HBO ch 1-7

Organizational Behavior

Organizational Behavior

the study of human behavior in organizational settings, the interface between human behavior and the organization, and the organization itself

Basic Managerial Functions

Managers engage in the four basic functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. These functions are applied to human, financial, physical, and information resources with the ultimate purpose of efficiently and effectively attaining organizational goals

Planning

the process of determining an organization's desired future position and the best means of getting there

Organizing

the process of designing jobs, grouping jobs into units, and establishing patterns of authority between jobs and units

Leading

The process of getting the organization's members to work together toward the organization's goals

Controlling

the process of monitoring and correcting the actions of the organization and its members to keep them directed toward their goals

Interpersonal Roles

the figurehead, the leader, and the liaison

Informational Roles

the monitor, the diseminator, and the spokesperson

Decision-Making Roles

the entrepreneur, the disturbance handler, the resource allocator, and the negotiator

Technical Skills

the skills necessary to accomplish specific tasks within the organization

Interpersonal Skills

the manager uses interpersonal skills to communicate with, understand, and motivate individuals and groups

Conceptual Skills

The manager uses conceptual skills to think in the abstract

Diagnostic Skills

The manager uses diagnostic skills to understand cause-and-effect relationships and to recognize the optimal solutions to problems

Managerial Skills at Different Organizational Levels

Most managers need technical, interpersonal, conceptual, and diagnostic skills, but the importance of these skills varies by level in the organization. Conceptual and diagnostic skills are usually more important for top managers in organizations, whereas technical and interpersonal skills may be more important for first-line mangers

The Framework for understanding Organizational Behavior

Organizational Behavior is an exciting and complex field of study. The specific concepts and topics that constitute the field can be grouped into three categories: individual, interpersonal, and organizational processes and characteristics. Here these concepts and classifications are used to provide an overall framework for the organization

The Systems approach to Organizations

The systems approach to organizations provides a useful framework for understanding how the elements of an organization interact among themselves and with their environment. Various inputs are transformed into different outputs, with important feedback from the environment. If managers do not understand these interrelations, they may tend to ignore their environment or overlook important interrelationships within their organization

System

a set of interrelated elements functioning as a whole

Situational Perspective

suggests that in most organizations, situations and outcomes are influenced by other variables.

Interactionalism

suggests that individuals and situations interact continuously to determine individuals' behaviors

Globalization

the internationalization of business activities and the shift toward an integrated global economy

The Changing Environment of Business

The changing environment of business presents both opportunities and challenges for managers today. Five important environmental forces are globalization, diversity, technology, ethics, and corporate governance, and new employment relationtionships

Culture

the set of shared values, often taken for granted, that help people in a group, organization, or society understand which actions are considered acceptable and which are deemed unacceptable

Individualism

exists to extent that people in a culture define themselves primarily as individuals rather than as part of one or more groups or organizations

Collectivism

characterized by tight social frameworks in which people tend to base their identities on the group or organization to which they belong

Power Distance

is also called orientation to authority is the extent to which people accept as normal an unequal distribution of power

Uncertainty Avoidance

Can also be called preference for stability, is the extent to which people feel threatened by unknown situations and prefer to be in clear unambiguous situations

Masculinity

more accurately called assertiveness or materialism is the extent to which the dominant values in a society emphasize aggressiveness and the acquisition of money and other possessions as opposed to concern for people relationships among people and overall quality of life.

Long-Term Values

include focusing on the future, working on projects that have a distant payoff, persistence, and thrift

Short-Term Values

are more oriented toward the past and the present and include respect for traditions and social obligations

Workforce Diversity

Refers to the important similarities among the employees of organizations.

Stereotypes

are generalizations about a person or group of persons based on certain characteristics or traits

Prejudices

are judgements about others that reinforce beliefs about superiority and inferiority

Primary dimensions of diversity

those factors that are either inborn or exert extraordinary influence on early socialization

Secondary dimensions of Diversity

include factors that matter to us as individuals and that to some extent define us to others; however, they may be less permanent than primary dimensions and can be adapted or changed.

Assimilation

the process through which members of a minority group are socialized into learning the ways of the majority group

Valuing diversity

means putting an end to the assumption that everyone who is not a member of the dominant group must assimilate

Technology

refers to the methods used to create products, including both physical goods and intangible services

Manufacturing

a form of business that combines and transforms resources into tangible outcomes that are then sold to others.

Service Organizations

one that transforms resources into an intangible output and creates time or place utility for its customers

Ethics

are a person's beliefs regarding what is right or wrong in a given situation

Corporate Governance

refers to the oversight of a public corporation by its board of directors

Knowledge Workers

are those employees who add value in an organization simply because of what they know

Outsourcing

The practice of hiring other firms to do work previously performed by the organization itself; when this work is moved overseas it is often called offshoring

Contingent Worker

a person who works for an organization on something other than a permanent or full-time basis

Tiered Workforce

exists when one group of an organization's workforce has a contractual arrangement with the organization objectively different from another group performing the same jobs.

