mid term questions and answers

Question 1

what is the definition of organization?

Answer 1

an organization is a group with 2 or more people that share a common goals and meet at regular times.

Question 2

what is the definition of organizational behavior?

Answer 2

the study oh human behavior in the workplace, and the interaction between people and the organization, with the intent to understand and predict human behavior.

Question 3

what differences in people do we need to consider in order to understand behavior in an organization?

Answer 3

cultural, racial, age and gender.

Question 4

what issues need to be studied to fully understand behavior n an organization?

Answer 4

motivation, leadership, communication, stress, decision-making, conflict and power.

Question 5

what are the stages of group development?

Answer 5

forming:
members get acquainted, test interpersonal behaviors.
form initial impressions-everyone is polite dull(testing behavior)
conflict seldom voiced-individual s guarded in opinions check expectations of one another.
Members depend and look for leadership and defers to them.
little is accomplished-lots of distractions
slow to the next stage.

Storming
lots of ideas
begin to realize size of required task
Impatient, defensive, competitive, argumentative
factions form, personalities clash, resist cooperation
stage of conflict , who is responsible for what-questions wisdom of original leader
good communications skills and managing conflict are needed f leaders, since at this stage no one is listening
burst of activity to next stage.

norming
if stage two is survived groups become organized and accept rules of behavior and recognize merit of working together.
members share acceptance of roles, sense of unity
develop teamwork- construct criticism
openness to communication- more secure in expressing points of view
team develops because of established agreed goals
lots of accomplishments
slow evolution to next stage.

performing team
collection of people who must
exist to fulfill a purpose or common objecives-shared understanding
sense of pride in group accomplishment
rely on group cooperation (teamwork) interdependence
mutual accountability- joint work projects/ joint problem solving-flexible
accept each others strengths and weakness
perceive themselves as a social entity-“we” vs. “Me”
interact- share information and influence each other-open

Question 6

what are three keys reasons to lean about teamwork?

Answer 6

team skills are needed and valued by employers: to develop interpersonal skills: capitalize on complementary skills leading to improvements in productivity and performance.

Question 7

What is the definition of a team?

Answer 7

A team is a group whose members have complementary skills are committed to a common purpose or set of performance goals which they hold themselves mutually accountable.

Question 8

what are the seven characteristics of effective teams?

Answer 8

1. specific agreed upon goals/ objectives 2. commitment to a common purpose that is defined, understood, and agreed upon by all 3. trust & respect 4. Individual and joint accountability interdependence and acceptance of individual strengths and weaknesses 5. good communication structure 6. We vs. Me 7. Reward and fail as a team.

Question 9

What are the four P’s of running an effective meeting? list and describe them.

Answer 9

purpose: make announcements , make decisions, brainstorm. Should result in information sharing, commitment building, getting feedback, and problem solving.
participants: in attendance, on time, prepared.

Plan: provide adequate space and time for the meeting, prepare and agenda.

Process: Establish ground rules are followed: stay on task: manage discussion to ensure everyone is given time to participate: conclude meeting by summarizing what was accomplished ,review assignments , and preparations for next meting.

Question 10

what are the main driving forces for change in an organization?

Answer 10

technology & information, nature of the work force, globalization, mergers, economic condition, political, Economic.

Question 11

There are several ways to get people and organizations to change. List and explain them?

Answer 11

awareness, understanding, employee involvement and participation, support, economic incentives, increased communications, negotiation, Commitment ve coercion

Question 12

how to study organizational behavior?

Answer 12

1. looking at relationships, attempting to attribute causes and effects and drawing conclusions based on scientific evidence vs. common sense and intuition.
2. behavior is generally predictable but depends on contingencies that impact behavior.
3. By scientifically recognizing there are differences between individuals, we became better communicator and motivators.

Question 13

Why Study Organizational Behavior?

Answer 13

1. Organizational behavior focuses on improving productivity, enhancing employee performances, job satisfaction, leadership, dealing, with change and so much more.
2. The number one reason for failure among executives of fortune 500 companies is poor interpersonal skills.
3. in short, they don’t have a command of the needed human and organizational behavior skills and, as a result, they come across as not really caring about their people.

Question 14

characteristics of effective teams?

