter. There are so many women going through recruitment and they have to choose a certain amount based on their values. The recruitment process is very intimidating but one must always remember to be themselves. This is where the sorority has a hard time choosing the women they think would fit perfectly into their organization based on values and beliefs. Women who are going through the recruitment process are sometimes trying to be someone they are not, they are trying to fit in with all of these groups and they are trying to

Livingston 6 adhere to what they think the sorority wants. It helps everyone if the individual is real and shows the true them. Same with the sororities, the members must all be themselves because they would hate for a woman to choose their sorority if they were being fake. Once an individual sees that an organization is fake they are most likely going to join a different sorority. The next step process in joining a sorority within the ASA Theory is selection. Selection is also difficult but it is very important. This is the step where both the individuals and the members of the sororities choose the people who they want to be in their sorority or the sorority they want to be in. The selection process is very complex when joining a sorority, there is a matching procedure that has to be followed according to National Panhellenic Conference Bylaws. Each individual (potential new member) selects the top sororities that they would like to be a part of, the sororities select a list of potential new members that they would like to become a member of their sorority. These lists are then matched up and the members of the sorority extend the potential new members a bid to join their sorority. They can either choose to join the particular sorority or they can decide not to and possible (if they received a bid from a different sorority) join a different one. The people who are chosen to be a part of the sorority are the women who possess the same values, beliefs or interests in terms of personality. These women have also chosen the sorority they wanted to be placed into based on the same ideals. Once a potential new member becomes a member of an organization such as a sorority, she goes through the attrition process. This is the process that makes the members rethink their decision of joining the organization. Factors that are questioned in this theory are do we get along?, am I happy?, is this worth my time?, what are the negatives and positives of me being in this organization? Eventually, there will come a time when a member will either want to stay in the organization or leave the organization. They will have to go through the process of

Livingston 7 attrition, asking themselves the question should I stay or should I go? Some will have negative experiences in sororities and some with have very positive. Based on this process, whether or not the member has had a negative or positive experience they will rethink the choice that they have made. After they rethink their choices, they will either quit the sorority or they will stay in it. The Attraction-Selection-Attrition Theory states that individuals will like an organization if its members have the same values or interest in terms of personality. It also says that an organization will like a person who has the same values or interests in terms of personality. It also says that an organization will like an individual who has the same values, interests and other attributes. If the individual does not fit in with that organization, they will most likely leave. When going through this process, an individual should thoroughly consider every single aspect of their decision. They need to take their time and follow the theory because they will not question their decision if they make the right decisions based on the ASA theory. When Benjamin Schneider developed this theory in 1987 his goal was to get individuals and organizations thinking about the type of people they would like for themselves. Individuals and organizations need to take time and go through all of the processes in the Attraction-SelectionAttrition Theory.

Livingston 8 Works Cited Bretz, Robert D. Jr.; Ash, Ronald A.; and Dreher, Gregory F., "Do People Make the Place?: An Examination of the Attraction-Selection-Attrition Hypothesis" (1988). CAHRS Working Paper Series. Paper 438. Encyclopedia attraction-selection-attrition model. A Dictionary of Business and Management. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 6 Mar. 2012 Schneider, B. (1987) The people make the Place. Personnel Psychology, 40, 437-453 Li, Ling; Roloff, Michael. Conference Papers -- International Communication Association, 2004 Annual Meeting, p1, 25p Walsh, W. Bruce; Craik, Kenneth H.; Price, Richard H., Person-Environment Psychology: 2nd Edition: New Directions and Perspectives (1999) Wikipedia