Psychological Contract

a person's set of expectations regarding what he or she will contribute to an organization and what the organization, in return, will provide to the individual

Contributions

to an organization include things such as effort, skills, ability, time, and loyalty.

inducements

organizations provide these to individuals in the form of tangible or intangible rewards

Person-Job Fit

the extent to which the contributions made by the individuals match the inducements offered by the organization

Individual Differences

personal attributes that vary from person to person

Personality

the relativley stable set of psychological attributes that distinguish one person from another

"Big Five" Personality Traits

a set of fundamental traits especially relevant to organizations

Agreeableness

is the ability to get along with others

Consceintiousness

refers to the number of goals on which a person focuses

Neuroticism

a characteristic by a person's tendency to experience unpleasant emotions such as anger, anxiety, depression, and feelings of vulnerability

Extraversion

the quality of being comfortable with relationships; the opposite of extreme introversion, is characterized by more social discomfort

Openness

is the capacity to entertain new ideas and to change as a result of new information

Emotional Intelligence

(EQ) the extent to which people are self-aware, can manage their emotions, can motivate themselves, express empathy of others and possess social skills

Locus of Control

the extent to which he believes his circumstances are a function of either his own actions or of external factors beyond his control

Self- Efficacy

the person's beliefs about his or her capabilities to perform a task

Authoritarianism

the belief that power and status differences are appropriate within hierarchical social systems such as organizations

Machiavellianism

a person whose personality trait that behave to gain power and control the behavior of others

Self-Esteem

Is the extent to which a person believes he or she is worthwhile and deserving individual

Risk Propensity

the degree to which he or she is willing to take chances and risk decisions

Attitudes

are a person's complexes of beliefs and feelings about specific ideas, situations, or other people

Cognitions

constitute the knowledge a person presumes to have about something (gut feeling)

Affect

a persons feelings towards something

Intention

a component of an attitude that guides a person's behavior

Cognitive Dissonance

the anxiety a person experiences when simultaneously possessing two sets of knowledge or perceptions that are contradictory

Job Satisfaction

the extent to which a person is gratified or fulfilled by his or her job

Organizational Commitment

a persons identification with and attachment to an organziation

Positive affectivity

people who possess this are upbeat and optimistic, have an overall sense of well-being, and see things in a positive light

Negative affectivity

people who possess this are generally downbeat and pessimistic, see things in a negative way, and seem to be in a bad mood

Perception

The set of processes by which an individual becomes aware of and interprets information about the environment

Stereotyping

the process of categorizing or labeling people on the basis of a single attribute

Attribution Theory

suggests that we attribute causes to behavior based on our observations of certain characteristics of that behavior

Workplace Behavior

a pattern of action by the members of an organization that directly or indirectly influences organizational effectivness

Performance Behaviors

the total set of work-related behaviors that the organization expects the individual to display

Selective Perception

the process of screening out information that we are uncomfortable with or that contradicts our beliefs

Dysfunctional Behaviors

those that detract from organizational performance

Absenteeism

occurs when an individual does not show up to work

Turnover

occurs when people quit their jobs.

Organizational Citizenship

the extent to which his or her behavior makes a positive overall contribution to the organization

Motivation

the set of forces that leads people to behave in a particular way

Need

anything an individual requires or wants

Scientific Management Approach

assumes employees are motivated by money

Human Relations Approach

assumes that people want to contribute and are able to make genuine contributions

Need-Based Theories of Motivation

assume that need deficiencies cause behavior

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Theory

Assumes that human needs are arranged in a hierarchy of importance

ERG Theory

describes existence relatedness and growth needs

Dual-Structure theory

identifies motivation factors which affect satisfaction and hygiene factors which determine dissatisfaction

Motivation Factors

are intrinsic to the work itself and include factors such as achievement and recognition

Hygiene Factors

Are Extrinsic to the work itself and include factors such as pay and job security

Need for acheivement

the desire to accomplish a task or goal more effectively than it was done in the past

Need for Affiliation

the need for human companionship

Need for Power

the desire to control the resources in one's environment

Process-based perspectives on motivation

focus on how people behave in their efforts to satisfy their needs

Equity Theory

focuses on peoples desire to be treated with what they perceive as equity and to avoid perceived inequity

Equity

the belief that we are being treated fairly in relation to others; inequity is the belief that we are being treated unfairly in relation to others

Expectancy Theory

suggests that people are motivated by how much they want something and the likelihood they perceive of getting it