OB 6301 - Exam 1 Terms

ability

the natural aptitudes, learned capabilities, and habits required to successfully complete a task

adaptive task performance

how well employees modify their thoughts and behavior to align with and support a new or changing work process or work setting

corporate social responsibility (CSR)

organizational activities intended to benefit society and the environment beyond the firm’s immediate financial interests or legal obligations

counterproductive work behaviors (CWBs)

voluntary behaviors that have the potential to directly or indirectly harm the organization

deep-level diversity

differences in the psychological characteristics of employees, including personalities, beliefs, values, and attitudes

evidence-based management

the practice of making decisions and taking actions based on research evidence

human capital

the knowledge, skills, abilities, creative thinking, and other valued resources that employees bring to the organization

inclusive workplace

a workplace that values people of all identities and allows them to be fully themselves while contributing to the organization

MARS model

a model depicting the four variables—motivation, ability, role perceptions, and situational factors—that directly influence an individual’s voluntary behavior and performance

motivation

the forces within a person that affect the direction, intensity, and persistence of effort for voluntary behavior

open systems

the view that organizations are dependent on the external environment for resources (inputs), consist of internal subsystems that transform inputs to outputs, and affect the environment through those outputs

organizational behavior (OB)

the study of what people think, feel, and do in and around organizations

organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs)

various forms of cooperation and helpfulness to others that support the organization’s social and psychological context

organizational effectiveness

an ideal state in which an organization has a good fit with its external environment, effectively transforms inputs to outputs through human capital, and satisfies the needs of key stakeholders

organizations

groups of people who work interdependently toward some purpose

proactive task performance

how well employees take the initiative to anticipate and introduce new work patterns that benefit the organization

proficient task performance

how well employees perform the work efficiently and accurately

remote work

any arrangement whereby an individual performs organizational tasks while located away from the employer's physical premises, usually connected through various forms of information technology

role perceptions

the degree to which a person understands the job duties assigned to or expected of him or her

stakeholders

individuals, groups, and other entities that affect, or are affected by, the organization’s objectives and actions

surface-level diversity

the observable demographic or physiological differences in people, such as their race, ethnicity, gender, age, and physical disabilities

task performance

the individual’s voluntary goal-directed behaviors that contribute to organizational objectives; includes proficient, adaptive, and proactive task performance

work-life integration

the degree that people are effectively engaged in their various work and nonwork roles and have a low degree of role conflict across those life domains

achievement-nurturing orientation

a cross-cultural value describing the degree to which people in a culture emphasize competitive versus cooperative relations with other people

agreeableness

a personality dimension describing people who are trusting, helpful, good-natured, considerate, tolerant, selfless, generous, and flexible

collectivism

a cross-cultural value describing the degree to which people in a culture emphasize duty to groups to which they belong and to group harmony

conscientiousness

a personality dimension describing people who are organized, dependable, goal-focused, thorough, disciplined, methodical, and industrious

dark triad

a cluster of three socially undesirable (dark) personality traits: Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy

distributive justice

an ethical principle stating that appropriate decision criteria should be applied to calculate how various benefits and burdens are distributed

ethic of care

an ethical principle stating that everyone has a moral obligation to help others within their relational sphere to grow and self-actualize

ethics

moral principles (human good) or societal norms that determine whether actions are right or wrong and outcomes are good or bad

extraversion

a personality dimension describing people who are outgoing, talkative, sociable, and assertive

Five-Factor (Big Five) model

the five broad dimensions representing most personality traits: conscientiousness, emotional stability, openness to experience, agreeableness, and extraversion; also known as the “Big Five”

individualism

a cross-cultural value describing the degree to which people in a culture emphasize independence and personal uniqueness

Machiavellianism

a personality trait of people who demonstrate a strong motivation to achieve their own goals at the expense of others, who believe that deceit is a natural and acceptable way to achieve their goals, who take pleasure in outwitting and misleading others using crude influence tactics, and who have a cynical disregard for morality

moral intensity

the degree to which an issue demands the application of ethical principles

moral sensitivity

a person’s ability to recognize the presence of an ethical issue and determine its relative importance

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)

an instrument designed to measure the elements of Jungian personality theory, particularly preferences regarding perceiving and judging information

narcissism

a personality trait of people with a grandiose, obsessive belief in their superiority and entitlement, a propensity to aggressively engage in attention-seeking behaviors, an intense envy of others, and tendency to exhibit arrogance, callousness, and exploitation of others for personal aggrandizement

neuroticism

a personality dimension describing people who tend to be anxious, insecure, self-conscious, depressed, and temperamental

openness to experience

a personality dimension describing people who are imaginative, creative, unconventional, curious, nonconforming, autonomous, and aesthetically perceptive

organizational politics

the use of influence tactics for personal gain at the perceived expense of others and the organization

personality

the relatively enduring pattern of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that characterize a person, along with the psychological processes behind those characteristics

power distance

a cross-cultural value describing the degree to which people in a culture accept unequal distribution of power in a society

psychopathy

a personality trait of people who ruthlessly dominate and manipulate others without empathy or any feelings of remorse or anxiety, use superficial charm, yet are social predators who engage in antisocial, impulsive, and often fraudulent thrill-seeking behavior

utilitarianism

an ethical principle stating that the only moral obligation is to seek the greatest good for the greatest number of people

uncertainty avoidance

a cross-cultural value describing the degree to which people in a culture tolerate ambiguity (low uncertainty avoidance) or feel threatened by ambiguity and uncertainty (high uncertainty avoidance)

