Motivation III

Question 1

backwards- facing criticism

Answer 1

• backwards- facing: focus on holding people accountable for past behavior at expense of focusing on future

Question 2

Ambiguous criteria critisim

Answer 2

• subjective judgements are made on performance, abilities, or potential

Question 3

too infrequent criticism

Answer 3

• too infrequent to make a difference
• lack of real time feedback renders performance reviews as ineffective

Question 4

Absolute pros and cons

Answer 4

-pros- employees generally prefer absolute ratings
cons: prone to rating inflation

Question 5

absolute rating system

Answer 5

rating based on whether performance meets a standard threshold

Question 6

relative rating system

Answer 6

performance is compared against peers

Question 7

relative pros and cons

Answer 7

pros- prevent rating from becoming inflated
cons- creates culture of competition

Question 8

improving performance reviews

Answer 8

• provide more frequent opportunities for feedback
• adequate notice
• solicit information from different sources

Question 9

fair hearing

Answer 9

fair hearing- ensuring there is two-way communication and employee’s side of story is heard.
- effective review system

Question 10

documentation of evidence

Answer 10

using factual evidence as opposed to personal opinions or subjective judgements
- effective review system

Question 11

focus on development

Answer 11

offering mentorship for employees to improve
- effective review system

Question 12

Goal

Answer 12

cognitive representation for a target for behavior

Question 13

Goal setting

Answer 13

• one of the most powerful tools for motivating and directing behavior

Question 14

why goals motivate

Answer 14

• gives direction
• energizes and tells people not to stop until goal is reached
• provides challenge

Question 15

specific goals

Answer 15

easier to form plans and assess progress.

Question 16

difficult goal s

Answer 16

• Steach people to mobilize more effort and develop KSAs
• if too difficult, people will consider them unattainable (weak expectancy belief) - demotivates

Question 17

Goal commitment

Answer 17

• refers to one’s attachment or determination to reach a goal

Question 18

Organizational goals

Answer 18

only work if people have high goal commitment

Question 19

boosting goal commitment

Answer 19

• inspirational vision
• make the goal public
• allow employees to participate in goal setting

Question 20

participation in goal setting

Answer 20

• encourages buy-on
• increases alignment with organization
• if people are already highly committed, it becomes less important to include them in process

Question 21

SMART goals

Answer 21

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Relevant
Time- bound

Question 22

Cons of goal setting

Answer 22

• tunnel vision
• achievement ceiling
• unethical behaviors

Question 23

tunnel vision

Answer 23

• goals tend to narrow people’s focus towards achievement and people become more single minded
• adaptability declines, people miss other important informational cues in environment

Question 24

Achievement ceiling

Answer 24

• goals are often seen as ceiling and not a floor
• once reached, people stop
• motivation decreases when goal is reached

Question 25

unethical behavior

Answer 25

an aggressive pursuit of goals may lead to unethical behavior.
- employees might be tempted to cheat or misrepresent their performance if they are close to reaching a goal

Question 26

Leading up to review

Answer 26

• frequent feedback
• adequate notice what criteria will be used during review
• solicit information from different sources - for biases