MAN336 Exam 2
What is "Psychological Safety" in teams? Why is it important? What are some things you could you do as a leader to promote the perception of "Psychological Safety" in your team?
It is the shared belief that workplace is safe for interpersonal risk-taking, is a function of interpersonal trust and mutual respect. Outcomes: greater ability to innovate, higher levels of task conflict, willingness to admit mistakes, freer information sharing. Promote through owning up to mistakes, get to know others, actively listen, fallibility model, reduce status differences, positive language, etc.
What are the identifying characteristics of a team? How is a team different from a group? What are different types of teams (from textbook)?
A team is a small group with complementary skills with some degree of interdependence. They are committed to team identity, shared purpose, performance goals, and a common approach. Groups are a collection of individuals with one or more shared characteristics vs a team is a type of group with a cohesive bond. Types of teams: task force: temporary, asked to address a specific issue until it is resolved; product development team: temporary or ongoing, in charge of designing a new product; cross-functional team - individuals from difference parts of an organization staff the team; virtual team - members are not located in the same physical space.
Describe Tuckman's model of group development (Forming, Storming, etc.). Define each stage in the model. Be able to recognize the correct stage in the model based upon a description of a situation.
All stages are necessary and inevitable, leader's facilitation style should change with group stage. Forming - playing nice, sorting out objectives and responsibilities. Storming - power struggles, conflict emerges, team figures out how it works together. Norming - team agrees to plans and responsibilities, trust develops and people rely on each other. Performing - focus on achieving goals, high gear, little supervision, conflict becomes useful tool. Adjourning - team dissolves, bittersweet, end with debrief.
What is the common knowledge effect? What produces the effect?
It is when groups tend to discuss and repeat information known by all members more than they do information known by one or a few members. Increased with larger group size, conflict avoidance, mutual enhancement, and bias for preference-consistent information.
Be familiar with each of the conflict handling styles and the "win/lose" outcomes they are trying to achieve. In what situations or conditions is each conflict style most appropriate? Which is the most challenging conflict handling style to use (and why)? Be able to identify a conflict handling style from a description.
Avoidance - low competition and low cooperation, no winners or losers. Accommodation - low competition and high cooperation, you win I lose. Compromise - mid competition and mid cooperation, we both win and lose. Competition - high competition and low cooperation, I win you lose. Collaboration - high competition and high cooperation, I win you win.
What is conflict? How is "perception" at the heart of conflict? What is functional vs. dysfunctional conflict? What are some "upsides" and "downsides" of conflict?
Conflict is a process that begins when one party perceives that another party has negatively affected something the first party cares about. Functional - conflict that supports the goals of the group and improves the performance, dysfunctional - conflict that hinders group performance. Can be good and bad, bell curve of high and low conflict with high and low performance.
What is conformity? Be familiar with the Solomon Asch studies of group conformity. Why were subjects willing to consciously provide a wrong answer? Be familiar with Stanley Milgram studies of conformity to authority - why were subjects willing to electrocute a "learner"?
Conformity refers to peoples tendencies to behave consistently with social norms. Solomon Asch did a study where he could convince people two lines were the same length when one was clearly shorter. groups of 4, 3 knew it was a test and tried to convince 4th they were same length. found that if all 3 put wrong, fourth person would put wrong, but if the 3 put diff answers, the 4th would pick the right answer, conform to those around you. Subjects willing to consciously provide a wrong answer because they did not want to go against the group, clearly the others must be right if all 3 people selected the same answer. Stanley Milgram - why were they willing to electrocute a learner: they trusted the facilitator and did what he said, they felt coerced. when you are so involved in obedience, you void personal morals, they obeyed and could blame experimenter.
Why do we study communications in this course? What is the purpose and impact of communications in organizations?
Effective managers are effective communicators, 70-80% of workplace accidents can be traced to communication problems. Satisfaction with communication is correlated to job satisfaction and performance. Effective communication is listed as top skill by MBA recruiters.
According to Ethan Bernstein, what outcomes do effective teams produce as opposed to ineffective teams? What are some common problems that reduce the effectiveness of teams? What is group cohesion and team identity? How are these important to team effectiveness? Be able to provide a few recommendations for improving team cohesion.
Effective teams deliver, adapt and learn through teamwork, and individual team members are satisfied and learn. Common problems: poor communication, low efficiency, too much emotion, conflict issues, low trust, lacks cohesion, low psychological safety. Team cohesion: the bond that pulls people toward membership in a group and resist separating from the group, camaraderie, encouraged by smaller groups, clear goals, increased trust.
Be able to recommend practices that could improve one's ability to communicate effectively, via email, in teams, and in situations where the communications may be "high stakes."
