Five Types of Organizational Rebellion: Signals, Motivations, and Diagnoses

Definitions

Organization: “A team of two or more individuals working together to achieve a common goal.”     

Definitions of personalities are derived from by Saundra K. Ciccarelli and J. Noland White in Psychology as:

• Type A: “…extroverted and boisterous…”
• Type B: “…laid-back and passive…”
• Type C “…pleasant, but repressed…” (2012, p. 428)

Motivations are defined through David McClelland’s Acquired Needs Theory, as it appears in Psychology, and is defined below:

• Need for Achievement: “A need that involves a strong desire to succeed in attaining goals; not only realistic ones, but also challenging ones.”
• Need for Affiliation: “A need for friendly, social interactions and relationships with others.”
• Need for power: “A need to have control or influence over others” (p. 346-347).

Assumptions

Please note: All of the information which follows is based on the assumptions that:

• There is an “ideally structured organizational setting where team goals are well-defined, measurable, and broadly disseminated; deadlines are established, the meeting or project has been planned and announced in advance; and all organizational members have been clearly informed well in advance.”
• You (the reader) are the individual of perceived positional authority in the already established organizational setting.
• There is rebellious (or distracting) behavior taking place in the already established organizational setting which is preventing the entire organization from meeting its goals.

I.                   Types of Rebellious Roles and the Personalities Associated with Those Rebellious Roles

• Silent Rebel
  •  This individual generally displays a Type B (laid-back and passive) or Type C (pleasant, but repressed) personality.
• Class Clown
  • This individual generally displays a Type A (extroverted and boisterous) personality.
• Control Freak
  • This individual generally displays a Type A  or Type C personality.
• Loudly Emotional Rebel
  • This individual generally displays a Type A  or Type C personality.
•  Quietly Emotional Rebel
  • This individual generally displays a Type B or Type C  personality.

II.                Signals of Rebellion

• Silent Rebel
  • He or she is silent.
  • He or she is seemingly disinterested in contributing to the conversation or work at hand.
  • He or she does not say anything; or does very little to offend anyone, and—in doing so—shields himself or herself from any sort of blame or confrontation.
  • He or she tends to agree with others in the group and doesn’t generally share his or her opinions on topics discussed or processes performed.
• Class Clown
  • He or she is loud!
  • He or she tends to justify rebellious behavior with humor.
  • He or she doesn’t listen well and often needs to be corrected or “hushed” in organizational settings.
  • Some will view this person as “annoying.”
• Control Freak
  • He or she is boisterous!
  • He or she tends to interrupt superiors when they are speaking.
  • He or she tends to argue rather than agree.
  • He or she enjoys being asked for his or her opinion.
  • He or she can come across as “annoyed” or “irritated” at times.
  • He or she needs answers or needs to feel like he or she is in control of his or her surrounding environment.
• Loudly Emotional Rebel
  • He or she tends to emit emotions of anxiety.
  • He or she speaks extremely quickly and may even mumble at times.
  • He or she does not properly articulate thoughts, or intentions, to superiors, peers, or subordinates.
  • He or she may breathe heavily or sweat profusely at work.
• Quietly Emotional Rebel
  • He or she does not publicly speak about his or her feelings.
  • He or she tends to be reclusive, even when his or her contribution to the organization is needed and requested.
  • He or she may mumble or moan quietly under his or her breathe.
  • He or she doesn’t meet work requirements when he or she is expected to produce autonomously.

III.             Personal Motivations Behind Different Types of Rebellion

• Silent Rebel
  • He or she is generally motivated by power or achievement.
  • He or she uses silence to safeguard himself or herself from shame, blame, or criticism.
  • He or she uses silence to appear “intelligent” to peers.
  • He or she will likely revert to persuasion when he or she perceives that leadership is weak in an effort to rally support for rebellion to his or her cause.
• Class Clown
  • He or she is generally motivated by power or affiliation.
  • He or she uses humor as an instrument; to appear benevolent to peers, and to rally their support for his or her “cause.”
  • This individual’s main objective is “to be heard;” and he or she utilizes persistence in his or her approach.
  • He or she may not be liked by everyone, but will likely shun or ignore his or her opposition in an attempt to obtain the allegiance or belonging of many.
• Control Freak
  • He or she is generally motivated by power.
  • He or she needs to feel “in control.”
  • He or she likes to “win.”
  • He or she will argue with superiors, peers, or subordinates in order to locate points of weakness in their arguments or strategies.
  • He or she commands and deeply desires the respect of his or her superiors, peers, or subordinates.
• Loudly Emotional Rebel
  • He or she is generally motivated by affiliation or power.
  • He or she lacks self-confidence and seeks confidence in others.
  • He or she tends to be pessimistic and fears futuristic events.
  • He or she tends to be afraid of failure or judgement (criticism).
  • He or she has perceived, unmet needs (stress).
• Quietly Emotional Rebel
  • He or she is generally motivated by affiliation or achievement.
  • He or she is afraid of judgement (criticism).
  • He or she does not demonstrate self-confidence.
  • He or she may have perceived, unmet needs (internal stress), or may be experiencing negative (unperceived) emotions.
  • He or she tends to look “inward” rather than “outward.”
  • He or she is afraid of success.