Answer 14

1. specific and agreed upon goals and objectives .
2. commitment to a common purpose- defined, understood and agreed upon by all members.
3. trust and respect for each team members.
4. individual and joint accountability- interdependence and acceptance of each members strengths and weakness.
5. Good communication structure
6. We vs. Me
7. Reward and fail as a team.

Question 15

Why teams?

Answer 15

1. through teamwork, more can be accomplished by using the skills and abilities of several individuals.
2. Role - is set of expected behavior patterns attributed to a team member in a given position.
3. Role perception- is how the individual believes he or she is to act in a given team role.
4. Role expectation- is how others on the team believe or expect other members to behave.
5. Role conflict- May occur when the role perception and the role expectations are not congruent.
6. Social loafing- is the tendency for individuals to put forth just enough effort to get by when working with teams.

Question 16

what about gender differences?

Answer 16

for a given job, the differences between men and women are not that great.

Question 17

What about cultural differences?

Answer 17

stereotyping- is attributing a specific trait to a person based on the characteristics of the group to which a person belongs.

Question 18

what is synergy

Answer 18

synergy is building a force that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Question 19

what characteristics of good team building

Answer 19

1. high level of interdependence among team members.
2. development of mutual trust and respect.
3. Team leaders must process good people skills.
4. Team roles are defined and understood.
5. the team must have clear goals and objectives.
6. The team must have the capacity to create new and innovative ideas.

Question 20

what is groupthink?

Answer 20

group think occurs when group conformity overrides reality.

Question 21

what is groupshift?

Answer 21

occurs because of a lack of individual responsibility, which causes the group shifts to become more conservative or more risky.

Question 22

Escalation of commitment?

Answer 22

is staying with a course of action beyond where it is reasonable.

Question 23

whats is lewin’s change model?

Answer 23

1. unfreezing- the driving force ion this first stage is to encourage a change in behavior or attitudes as a means to move the organization or individual in a positive direction. people will often resist the change for any number of reasons: how ever the most powerful reasons are the lost feelings os security, the fear of the unknown, economic factors, habits, and perception.
2. Movement and transition- to get people and organizations to move to desired level of change. This could be done through education, employee participation in the change and decision making, economic incentives, individual and team support, greater communication, and negotiation. The leader may need to force the change out of necessity. Issues involving new safety procedures or following government regulations would be examples where the change is a must.
3. Refreezing- to complete the change process so that the new behaviors and attitudes become the new standard, refreezing must take place. The refreezing stage allows a period of time for the success of the change to become the “new way to do things.” once the change has been implemented, the leader offers encouragement, recognition, and other forms of positive reinforcements to strengthen the stability of the change.

Question 24

What are the driving forces for change?

Answer 24

1. technology
2. Nature of the work force
3. International effects.
4. Mergers
5. Economic shocks

Question 25

Why people don’t like Change?

Answer 25

habits- many people don’t like change because it disrupts their habits. also threatens their security.

Question 26

How to get people and organizations to change?

Answer 26

1. Education-ex: My father adapted to change in his typesetting job because he was given training on each new technology. If people are trained well and comfortable with the new job, they will be less resistant to change.
2. Particiaption- people better react to change if they are part of the decision to make the change. example- if a company is thinking about chaining from PC’s to Apple computers, people will be more comfortable with the change if they are of the decision. review panels, sleeting people to try new system, having people research how the new equipment works in other companies are all ways to get people to buy into change.
3. Support-sometimes people have emotional difficulties dealing with change. this can lead to stress, as discussed earlier in the book sometimes people need counseling and support to deal with a new situation.
4. Economic incentives- I once worked for a company that decided to move its entire research group to another state. This was not well received because people had built ties to the community. Once their company offered substantial economic incentives to make the move, people saw things differently . (Monetary Rewards)
5. Increase communications- people may resist change simply because they don’t understand the need. increased communication to the point of over communication may help create the sense of urgency and the need to change. The old adage, “ if you tell it to them enough times they will start to believe it” applies.
6. negotiations- Another possible stimulus to help bring about change is to negotiate the needed change. it may possible to negotiate the time, level of involvement, and degree s of change just to get the process started.
7. Coercion- if change is necessary and for whatever reason is not being accepted, a leader may have to resort to coercion bring about change, Coercion is the use of force to make changes and is not the most desirable outcome.

