Midterm Flashcards
What is Organizational Behvaiour?
OB is the study of human behaviour in the workplace, analyzing the behaviour of individuals/teams/orgs
What disciplines influence the study of OB?
Social and behavioural sciences (psychology, sociology, anthropology), as well as economics and political science
What is job design?
The act of structuring a job to fulfill certain requirements, with the intent of creating a distinct and meaningful role within an org
What are the outcomes of a well designed job?
Less stress, overall job satisfaction, performance, level of absenteeism, innovation
How does the nature of management change according to level within the org?
Front line management: focus on technical skills, running day-to-day operations. Middle management: equal focus on technical skills, personal skills, high level conceptual goals, ability to translate high level directives to lower level employees. C-level management: priority is high level conceptual skills with a long-term horizon, keeping the org aligned with corporate goals and timelines
What are examples of org inputs?
Capital, tech, government, raw materials, economic conditions
What are the org processes turning inputs into outputs?
Utilizing individuals and teams, tech, org design, management to influence leadership, communication, politics, and decision making
Examples of org outputs?
Individual performance, group performance, organizational effectiveness > goods/services, shareholder equity
What is a theory?
A statement aiming to explain the manner in which certain concepts or variables are related
What makes a good theory?
Internal consistency, external consistency, scientific parsimony (simple and concise), generalizability, and verifiable
What are the four stages of the scientific method?
Observation, formulation (inductive reasoning - specific to broad), generation (deductive reasoning - broad to specific), verification using systematic, controlled experiments
What is research?
Research is the use of systematic, controlled observations to reach new conclusions or verify a hypothesis
What is data?
Observations and results gathered as a result of research
Examples of research design?
Naturalistic observation, survey research, field studies, field experiments, lab experiments
How would you evaluate research design?
Qualitative vs. quantitative data, level of control, level of external validity, cost, level of rigor
What are the three types of diversity encountered in the workplace?
Surface level diversity (visible characteristics), deep level diversity (non-observable, like values or beliefs), hidden diversity (sexual orientation, illness)
What are the different diversity theories?
Cognitive diversity hypothesis, similarity attraction paradigm, social cognitive theory, social identity theory, schema theory, justification suppression model
Explain cognitive diversity theory
Diversity and differences in TM characteristics lead to high performance, since the multiple perspectives will improve the problem-solving process
Explain similarity-attraction paradigm
Diversity can sometimes have negative impacts on organizations, since we are often attracted to those “like us” - can decrease employee commitment, and increase turnover if not managed
Explain social cognitive theory
The brain uses categorization to sort through vast amount of information quickly - this can lead to stereotyping of others based on readily visible characteristics
Explain social identity theory
Framing decisions and thoughts as “us vs. them”, sometimes even preferring “them” if we have internalized negative though patterns
Explain schema theory
We perceive diversity based on our past experiences, which shape our attitudes moving forward
Explain the justification suppression model
We, as humans, all have prejudices, but some choose to suppress them based on internal factors (empathy) or external factors (social pressure)
What is equity?
The idea of everyone being treated equally based on their starting position - using custom tools to balance injustices and ensure fair chances for all
What is diversity?
Differences in identity based characteristics between people or groups
What is inclusion?
The degree to which employees are accepted and treated fairly, can be an indicator of how well and org values diversity
How can managers ensure fairness during interviewing and selection?
Neutral job postings, communication values of diversity externally to attract a diverse talent pool, having a structured interview process and questions
How is culture embedded in organization?
The beliefs, attitudes and values of an org embedded largely via actions of leadership - what leaders pay attention to, what they measure, how they react to incidents and crises, what behaviour they model, how they allocate rewards, standards used for recruitment/promotion/termination
Explain Competing Values Framework (CVF)
Model designed to measure how an org’s culture fits within it’s environment. Clan (culture, people first), adhocracy (innovation, dynamic, entrepreneurial), hierarchy (structure, efficiency), market (competitive, achievement). Spectrum of flexibility vs. control, internal vs. external focus
Describe mental abilities
How we process info, intellectual capabilities, includes: verbal comprehension, memory, spacial aptitude, inductive reasoning
Explain cognitive complexity
Aspect of mental ability, describes the level of capacity one has to acquire and sort through information to come to a conclusion. High CC = nuance, generate more connections/solutions, compartmentalize less. Low CC = more stereotypical, think more linear and fixed
Describe physical abilities
What we are physically capable of, includes: measures of strength, flexibility and coordination
Explain psychomotor abilities
An aspect of physical ability, including reaction time, aiming, and manual dexterity
What is the role of personality and personality development in the workplace?
Personality is an indirect factor contributing to workplace behaviour, helping to explain motivations and interactions with others. Can determine role fit, response to management style, chances at success and growth, salary, and more
What are the personality traits studied in the workplace?
Self-esteem, introversion/extroversion, locus of control
What is the process of environmental perception?
Exposure to environment or stimulus > focus on stimulus > brain begins to perceive and interpret > retention and response
What are the personal influences of selective attention?
Response salience (tendency to focus on things that relate to immediate wants/needs) and response disposition (tendency to recognize the familiar regardless of objective factors)
Social perception in organization, how do we perceive others?
- Characteristics of the perceived (looks, speech, non-verbal comm, etc.)
- Characteristics of situation (difference in roles, location, etc.)
- Characteristics of perceiver (cognitive structure, response salience, previous experience, etc.)
What are the barriers that inhibit the accuracy of our perception?
Stereotyping, selective perception, perceptual defense
Explain attribution theory
Seeks to explain the cognitive process by which individuals interpret the causes of their behaviour as atrributed to their environment. Behavioural event > cognitive interpretation of event and cause > new cognitive structures created > behavioral choices now shaped by new structure
What is attitude?
A predisposition to respond either favourably or unfavourably to objects or persons in an individual’s environment
How is attitude formed?
Dispositional approach: relatively stable, like personality, changing very little in response to external factors
Situational approach: attitudes emerge and change based on unique situations
Social information processing approach: attitudes form from a socially constructed reality as perceived by the individual (social context contributes, instead of only objective info)
Define motivation
Internal/external forces that energize, direct and sustain human behaviour. Composed of direct (what a person wants to achieve) and intensity (how hard they are willing to work to achieve it)
What is the performance formula?
Performance = motivation x ability Motivation = desire x commitment Ability = aptitude x training x resources
Key challenges of performance management practices?
Properly aligning individual goals with org goals, how to reward performance, how to identify and address poor performers, how to keep conversations, documentations and feedback tracked and utilized