Email tips: follow up with another mode, keep it brief, clear descriptive subject lines, consider time of day, limit reply all, keep in mind forwarding, do not send email when upset. In teams: speak often but brief, ask questions, reduce solution statements early on, actively listen, headline key points in a sentence or two, summarize frequently, invite everyone to share, interject after others have spoken. High stakes: be very clear about message, communicate frequently, be transparent, express empathy to those negatively impacted, predict worries of stakeholders, address concern of job security, be clear on WIIFM, provide hope and plan for future.
Why do we study ethics as part of an Organization Behavior course?
Ethics guide the little decisions that mean the most. It conducts right and wrong for groups and helps determine what people believe and why.
Be able to define the barriers to communication described in your textbook (filtering, information overload, etc.). Be able to provide a realistic example of each barrier.
Filtering - distortion or withholding of information to manage a person's reactions, ex: manager keeping negative sales figures from a superior. Selective Perception - filtering information to suit our own needs, often unconscious, ex: hear what you want to hear or see what you want to see. Information Overload - occurring when the information processing demands on an individual's time to perform exceed the capacity of time available, ex: bombarding of emails, illusion of multitasking. Emotional Disconnects - when the sender or receiver is upset about the subject or unrelated, ex: stress about job security during merger meeting. Lack of Familiarity or Credibility - misinterpreting or untrustworthy, ex: misinterpreting humor with someone you don't know. Gender differences in communication - can interpret difference phrases differently. Biased language - speaking down on a specific type of person, ex: non-inclusive workplace to certain races. Differences in meaning - the same word may mean something different to difference people.
Be able to contrast formal from informal communications in organizations. How are they similar and different? What are the benefits and disadvantages of gossip? What is a "crucial conversation" (textbook)?
Formal - controlled process of sharing official information with those who need to know it, direction follows org chart, planned. Informal - unofficial information shared with no imposed obligations or restrictions, grapevine (gossip and rumor). A crucial conversation is discussions where not only the stakes are high but the opinions vary and emotions run strong.
According to Robert Cialdini (Harnessing the Science of Persuasion), why are his six principles so effective? What are they taking advantage of? Be able to describe each of Cialdini's principles and provide an example of how you could use that principle to influence someone.
Humans are pre-wired to comply in some situations which stems from human proclivity for automatic response, so persuasion works by appealing to these deeply rooted human drives. Liking - we prefer to say yes to people we know and like, cultivate a positive relationship. Reciprocity - felt obligation to repay people for gifts they have provided to us, know what the other party values. Social proof - people follow the lead of similar others, be on your guard when following others. Consistency - people feel pressure to act in ways consistent with the commitments they have made, be careful when choosing to endorse a principle. Authority - we are more likely to accede to the request of a perceived authority figure, leverage the authoritative power of others. Scarcity - opportunities seem more valuable when they are less available, determine your walk-away point in advance.
What is a team contract and some typical topics covered by a team contract? (from textbook)
It is an agreement on established ground rules, goals, and roles. Covers values and goals, roles and leadership, decision making, communication, performance.
What does being "Politically Savvy" mean? Be able to describe several skills that might differentiate those with political savvy-ness from those without it. What is a "coalition of good," according to Jane Horan?
It means people can maneuver through complex political situations effectively and quietly, and they view corporate politics as a necessary part of organizational life. Six characteristics are social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking ability, thinking before speaking, managing up and out, being sincere. A coalition of good: identify 10 people you interact with regularly, who is your go-to information person at work, who is your connector, who is your mentor, who do you call when you have a bad day, who is your savvy advisor.
Why was the JV team beating the Varsity team in the Army Crew case? What team performance issues were at the heart of the Varsity crew's performance?
JV worked as a team to beat the better team, rather than work as the 8 best individuals separately. The team was very impressionable early on, motivation. Fostering team trust was key for effectiveness.
Define nine influence tactics. Which influence tactic is most commonly used by managers? Which tactics are most effective in gaining others' commitment? Which are least effective? If presented with a scenario, be able to correctly identify which influence tactic is employed.
Logical arguments/rational persuasion - influence through facts and logic. Inspirational appeal - appeals to emotions, values, and doing the right thing. Personal appeal - appeal based on who you are or being liked. Consultation - asking others to partner with you to influence someone else. Ingratiation - feeling good about oneself increases compliance, uses flattery. Coalition - get people to band together, exerts social influence. Pressure - applying threats, works best in crisis situation. Legitimating appeal - appeal based on legitimate power or authority. Most frequent is rational persuasion, most effective in commitment is personal appeals, inspirational appeals, and consultation, and least effective in terms of resistance are rational persuasion, legitimating, pressure, and coalitions.
Kathleen Kelly Reardon suggested four levels of political organizations. Be able to describe examples of the types of behaviors one might see in a "Pathologically Political" organization.