values

relatively stable, evaluative beliefs that guide a person’s preferences for outcomes or courses of action in a variety of situations

attribution process

the perceptual process of forming beliefs about whether an observed behavior or event is caused largely by internal or external factors

categorical thinking

organizing people and objects into preconceived categories that are stored in our long-term memory

confirmation bias

the process of screening out information that is contrary to our values and assumptions, and to more readily accept confirming information

contact hypothesis

a theory stating that the more we interact with someone, the less prejudiced or perceptually biased we will be against that person

empathy

the ability to understand another person’s situation or viewpoint (perspective taking), be sensitive to their thoughts and feelings, and experience their emotions

false-consensus effect

a perceptual error in which we overestimate the extent to which others have beliefs and characteristics similar to our own

fundamental attribution error

the tendency to see the person rather than the situation as the main cause of that person’s behavior

global mindset

an individual’s ability to perceive, appreciate, and empathize with people from other cultures, and to process complex cross-cultural information

halo effect

a perceptual error whereby our general impression of a person, usually based on one prominent characteristic, colors our perception of other characteristics of that person

Johari Window

a model of mutual understanding that encourages disclosure and feedback to increase our own open area and reduce the blind, hidden, and unknown areas

locus of control

a person’s general belief about the amount of control he or she has over personal life events

mental models

visual and relational images that we develop to describe, explain, and predict the world around us

perception

the process of receiving information about and making sense of the world around us

primacy effect

a perceptual error in which we quickly form an opinion of people based on the first information we receive about them

recency effect

a perceptual error in which the most recent information dominates our perception of others

selective attention

the process of attending to some information received by our senses and ignoring other information

self-concept

an individual’s self-beliefs and self-evaluations

self-efficacy

a person’s belief that he or she has the ability, motivation, correct role perceptions, and favorable situation to complete a task successfully

self-enhancement

a person’s inherent motivation to have a positive self-concept (and to have others perceive him or her favorably), such as being competent, attractive, lucky, ethical, and important

self-fulfilling prophecy

the perceptual process in which our expectations about another person cause that person to act more consistently with those expectations

self-serving bias

the tendency to attribute our favorable outcomes to internal factors and our failures to external factors

self-verification

a person’s inherent motivation to confirm and maintain his or her existing self-concept

social identity theory

a theory stating that people define themselves by the groups to which they belong or have an emotional attachment

stereotype threat

an individual’s concern about confirming a negative stereotype about his or her group

stereotyping

the process of assigning traits to people based on their membership in a social category

affective organizational commitment

an individual’s emotional attachment to, involvement in, and identification with an organization

attitudes

the cluster of beliefs, assessed feelings, and behavioral intentions toward a person, object, or event (called an attitude object)

cognitive dissonance

an emotional experience caused by a perception that our beliefs, feelings, and behavior are incongruent with one another

continuance commitment

an individual’s calculative attachment to an organization

emotional intelligence (EI)

the ability to recognize and regulate our own emotions as well as the emotions of other people

emotional labor

the effort, planning, and control needed to express organizationally desired emotions during interpersonal transactions

emotions

physiological, behavioral, and psychological episodes experienced toward an object, person, or event that create a state of readiness

exit–voice–loyalty–neglect (EVLN) model

the four ways, as indicated in the name, that employees respond to job dissatisfaction

general adaptation syndrome

a model of the stress experience, consisting of three stages: alarm reaction, resistance, and exhaustion

job satisfaction

a person’s evaluation of their job and work context

norm of reciprocity

a felt obligation and social expectation of helping or otherwise giving something of value to someone who has already helped or given something of value to you

service profit chain model

a theory explaining how employee’s job satisfaction influences company profitability indirectly through service quality, customer loyalty, and related factors

stress

an adaptive response to a situation that is perceived as challenging or threatening to the person’s well-being

stressors

any environmental conditions that place a physical or emotional demand on the person

trust

positive expectations one person has toward another person in situations involving risk

drives

hardwired characteristics of the brain that correct deficiencies or maintain an internal equilibrium by producing emotions to energize individuals

equity theory

a theory explaining how people develop perceptions of fairness in the distribution and exchange of resources

expectancy theory

a motivation theory based on the idea that work effort is directed toward behaviors that people believe will lead to desired outcomes

extrinsic motivation

occurs when people are motivated to engage in an activity for instrumental reasons, that is, to receive something that is beyond their personal control

four-drive theory

a motivation theory based on the innate drives to acquire, bond, comprehend, and defend that incorporates both emotions and rationality

goal

a cognitive representation of a desired end state that a person is committed to attain

interactional justice

the perception that appropriate rules were applied in the way the people involved were treated throughout the decision process

intrinsic motivation

occurs when people fulfill their needs for competence and autonomy by engaging in the activity itself, rather than from an externally controlled outcome of that activity

Maslow’s needs hierarchy theory

a motivation theory of needs arranged in a hierarchy, whereby people are motivated to fulfill a higher need as a lower one becomes gratified

need for achievement (nAch)

a learned need in which people want to accomplish reasonably challenging goals and desire unambiguous feedback and recognition for their success

need for affiliation (nAff)

a learned need in which people seek approval from others, conform to their wishes and expectations, and avoid conflict and confrontation

need for power (nPow)

a learned need in which people want to control their environment, including people and material resources, to benefit either themselves (personalized power) or others (socialized power)