Wk 9: Organisational Behaviour

Question 1

What is organisational behaviour?

Answer 1

A field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups and structures have on behaviour within organisations, for the purpose of applying such knowledge towards improving an organisations effectiveness
- The attitudes and behaviour of people at work (job satisfaction, commitment, motivation and conflict)

Question 2

What are the three lenses on organisations/

Answer 2

Design lens
Cultural lens
Political lens

Question 3

What is the design lens?

Answer 3

arrangement and coordination of work tasks and accountability (supervision/reporting)

Question 4

What is the cultural lens?

Answer 4

habits, typical practices, norms and identities

Question 5

What is the political lens?

Answer 5

interests, conflicts, competition, coalitions, negotiation

Question 6

What are the disciplines that org psyc draws from?

Answer 6

‘Basic’ Social psychology - studies change and how to implement in order to reduce barriers to acceptance
Anthropology - study of societies to learn about human beings and their activities
Behavioural economics
Sociology - study of people in relation to environment or culture

Question 7

What is organisational psychology vs social psychology?

Answer 7

Organisational psychology is the scientific study of psychological processes and behaviours of individuals and groups in the workplace
Social psyc - scientific study of the effects of social and cognitive processes on the way individual’s perceive, influence and relate to others

Question 8

What are the goals of OP? - what type of variable are they?

Answer 8

• Enhance productivity
• Increase employee satisfaction and health
• Manage absenteeism and turnover
• Address deviant workplace behaviour
• -> Dependent variables

Question 9

Explain enhancing productivity

Answer 9

• higher quality and quantity of work output
• Increase the skills and abilities of employees
• Requires both effectiveness and efficiency
• Efficient if it can do so at low cost

Question 10

Explain increasing satisfaction and health

Answer 10

• Positive experiences, happiness and wellbeing

Question 11

Explain absenteeism and turnover

Answer 11

• find ways for employees to engage with and remain in work
• find effective ways to manage turnover when performance is poor
• Huge cost and disruption to employers
• Work flow disrupted and important decisions delayed

Question 12

Explain addressing deviant workplace behaviour

Answer 12

• voluntary behaviours that threaten workplace functioning (e.g. harassment, bullying, sabotage, theft)

Question 13

What is organisational citizenship behaviour?

Answer 13

Discretionary behaviour that is not part of an employee’s formal job requirements, bu that promote the effective functioning of the organisation

Question 14

What are the three processes that contribute to how to produce something

Answer 14

Physical resources
Technology/machinary
Human resources

Question 15

What are individual level independent variables?

Answer 15

Characteristics such as age, gender marital status and personality characteristics, emotional framework, attitudes and basic ability levels

Question 16

What are group level independent variables?

Answer 16

Understand dynamics of group behaviour and how individuals in groups are influenced by the patterns of behaviour they are expected to exhibit, what the group considers acceptable and the degree to which group members are attracted to each other

Question 17

What are Organisational system-level variables independent variables?

Answer 17

design of formal organisations, interval culture, HR policies and practices and change and stress

Question 18

What is Taylorism

Answer 18

Scientific Management

Question 19

What are the principles of scientific management

Answer 19

• Scientific methods of working
• Scientific selection and training
• Cooperation between management and workers
• Equal responsibility

Question 20

What is the scientific method of working?

Answer 20

• work out scientifically best way of working

Question 21

What is scientific selection and training?

Answer 21

• Work out the ideal characteristics of people to do task

- recruit them and provide them with the optimal skills/knowledge

Question 22

What is cooperation between management and workers?

Answer 22

Management help and support workers to achieve the scientifically optimal behaviours

Question 23

What is equal responsibility?

Answer 23

• Previously performance mainly workers responsibility

- Management taken more responsibility in developing and maintaining idea working patterns/conditions

Question 24

What did the Hawthorne Studies aim to do?

Answer 24

Find out what increases employee productivity

Question 25

What were the Hawthorne Studies?

Answer 25

• Range of studies in 1924-1932 that studies the optimal operating conditions for humans

Question 26

What did they Hawthorne studies investigate/

Answer 26

• Examined effects on productivity resulting from
• -Light intensity
• • Rest breaks
• • Working day length

Question 27

What were the findings?

Answer 27

When examining relationship between light intensity and efficient no clear relationship was discovered because productivity increased whenever the intensity was changed

Question 28

What did they suggest?

Answer 28

The attention of researchers was enough to increase the productivity of workers

Question 29

What is the Hawthorne Effect/

Answer 29

The temporary increment in performance that occurs at the onset of an intervention
- Performance often returns to pre-intervention levels after some time

Question 30

What did re-analysis question?

Answer 30

The strength and duration of the Hawthorne Effect

Question 31

What were the Hawthone studies important in

Answer 31

Increasing attention to worker’s psychology in terms of their

• Attitudes and emotions about work
• The meanings they assign to work
• Relationships and recognition at work

Question 32

What do org psycs do?

Answer 32

• Organisational change and development (improving or changing orgs; diagnosing, analysing and intervening)

Question 33

What is industrial psychology?

Answer 33

• interactions with technology and machines

- error minimisation and prevention

Question 34

What is personal psychology?

Answer 34

• (Organisation focus): job-person fit (job analysis, recruitment, training, appraisal); safety
• (Person focus): career counselling

Question 35

What are the classic research questions?

Answer 35

• does personality predict job performance?
• is a satisfied worker also a productive worker?
• does paying a person to do something decrease motivation?
• are groups more effective than individuals?
• are leaders born or can you train?

Question 36

Contemporary questions

Answer 36

• how to manage virtual teams?
• what are the outcomes of increasing workplace diversity?
• how can we organise and manage people in globalised and networked work?
• how can we manage flexibility in the workplace?
• How can we help people acheive acceptable work-life balance?