Question 27

what is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

Answer 27

1. physical needs
2. Safety/security needs
3. Social/ belonging needs
4. Ego or esteem needs
5. self-actualization

Question 28

What is Alderfer’s ERG theory of motivation?

Answer 28

1. Existence
2. Growth
3. Relatedness

Question 29

What is Herzberg’s Motivation Hygiene theory?

Answer 29

two independent  scales 
1. Satisfaction and No satisfaction
(these are the motivators)
2. Dissatisfaction and no dissatisfaction
(Hygiene or maintenance factors)

Hygiene factors:
1. company policies
2. Supervision
3. Work conditions
4. Salary
5. Relationship with peers
6. Status
7. Security
(these factors contribute to to job dissatisfaction )

Motivators:
1. recognition
2. achievement 
3. Work relief
4. Responsibility
5. Opportunity for advancement
6. Growth
(these factors contribute to job satisfaction)

Question 30

What is Mcgregor’s Theory X & Y?

Answer 30

Theory X:

1. Managers are pessimistic about workers capabilities.
2. Managers believe people dislike work, seek to avoid responsibility, and are not ambitious.
3. Employees must be closely supervised.

Question 31

What is Theory Y?

Answer 31

1. Managers are more optimistic about workers capabilities.
2. Managers believe people enjoy work, willingly accept the responsibility, exercise self-control, have the capacity to innovate, and work is as natural as play.

Question 32

What is McClelland’s needs theory?

Answer 32

1. The need for achievement
   (is the drive to accomplish challenging goals)
2. The need for power
   (is the desire to control others; to influence others behavior according to one’s wishes.)
3. The need for affiliation
   (is the desire for close relationships with others.)

Question 33

What is Goal setting theory?

Answer 33

A goal is what a person tries to attain, accomplish, or achieve.

1. goals tell them an employee what needs to be expended.
2. a specific hard goal that is understood and accepted by the individual acts as an internal stimulus.
3. Specific hard goals produce a higher level of output than does the generalized goal of “do your best.”
4. The specificity of the goal itself acts as an internal stimulus.
5. Feedback is critical and acts to guide behavior.

Question 34

What is the equity theory of motivation?

Answer 34

1. Individuals compare their job inputs and outcomes with those of others and then respond so as to eliminate any inequities.
2. Equity theory recognizes that individuals are concerned not only with the absolute amount of reward for their efforts, but also with the relationship of this amount to what others receive .

Question 35

what are the equity outputs and inputs?

Answer 35

Inputs:

1. performance.
2. education.
3. organizational levels
4. Tenure/Seniority
5. Gender

Outputs:

1. social reward
2. benefits
3. recognition
4. actual pay
5. perks

Question 36

If an imbalance is perceived, what could be done?

Answer 36

1. change the inputs
2. change the outcome .
3. look at another measurement
4. change one’s self perception
5. choose a different reference point.
6. choose to leave.

Question 37

what is a reinforcement theory?

Answer 37

A counterpoint to the goal setting theory

1. a behaviorist approach argues that reinforcement conditions behavior.
2. Reinforcement theorists see behavior as being behaviorally caused.
3. reinforcement theory ignores the inner state of the individual and concentrates solely on what happens to a person when he or she takes some action.

Question 38

what is positive reinforcement ?

Answer 38

1. positive reinforcement means providing a positive response when a person demonstrates the desired behavior.
2. people tend to do which they get rewarded for doing.

Question 39

What is negative reinforcement?

Answer 39

1. Negative reinforcement means rewarding by taking away uncomfortable consequences.

Question 40

What is punishment and extinction?

Answer 40

1. punishment is the application of an undesirable consequence for an undesired behavior.
2. Extinction is the reduction in frequency of undesired behavior by removing the reward for such behavior.

Question 41

What is the definition of the expectancy theory?

Answer 41

1. the strength of a tendency to act in a certain way depends on the strength of expectation that the act will be followed by a given outcome and on the attractiveness of that outcome to the individual.

Question 42

expectancy theory focus areas?

Answer 42

1. effort performance relationship
   ( the probability perceived by the individual that exerting a given amount of effort will lead to performance.
2. performance reward relationship
   (the degree to which the individual believe that performing at a particular level will lead to to the attainment f a desired outcome.
3. reward personal goal relationships
   (the degree to which organizational rewards satisfy an individuals personal goals or needs and the attractiveness of those potential rewards for the individual.