Learn: EAB4741

[S1] What is Organizational Behavior Management (OBM)?

A subdiscipline of Applied Behavior Analysis that applies behavior-analytic principles to individuals and groups in workplaces.

[S1] In what settings is OBM applied?

Businesses, industries, government, and human-service settings.

[S1] What does OBM change to improve workplace behavior?

Environmental variables.

[S1] What type of workplace behavior does OBM target?

Observable, measurable, socially significant employee performance.

[S1] Give examples of OBM outcomes.

Improved attendance, treatment integrity, accurate data collection, workplace safety, and productivity.

[S1] Why is "the employee is lazy" not an acceptable OBM target?

It is a vague personality label rather than an observable and measurable behavior.

[S1] How could "lazy" be rewritten behaviorally?

"The employee completed 4 of 10 assigned reports by the deadline."

[S1] What research model does OBM commonly use?

An inductive research model.

[S1] What research model does I-O psychology commonly use?

A hypothetico-deductive model.

[S1] How does inductive reasoning proceed?

It begins with specific observations and uses the data to identify a broader pattern.

[S1] How does hypothetico-deductive reasoning proceed?

It begins with a theory or hypothesis and collects data to test its prediction.

[S1] What measurement approach is emphasized in OBM?

Direct observation of observable or verifiable performance.

[S1] What measurement approach is often used in I-O psychology?

Self-report measures of attitudes, traits, or perceptions.

[S1] What experimental designs are common in OBM?

Single-case designs.

[S1] What experimental designs are common in I-O psychology?

Group designs.

[S1] What variables does OBM emphasize?

Environmental variables affecting performance.

[S1] What workplace topics are often emphasized in I-O psychology?

Selection and placement.

[S1] Who is called the father of scientific management?

Frederick Taylor.

[S1] What is Taylorism?

Frederick Taylor's use of scientific methods to improve employee and organizational performance.

[S1] When did Taylor promote scientific management?

The late 1800s and early 1900s.

[S1] When and where were the Hawthorne studies conducted?

During the 1930s at the Western Electric plant near Chicago.

[S1] What effect is associated with the Hawthorne studies?

The Hawthorne effect.

[S1] When was the first issue of the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management published?

1977.

[S1] Is there currently a separate OBM license according to the lecture?

No.

[S2] What are the seven OBM application steps in order?

1) Identify key organizational results; 2) identify relevant pinpoints; 3) develop a measurement system; 4) diagnose the problem; 5) develop and implement a solution; 6) evaluate effects; 7) evaluate adherence.

[S2] What happens during Step 1 of OBM application?

Identify the important broad result the organization wants.

[S2] What is a pinpoint?

A specific, observable, and measurable performance target that affects a key organizational result.

[S2] Give a pinpoint for reducing late appointments.

"Receptionists will check in each arriving client within three minutes."

[S2] Why are "be responsible" and "show professionalism" poor pinpoints?

They are vague and cannot be measured reliably.

[S2] What happens during Step 3 of OBM application?

Develop a system for measuring the pinpoint.

[S2] Which comes first: pinpointing or measurement?

Pinpointing comes before developing the measurement system.

[S2] What dimensions may be used to measure employee performance?

Count or frequency, rate, duration, latency, percentage, and accuracy.

[S2] What happens during Step 4 of OBM application?

Diagnose the environmental variables contributing to the performance problem.

[S2] What variables should be considered during diagnosis?

Clarity of expectations, training, available materials, consequences for correct performance, and competing tasks.

[S2] When does diagnosis occur?

After baseline measurement and before intervention.

[S2] What is the rule for choosing an OBM solution?

Match the solution to the diagnosed cause of the performance problem.

[S2] What intervention matches unclear expectations?

Task clarification.

[S2] What intervention matches a skill deficit?

Training.

[S2] What intervention matches a missing reminder?

Prompting.

[S2] What intervention matches weak consequences?

Feedback, incentives, or reinforcement.

[S2] What intervention matches broken or difficult equipment?

Equipment modification.

[S2] What question is answered by evaluating intervention effects?

"Did the solution work?"

[S2] What question is answered by evaluating adherence?

"Was the solution implemented as recommended?"

[S2] Why must adherence be evaluated separately from effects?

A program may fail because it is ineffective or because it was not implemented correctly.

[S2] What do traditional management-consulting assessments commonly use?

Surveys.

[S2] What may workplace surveys assess?

Readiness for change, culture, engagement, employee perspectives, mission, vision, and values.

[S2] What does a change-readiness assessment determine?

Whether an organization is prepared for a major change or intervention.

[S2] What does a culture or engagement survey examine?

Whether employee perspectives align with the organization's mission, vision, values, and function.

[S2] What is a pulse survey?

A survey that repeats questions over time to monitor changes in employee responses.

[S2] What is the limitation of surveys in OBM?

They measure verbal reports and may suggest causes, but do not by themselves confirm behavioral relationships.