IV.             Diagnoses of Different Types of Rebellion

Silent Rebel

Do not respond in anger! Pull him or her aside—privately—and get right to the point. Explain your frustration in definite terms: explain that you are frustrated, why you are frustrated, and ask him or her how he or she suggests you ease your personal frustration. If he or she is motivated by power—which is often the case—then he or she will enjoy giving you your much needed advice, or answer. If he or she is motivated by achievement, then your personal confession of weakness and frustration allows him or her to positively contribute to the conversation or project at hand. If he or she does not respond in either of the two fashions mentioned above, then his or her personality is likely misdiagnosed as “rebellion.”

Class Clown

Respond quickly and intelligently. If you can contribute this individual’s humorous comments in an equally humorous fashion, do so. Doing so will earn you the respect of the class clown and the rest of the organization.

If you cannot contribute to the individual’s humorous comments, then cut him or her short of finishing. A constructive way of doing this is to put him or her in the spotlight and ask him or her whether or not he or she is listening to what you are saying. If he or she tries to make a joke about listening, remind him or her of your position and responsibility. If he or she continues to distract the organization, then stop the meeting and pull him or her aside personally; ask him or her why he or she is behaving in the manner that he or she is behaving in, explain his or her importance to the team, and reprimand his or her behavior. Often times, class clowns are natural leaders and need to be affirmed as “important” or “seen.” Ensure that the reasons that the “class clown” is seen are “productive reasons.”

Control Freak

Ask lots of questions. A control freak is motivated by power and needs to feel that he or she is in control. One of the easiest ways to make him or her feel in control is to ask him or her questions. Asking such an individual for his or her opinion is also a valid response. It is just another way for him or her to assert his or her dominance, and it will often times lead to constructive organizational discussion. Be sure to ask this individual for his or her opinion early in the organizational discussion as it will likely lead to objective problem-solving and discussion among organizational members. It will also make him or her feel respected in the group.

Loudly Emotional Rebel

Introduce logic to the topic of discussion. Individuals who act out of emotion often do not internally process “how” they are going to regulate their emotion before they act out. As a superior, it is of utmost importance to introduce logic into the equation when dealing with someone who is highly emotional. This means, first, slowing him or her down. The best way to slow a loudly emotional person down is to respond kindly and with logic. If you don’t have a logical response to an loudly emotional individual’s question, then ask logical questions about his or her situation, or tell him or her to re-iterate what he or she just told you. All of these efforts are just combined efforts to introduce logic into an otherwise illogical interaction. Be sure to emit positive feedback to loudly emotional individuals for work “well done” and do your personal best to instill confidence in them for the task at hand.

Quietly Emotional Rebel

Refocus this individual. If the individual is quietly emotional, first ask him or her how his or her “day (or morning) is going,” and carefully monitor the response. If the individual’s response is mumbling, moaning, or no response at all, proceed to ask him or her “why the work they have been assigned isn’t being completed,” or “why he or she isn’t contributing to the conversation.” If this individual responds to your question, address their response by reminding them of their personal value to the organization, and the goals already established by the organization. If this individual persists in his or her silence, remind him or her of your position and responsibility. The ultimate goal in motivating a quietly emotional person is “getting to the heart” of what is bugging him or her, and then turning his or her inward focus “outward.” Be sure to remind him or her of his or her personal strengths, his or her value to the organization, and give copious amounts of positive feedback for work completed.

In some cases, quietly emotional people are high achievers (motivated by achievement) who are undergoing personal demons from past events. It is important to emit positive feelings of gratitude for their participation in your organization’s work. Another helpful tip in motivating quietly emotional individuals who are high achievers is to work with them to set stretch goals. Stretch goals are goals which are a little more demanding than average, but not so demanding that they are perceived as “unrealistic.” This assists quietly emotional individuals in maintaining focus and works to build self-esteem once goals are accomplished.

In both cases of quiet, emotional rebellion, be sure to “checkup” on such individuals—and their progress—periodically. If things get worse, you may need to suggest professional help or contact authorities.

 

References

Ciccarelli, S.K., & White, J.N. (2012). Psychology (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.