chapter 5 key terms

Question 1

Argyris, Chris:

Answer 1

developed maturity-immaturity model postulating that traditional organization forms get in the way of workers’ development.

Question 2

behavioral systems theory:

Answer 2

sees organizations as made up of the behavior of individuals and groups, wanted to make organizations more democratic and participative. Founded by Lewin.

Question 3

bifurcation:

Answer 3

the “flash-point” when chaos overcomes normal conditions in an agency and forces it in a new directions in terms of priorities and tactics. See cosmology.

Question 4

buffering:

Answer 4

stores inputs (e.g., gasoline) to avoid disruption of services if supply is interrupted; also see negative entropy.

Question 5

bureaucratic model:

Answer 5

organizational form often called classical, mechanistic, and a closed system; comprised of eight characteristics.

Question 6

business concerns:

Answer 6

owners are the primary beneficiaries.

Question 7

butterfly effect:

Answer 7

small, helpful, self-initiated acts have a ripple effect, causing others to become energized and helpful.

Question 8

chaos theory:

Answer 8

an organizational state of nonequilibrium produced by a crisis event that exceeds anything we can imagine. See cosmology and bifurcation.

Question 9

coding:

Answer 9

to prevent overload, an organization codes or prioritizes messages so that important messages get to the right place quickly; citizens with minor problems wanting to talk to the Chief find themselves redirected and talking to some other official.

Question 10

cognitive maps:

Answer 10

accumulated sense making produces “mental understandings” that help us navigate our world. See sense making.

Question 11

commonweal organizations:

Answer 11

the public at large is the beneficiary (e.g., law enforcement agency).

Question 12

cosmology:

Answer 12

chaos event that overwhelms us; beyond the worse conditions we could imagine; problems of magnitude, complexity, and durability on a scope not seen by us before.

Question 13

decision space:

Answer 13

when elected officials do not provide policy guidance, agencies can formulate their own.

Question 14

double-loop learning:

Answer 14

causes organizations to reconsider whether they are pursuing the right objectives, programs, and policies. See single-loop learning. e-government: provides citizens with on-line access to many governmental services.

Question 15

entropic process:

Answer 15

open systems concept; all organizations face the prospect of moving toward decline, disorganization, and death.

Question 16

equafinality:

Answer 16

there are multiple ways to achieve goals.

Question 17

exception principle:

Answer 17

routine matters should be handled at the lowest possible organizational level that they can be properly addressed, and unusual events, above or below standards, should be brought to the attention of higher-level managers.

Question 18

force-field analysis:

Answer 18

a decision-making tool developed by Lewin. Also see behavioral systems theory.

Question 19

functional supervision:

Answer 19

one person supervises a function, even if it cuts across several organizational units.

Question 20

Gulick, Luther:

Answer 20

coined the most famous acronym of administration: POSDCORB.

Question 21

Hawthorne effect:

Answer 21

people being studied behave differently because they like the attention they get; part of a study by the human relations school at the Hawthorne Electrical Plant.

Question 22

Herzberg, Frederick:

Answer 22

developed motivation-hygiene theory.

Question 23

homeostasis:

Answer 23

when an organization is “in balance.”

Question 24

human relations school:

Answer 24

saw traditional organizational theory as ignoring the human element and sought changes; helped set the stage for the emergence of organizational humanism; see Hawthorne effect.

Question 25

immaturity versus maturity:

Answer 25

see Argyris.

Question 26

internal subsystems:

Answer 26

in open systems theory, the internal unifying forces of an agency that prevent fragmentation of the organization and transform inputs into outputs.

Question 27

isomorphism:

Answer 27

resource-dependent agencies tend to mirror the complexities and demands of their environments; when agencies receive signals from important others, they develop responsive policies and programs.

Question 28

Knapp Commission:

Answer 28

studied corruption in the NYCPD, identifying meat-and grass-eaters.

Question 29

Lewin, Kurt:

Answer 29

founder of behavioral systems theory.

Question 30

Maslow, Abraham:

Answer 30

developed the five-level hierarchy of human needs. McGregor, Douglas: developed Theory X and Theory Y, two contrasting sets of assumptions about workers.

Question 31

motivation-hygiene theory:

Answer 31

two sets of factors, motivators and hygiene; hygiene factors, if met, don’t motivate someone, but unmet they are a source of dissatisfaction. See Herzberg.

Question 32

mutual benefit association:

Answer 32

an association whose primary beneficiary is its members (e.g., a police union).

Question 33

natural soldiering:

Answer 33

the natural inclination of workers not to push themselves.

Question 34

needs hierarchy:

Answer 34

five levels of needs that explain human motivation; see Maslow.

Question 35

negative entropy:

Answer 35

the capacity to resist decline or death, see buffering.

Question 36

networked organizations:

Answer 36

organizations that are heavily dependent on informational technology, often comprised of geographically dispersed units, horizontal communication accounts for most message traffic, their existence is panned and bound together by contract, may be single purpose or continuous in operation. Units are not part of same organization; they are autonomous, but collaborative. See virtual organizations. the capacity to resist decline or death, see buffering.

Question 37

new public management (NPM):

Answer 37

began in 1980s, called for greater use of business practices to achieve greater efficiency.

Question 38

open systems theory:

Answer 38

a grouping of separate, but interdependent components that work together to achieve common goals.

Question 39

organizational development (OD):

Answer 39

a change management process.

Question 40

POSDCORB:

Answer 40

planning, organizing, staffing, directing, coordinating, reporting, and budgeting; also see Gulick.

Question 41

rational-legal authority:

Answer 41

authority is granted by the organization to the occupant of a position who uses it to accomplish organizational goals, a Weber-supplied concept.

Question 42

scientific management:

Answer 42

finding the “one best way” to accomplish a task; see F. W. Taylor and traditional organizational theory.

Question 43

sense making:

Answer 43

how people and organizations process their experiences and what they do with them. See cognitive maps.

Question 44

service organizations:

Answer 44

a organization whose specific clientele is the primary beneficiary (e.g. clients of a community health center).

Question 45

single-loop learning:

Answer 45

allows organizations to make corrections and continue operations; see double-loop learning.

Question 46

street-level bureaucrats:

Answer 46

government workers in direct contact with clients who use discretion on how to implement public policy (e.g., police officers and field social workers).

Question 47

systematic soldiering:

Answer 47

keep production rates low so quotas don’t increase.

Question 48

Taylor, F. W.:

Answer 48

father of scientific management.

Question 49

Theory X–Theory Y:

Answer 49

see McGregor.

Question 50

traditional organizational theory:

Answer 50

has three stems, bureaucracy, scientific management, and administrative theory; the centerpiece of organizational theory during 1900–1950.

Question 51

virtual organizations:

Answer 51

organizations that arise spontaneously to an urgent need; there is no planning or contract; participation is voluntary and members can withdraw at any time; there is not a command and control structure; they usually disappear when the single purpose that brought them together is accomplished

Question 52

Weber, Max:

Answer 52

founder of modern sociology whose name is synonymous with bureaucracy.

Question 53

administrative theory:

Answer 53

also called management theory and the principles approach, sought to find “universal” principles of management that could be used in any setting; also see traditional organizational theory.