[S2] What is direct observation?

Measuring performance or a process as it actually occurs.

[S2] What three steps are required for direct observation?

Operationally define the target, select a measurement system, and observe and record what occurs.

[S2] What is overt observation?

Employees know they are being observed.

[S2] What is covert observation?

Employees do not know at that moment that observation is occurring, when ethically and appropriately arranged.

[S2] How can surveys and direct observation be combined?

Use reports to identify possible variables and direct observation to investigate or verify them.

[S2] What are the three levels of OBM assessment?

Organizational, process, and job-performer levels.

[S2] What does organizational-level assessment examine?

The organization as a whole.

[S2] What does process-level assessment examine?

The steps used to produce a product or service.

[S2] What does job-performer-level assessment examine?

A specific employee or employee performance.

[S3] What are the three major domains of OBM?

Performance Management, Behavior-Based Safety, and Behavioral Systems Analysis.

[S3] What is the primary focus of Performance Management?

Improving measurable employee or group performance.

[S3] What concerns are commonly addressed through Performance Management?

Tardiness, absenteeism, inaccurate data, low treatment integrity, missed deadlines, poor customer service, and incomplete documentation.

[S3] What is the primary focus of Behavior-Based Safety (BBS)?

Increasing observable safe behavior and reducing workplace injuries.

[S3] Give examples of Behavior-Based Safety targets.

Wearing protective equipment, sanitation, safe lifting, and proper disposal of hazardous materials.

[S3] What is the primary focus of Behavioral Systems Analysis (BSA)?

Improving how the entire organization or workflow operates.

[S3] What organizational features does BSA examine?

Inputs, resources, work processes, departments, products or services, outcomes, and the external environment.

[S3] If qualified employees in multiple departments experience the same bottleneck, what should be assessed first?

The process or organizational system, not one employee.

[S3] What question helps identify the correct OBM assessment level?

"How large is the problem?"

[S3] What does organizational-level assessment examine?

The organization's mission, strategy, resources, outputs, clients, structure, and external environment.

[S3] What does strategy assessment determine?

Whether organizational plans and priorities align with the mission and desired outcomes.

[S3] What does an external-environment assessment examine?

Outside conditions such as laws, regulations, funding, competition, community needs, and labor markets.

[S3] What does process assessment examine?

The sequence of activities that produces a service or product, including delays, errors, unnecessary steps, and handoffs.

[S3] What is a Rummler-Brache process map?

A visual representation of workflow across people or departments.

[S3] What do swim lanes represent on a process map?

The people or departments responsible for activities.

[S3] What do rectangles or boxes represent on a process map?

Actions or process steps.

[S3] What do diamonds represent on a process map?

Decisions.

[S3] What do arrows represent on a process map?

The direction and timing of workflow.

[S3] What does job-performer assessment examine?

Whether a person has the skills and environmental support needed to produce expected results.

[S3] What are job accomplishments?

The results the employee must produce.

[S3] What is environmental support for a job performer?

Tools, training, time, prompts, feedback, and consequences needed for performance.

[S3] What is the Human Performance System (HPS)?

A tool for examining factors that affect employee performance.

[S3] What does the Performance Diagnostic Checklist (PDC) identify?

Variables influencing workplace performance.

[S3] What does the PDC-HS do?

Adapts performance diagnosis for clinical and educational human-service settings.

[S3] What question does task analysis answer?

"What must the employee do?"

[S3] What does task analysis identify?

The steps, knowledge, and skills required to complete a task.

[S3] What question does contingency analysis answer?

"Why is the behavior occurring or not occurring?"

[S3] What does contingency analysis examine?

Antecedents and consequences affecting performance.

[S3] What does ABC stand for?

Antecedent, Behavior, Consequence.

[S3] What is the antecedent in an ABC analysis?

What occurs before the employee behavior.

[S3] What is the behavior in an ABC analysis?

The employee's observable action.

[S3] What is the consequence in an ABC analysis?

What occurs immediately after the behavior.

[S4] What is the central rule for choosing an OBM intervention?

Select an intervention that is functionally linked to the diagnosed cause, not merely one that is popular.

[S4] What are antecedent-based interventions?

Changes made before behavior that make expected performance clearer, easier, or more likely.

[S4] What does task clarification do?

Clearly explains what must be done, when, how well, and how performance will be measured.

[S4] When is task clarification appropriate?

When the employee does not clearly understand the expectation or standard.

[S4] What does goal setting do?

Establishes a specific, measurable performance target.

[S4] What qualities should an effective goal have?

Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

[S4] Does setting a goal automatically teach the employee how to perform?

No; it identifies the desired outcome but does not necessarily teach the required skill.

[S4] What are prompts?

Cues delivered near the time a behavior should occur.

[S4] Give examples of workplace prompts.

Emails, text reminders, checklists, signs, calendar notifications, electronic alerts, and color-coded materials.