Industrial /Organizational - Flash Cards
Theory X and Theory Y
According to McGregor, Theory X managers believe that employees dislike work and avoid it whenever possible and, as a result, must be directed and controlled. In contrast, Theory Y managers view work as being “as natural as play” and assume that employees are capable of self-control and self-direction.
Two-Factor Theory (Herzberg)
Herzberg’s two-factor theory is a theory of both motivation and satisfaction that places satisfaction and dissatisfaction on two separate continua. Motivator factors (increased autonomy, responsibility, control, etc.) contribute to satisfaction and motivation when they are present; while hygiene factors (pay, pleasant working conditions) contribute to dissatisfaction when they are absent.
Types of Group Tasks
Tasks performed by groups can be classified in terms of five types - additive, compensatory, disjunctive, conjunctive, and discretionary.
Scientific Management
As described by Taylor, scientific management involves (a) scientifically analyzing jobs into their component parts and then standardizing those parts; (b) scientifically selecting, training, and placing workers in jobs for which they are mentally and physically suited; (c) fostering cooperation between supervisors and workers to minimize deviation from scientific methods of work; and (d) having managers and workers assume responsibility for their own share of their work.
Identical Elements
Providing identical elements - i.e., ensuring that training and performance environments are similar in terms of materials, conditions, etc. - maximizes transfer of training.
Demand-Control Model (Karasek)
Karasek’s demand-control model predicts that job demand and job control are the primary contributors to job stress. Jobs associated with the highest levels of stress are characterized by a combination of high job demand and low job control and include machine-paced jobs and service jobs.
Quality Circles
A quality circle consists of a small voluntary group of employees who work together on a particular job and meet regularly to discuss job-related problems and solutions. Representatives of the quality circle then present their solutions to management.
Job Analysis Versus Job Evaluation
A job analysis is a systematic process of determining how a job differs from other jobs in terms of required responsibilities, activities, and skills. It is often the first step in the development of a predictor or criterion and is used for other purposes including identifying training needs and determining the causes of accidents. Job analysis must not be confused with job evaluation, which may begin with a job analysis but is conducted for the purpose of setting wages and salaries.
Goal-Setting Theory
Goal-setting theory proposes that employees will be more motivated to achieve goals when they have explicitly accepted those goals and are committed to them. It also proposes that assigning specific, moderately difficult goals and providing employees with feedback about their progress toward achieving goals increases productivity.
Job Burnout
Job burnout is caused by accumulated stress associated with overwork. Its primary symptoms are a feeling of low personal accomplishment, depersonalization, and emotional exhaustion. An early sign of burnout is a sudden increase in work effort without an increase in productivity.
Groupthink
Groupthink occurs when the desire of group members for unanimity and cohesiveness overrides their ability to realistically appraise or determine alternative courses of action. It can be alleviated when the group leader encourages dissent, has someone play devil’s advocate, and refrains from stating his/her decision or solution too quickly.
Need Hierarchy Theory (Maslow)
Maslow’s need hierarchy theory proposes that people have five basic needs that are arranged in a hierarchical order such that a need higher in the hierarchy doesn’t serve as a source of motivation until all lower needs have been fulfilled. These needs, in order, are physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization. The research has not been very supportive of Maslow’s theory.
PSSE,SA
Incremental Validity (section ratio, baseline rate)
Incremental validity refers to the increase in decision-making accuracy resulting from the use of a new predictor. It is maximized when the predictor’s validity coefficient is high, the selection ratio is low, and the base rate is moderate. (The selection ratio is the ratio of number of jobs to job applicants; the base rate is the proportion of successful decisions without the new predictor.)
National Culture (Hofstede)
According to Hofstede, the culture of nations can be described in terms of five dimensions - power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, masculinity, and long-term orientation.
Compressed Workweek
The compressed workweek is an alternative work schedule that involves decreasing the number of work days by increasing the number of hours worked each day. It is associated with better supervisor ratings of employee performance, employee overall job satisfaction, and employee satisfaction with the work schedule, with the effects being strongest for employee attitudes.
Taylor-Russell Tables
The Taylor-Russell tables are used to estimate a predictor’s incremental validity when the criterion-related validity coefficient, selection ratio, and base rate are known.
Overlearning
Overlearning refers to practicing or studying beyond the point of mastery and is associated with enhanced recall.
Realistic Job Preview
A realistic job preview is a method of providing accurate and complete information about the job and the organization to job applicants. Its primary goal is to reduce turnover by reducing disillusionment caused by unrealistic expectations about the job.
Total Quality Management (TQM)
TQM is a management theory that emphasizes customer service, employee involvement (especially teamwork), and continuous improvement in goods and services.
Self-Managed Work Teams
Self-managed work teams are autonomous work groups whose members are trained in the skills needed to effectively perform the group task. Their function is to make hiring, budget, and other decisions that were previously made by managers.
Need For Achievement (McClelland)
McClelland’s research using the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) revealed that three basic needs underlie work motivation - need for affiliation, need for power, and need for achievement. Employees with high need for achievement (nACH) usually choose tasks of moderate difficulty and risk, apparently because success on these tasks depends more on effort than on uncontrollable factors. They also prefer frequent, concrete feedback, and, although their motivation does not depend on money, they view monetary rewards as a source of feedback and recognition.
Path-Goal Theory
Path-goal theory is based on the assumption that an effective leader is one who can help carve a path for subordinates that allows them to fulfill personal goals through the achievement of group and organizational goals. It proposes that the best leadership style (directive, supportive, participative, or achievement-oriented) depends on certain characteristics of the worker and the work.
Multiple Regression And Multiple Cutoff
Multiple regression and multiple cutoff are methods for using multiple predictor scores. Multiple regression is a compensatory method, while multiple cutoff is noncompensatory.
Brainstorming
Brainstorming is a method of generating creative ideas that requires individuals or group members to freely suggest any idea or thought without criticism, evaluation, or censorship. Research suggests that individuals brainstorming alone do better than the same number brainstorming together.
Transformational and Transactional Leaders
Transformational leaders are characterized by their ability to recognize the need for change, create a vision for change (including using “framing” to describe the need for change in a way that is meaningful to followers), and effectively executing the change. They are contrasted with transactional leaders who tend to maintain the status quo and rely on rewards and punishments to motivate behavior.
Comparable Worth
Comparable worth is also known as pay equity and refers to the principle that jobs that require the same education, experience, skills, and other qualifications should pay the same wage/salary regardless of the employee’s age, gender, race/ethnicity, etc.
Social Facilitation And Inhibition
Social facilitation refers to the increase in learning and performance that occurs in the presence of others; it is most likely to occur when the task is simple or well-learned. Social inhibition refers to the decrease in learning and performance that occurs in the presence of others; it is most likely to occur when the task is new or complex.
Process Consultation
Process consultation is an organizational development intervention in which a consultant helps members of the organization perceive, understand, and identify ways of improving the processes that are undermining their interactions and the organization’s effectiveness.
Criterion Contamination
Criterion contamination occurs when a criterion measure assesses factors other than those it was designed to measure. For example, contamination is occurring when a rater’s knowledge of a ratee’s performance on a predictor affects how the rater rates the ratee on the criterion. It can artificially inflate the criterion-related validity coefficient.