Minimally political (strong camaraderie), moderately political (engage as a team with minimal conflict), highly political (who you know trumps what you know), pathologically political (marked by distrust). Some examples of the latter are people achieve goals by circumventing normal channels and relying on personal connections, and people focus less on work and more on protecting themselves and seeking advantage.
Define a "moral dilemma"? How do moral dilemmas help us understand our ethics?
Moral dilemma is when ethical principles conflict, reasoning through moral dilemmas helps us understand what we believe and why. Begin with choice of action, articulate underlying principle that guides your choice, revisit choice of action when confronted with conflicting moral principle.
Analyze the trolley car case (Doing the Right Thing). What would each ethical framework argue should be done and why?
Welfare - veer off to not hit the 5 people and instead hit one. Freedom - keep on track, no group should be advantaged over another. Virtue - veer to hit one, up to the individual, bravery. XX
Be able to describe various non-verbal forms of communication and how non-verbals impact the quality of communication. How is non-verbal communication related to communication channel "richness"? Be able to distinguish different communication channels by the "richness" of information they convey.
Non-verbal forms include body language, eye contact, facial expression, posture, touch, and space. Over half of in-person communication occurs through non-verbal cues which enhances the quality of interaction. Face-to-face communication is the most rich form of communication mainly because so much communication can be done without using words, unlike over the phone or in written. From highest to lowest "richness": face-to-face, video conferencing, telephone, 2-way radio, written letters/emails, formal written documents (in bulk).
Be able to define organizational politics? Be able to describe some political behaviors that might occur in an organization. Are politics good or bad for organizations? How do "bad" politics differ from "good" politics?
Office politics are the unwritten rules that determine who gets what, when, and how, and who doesn't. some examples are withholding information, whistle-blowing, spreading rumors, leaking confidential information. Bad politics are used to advance a single person at the expense of others, while good politics are used to advance a person but not to neglect other people's rights or legitimate interests. Politics is neither good not bad, but is necessary.
What is Social Network Theory? What is Social Capital within a network? What are the sources of power in a social network? Be able to describe characteristics of ties in a network that influence power in a network (e.g., breadth, depth of ties). How are strong ties useful? Be able to describe the strength of weak ties in a network. What are two sources of positional power in a network? What power can you derive from being able to fill a structural "gap" between networks?
Power in a social network is a function of one's ties to others in the network and the position of the individual in the network. Social capital is a network of people an individual knows that provides access to information, resources, or assistance and is a source of potential allies. Breadth of ties: direct (no intermediaries with high trust) vs indirect (a step removed with non-redundant information). Depth of ties: strong (multiplexity, frequent and long, reciprocity, value) vs weak (asymmetric, simplex, acquaintances, novel information). More weak ties leads to more novel info which is more power. It is important to have a combination of strong and weak ties. Two sources of positional power in a network are centrality (most links) and structural holes (gaps). By bridging holes in the network, you get more power and become a superconnector and informational broker.
What is power? Be familiar with the "power literacy" principles we discussed in class? What are some positive and negative examples of the use of power (from textbook)?
Power is the ability to get things done despite resistance. Power literacy: power is not inherently good or bad, some forms of power are earned while others are not, to be effective power must be perceived and accepted by those subject to the power, power is a function of the person with power and those subject to it and the situation, power does not have to be used for it to have an impact, it's when we manipulate others for our own self-interest that it flips to abuse of power. XXX
What is process loss and process gain? Be able to provide an example of team process loss.
Process gain - when groups perform better than would be expected given the characteristics of the members of the group. Process loss - when groups perform more poorly than expected given the characteristics of the members of the group (increased group size).
Be able to describe the 6 bases of power (Expert, Referent, etc.). What reaction in others does each type of power tend to produce (e.g., commitment, compliance, resistance)?
Referent - personal source of power, possesses desirable resources or personal traits, results in commitment. Expert - personal source, influence based on useful and scarce skills, can lead to people protecting their expertise, leads to commitment. Coercive - positional source, ability to punish for non-compliance, based in fear, leads to resistance. Reward - positional source, achieves compliance based on ability to distribute rewards, most common, leads to compliance. Informational - positional source, power comes from access to information, results in commitment. Legitimate - resulting from position in formal hierarchy, may require leadership, authority, without leadership leads to compliance but with leads to commitment.
Be able to describe the communication process model (encoding, decoding, etc. between senders and receivers). If provided with a scenario, be able to pinpoint where in the process model a communication breakdown has occurred and the types of "noise" that may be present.
Sender encodes, then message sent through channel, then receiver decodes message. Then receiver encodes feedback which is given where original sender decodes. Noise occurs in feedback. Physical - environmental interference Psychological - qualities in us that affect how we communicate and interpret others. Physiological - biologically-based interference. Semantic - occurs when words are not mutually understood.
