Organizational Behavior – Core Concepts & Self-Understanding

A comprehensive set of question-and-answer flashcards covering the introductory lecture on Organizational Behavior, its applications, managerial implications, and the self-concept framework, including the Johari Window.

What are the five classic functions of management?

Planning, organizing, leading, controlling, and coordinating.

How is an organization commonly defined?

A consciously coordinated social entity with an identifiable boundary that functions on a relatively continuous basis to achieve a common goal or set of goals.

What does the managerial function of organizing primarily involve?

Arranging people and tasks by giving specific designations and defining responsibilities.

According to Robbins, what is Organizational Behavior (OB)?

A field that investigates the impact individuals, groups, and structures have on behavior within organizations for the purpose of improving organizational effectiveness.

Which real-world example illustrates the OB concept of psychological safety and candid feedback?

Pixar’s culture where anyone, regardless of rank, can give feedback on a movie in progress.

Which company’s 20% time policy demonstrates the link between organizational culture and innovation?

Google.

What OB lesson can be drawn from Amazon’s introduction of wellness programs and mindful breaks?

The importance of stress management, job design, and employee well-being.

Which company’s shift from DVD rentals to streaming highlights OB’s role in managing resistance to change?

Netflix.

Provide a concise definition of behavior in an organizational context.

The response of an organization or system to internal or external stimuli, whether conscious, subconscious, overt, covert, voluntary, or involuntary.

Name three academic disciplines that contribute to OB.

Psychology, sociology, and anthropology (others include management and economics).

What assumption does OB make about employee motivation?

Motivated people work more effectively and contribute to extra-role performance.

Why can the impact of policies and procedures on people be unpredictable?

Because individuals differ in attitudes, perceptions, personalities, and contexts.

Distinguish between effectiveness and efficiency.

Effectiveness is achieving worthwhile goals; efficiency is achieving goals with minimal resources, even if the goals themselves are less important.

What are the three levels of analysis in OB?

Individual, group, and organizational levels.

Give two examples of individual-level processes in the basic OB model.

Attitudes and motivation (others include perception, emotions, decision making).

What is the primary purpose of studying OB?

To understand, predict, and influence employee behavior in order to design effective interventions.

How does OB differ from HRM?

OB is an academic field that explains behavior; HRM applies OB insights to practices such as recruitment, selection, training, and performance management.

What does ‘Person–Job fit’ mean in recruitment?

Aligning an individual’s skills, attitudes, and personality with the requirements of a specific job.

List three applications of OB inside organizations.

Improving quality of work life, enhancing employee performance, and boosting organizational effectiveness.

Which historical study revealed that participation improves job satisfaction more than short-term incentives?

The Hawthorne studies by Elton Mayo.

What did Frederick Taylor’s scientific management emphasize?

Dividing work into simple, repetitive steps and timing workers to maximize efficiency.

Identify Mintzberg’s three broad categories of managerial roles.

Interpersonal, informational, and decisional roles.

Differentiate between ‘skills’ and ‘competencies’.

Skills are learned abilities for specific tasks; competencies combine skills, knowledge, and abilities that enable effective job performance.

What is Evidence-Based Management (EBM)?

A managerial approach that bases decisions on the best available scientific evidence, complementing systematic study and intuition.

Why is ‘big data’ increasingly relevant to OB?

It helps predict events, assess risk, manage people, and inform intuition with quantitative evidence.

Give one OB challenge associated with economic pressure.

Managing employee stress, decision making, and coping during downturns.

Name two OB challenges that arise from globalization.

Working with culturally diverse colleagues and adapting to different regulatory norms.

What is workforce diversity?

The growing heterogeneity in organizations regarding gender, age, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and other characteristics.

How can a customer-responsive culture be fostered?

By aligning employee attitudes and behaviors with customer satisfaction goals.

Why are people skills vital for managers in networked organizations?

Because motivating and leading virtual or online teams requires strong interpersonal and communication abilities.

State one implication of OB for practicing managers.

Use metrics and situational variables rather than hunches to explain cause-and-effect relationships.

How does OB view ‘self-concept’?

As a person’s conscious reflective identity that influences workplace behavior—‘Who you are makes a difference.’

List the four basic self-concept questions individuals ask themselves.

Who am I? How do I fit in the world? How well do I treat others? How well do others treat me? (Sometimes also: How well do I treat myself?)

Name two sources from which self-concept is formed.

Information from others and information from ourselves.

What are the four dimensions of self-concept?

Values, beliefs, attitudes, and feelings.

Who developed the Johari Window model?

Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham in 1955.

What is the goal of the Johari Window?

To improve understanding and communication between individuals by expanding the ‘Open/Arena’ quadrant.

Describe the ‘Arena’ quadrant in the Johari Window.

Information known to self and known to others; the most productive area for communication.

What characterizes the ‘Blind Spot’ in the Johari Window?

Information others know about you but you do not recognize in yourself.

What is the ‘Hidden Area’ (Facade) in the Johari Window?

Information known to you but kept from others, such as private feelings or experiences.

Explain the ‘Unknown Area’ in the Johari Window.

Information unknown to both self and others—latent abilities, subconscious feelings, or untapped potential.

Give two ways to enlarge the ‘Arena’ quadrant.

Self-disclosure and seeking feedback from others.

According to OB, why is trust essential in the Johari Window process?

Trust enables individuals to reveal information and accept feedback, thereby improving interpersonal effectiveness.

What managerial advice follows from the Johari concept of feedback solicitation?

Regularly ask for and provide constructive feedback to reduce blind spots and hidden areas.

How can open communication decrease the ‘Unknown’ area?

By promoting shared discovery and encouraging experiences that reveal hidden traits or talents.