What is social loafing? How can you reduce the chance of social loafing occurring? What is group think? Why does it exist? How can it be overcome or prevented?
Social loafing is when people decrease their effort at a task when working in a group. It can be overcome by transparency, group goals, group identification, reducing the sucker effect, accountability, and task importance. XX
Be able to describe what happens in each of the 5 stages of the conflict process. Be able to describe potential sources of conflict. At what stage does conflict become "visible"?
Stage 1 - potential opposition or incompatibility, root causes: limited resources, org structure, task interdependence, incompatible goals, personality differences, communication issues. Stage 2 - cognition and personalization, perceived conflict vs felt conflict. Stage 3 - intentions; accommodating, avoiding, compromising, competing, collaborating. Stage 4 behavior, over conflict (party's behavior vs other's reaction). Stage 5 - outcomes - increased or decreased group performance. Conflict becomes visible at stage 4??
What is the punctuated equilibrium model of group development? How is it different from Tuckman's model?
Start up to inertia to revolution where there is conflict, then either successful transition to inertia to successful task completion or unsuccessful transition to poor performance. (photo of graph in review)
Be able to define the three types of conflict (task, process, relationship) and the 3 Loci (locations) of conflict (Dyadic, Intrapersonal, Intragroup, Intergroup). Be able to recognize a situation describing each.
Task - the what, disagreements over content and goals of work. Process - the how, disagreement over methods, procedures, and how the work gets done. Relationship - the people, conflicts based in interpersonal relationships. Three loci - intrapersonal occurs within oneself, dyadic occurs between two people, intragroup occurs within a group, and intergroup occurs between groups.
How is conflict related to outcomes like team performance? In what situations does conflict tend to improve team performance? What types of conflict are more likely to result in lower performance?
Task conflict results in positive team performance, while relationship conflict and process conflict result in negative team performance.
What is the "big idea" of the article, "How Management Teams Can Have a Good Fight"? What are some techniques teams can use to ensure group conflict is not destructive?
Teams that handle conflicts well do things than teams that don't. focus on issues and not personalities, frame decision as collaborations, and establish a sense of fairness and equity in the process.
What is the "power-dependency" theory? How do the three characteristics of importance, scarcity, and substitutability influence the degree of power dependence?
The idea that power can be thought of as a correlate of dependance. The greater B's dependency on A, the greater the power A has over B. importance, scarcity, and sustainability heighten dependency.
Explain when you should use written communication and when you should use verbal communication. Be able to recognize situations in which one or the other is preferable.
Use written when conveying facts, must become permanent file, there is little time urgency, immediate feedback not needed, ideas are complicated. Use verbal when conveying emotions, message does not need to be permanent, time urgency, immediate feedback needed, ideas are simple or can be made simple with explanations.
For each of the three ethical frameworks (Welfare, Freedom, Virtue), be able to provide a definition, describe strengths and weaknesses, and describe the litmus test that helps us understand if we're following the framework. Be able to recognize which framework is invoked when presented with a situation and a moral argument about how to resolve the situation.
Welfare/utilitarianism - decision is ethical based upon its consequences, greatest good for greatest number of people, litmus test: ROI (what are collective benefits and costs of decision), strengths: pragmatic and focuses not on individual interest but collective good, weaknesses: uncertain about benefits and costs, ends don't always justify means, tyranny of majority. Freedom - people should be free to make choices that are genuinely their own if it does not harm others, laissez fair, fairness. Litmus: is personal choice being infringed and veil of ignorance thought framework. Strengths: simple and easy to understand, upholds the individual. Weakness: may not work in situations with clear negative. Virtue - concerned with what kind of virtues we should follow and what our choices say about our character, promote a society that build moral character, it may be legal but is it ethical. Litmus: disclosure rule. strength take clear stand on certain acts as clearly wrong. Weakness: how do we determine what is virtuous in a pluralistic society.
What is the "slippery slope" applied to ethical decisions? Be able to provide an example of the slippery slope in action.
When does something really cross the line. One good decision may lead to many bad outcomes, so should you just not make the decision to do it in the first place. Going to work when you're sick and possibly contagious, telling an insecure coworker their work is good when it is not, etc.
What are some skills or techniques one could use to successfully manage conflict?
Work on your timing, reduce tension early in the process, recognize and highlight similarities, de-personalize, troubleshooting and change the process
What techniques of influence were used by Clendenin? What type of power did he use? Give examples. Did John Clendenin behave in an ethical manner? What is some evidence for and against?
XX Clendenin had legitimate power when he was the supply marketing manager as well as referent power due to his aura and charisma in the workplace. I believe he worked in an ethical manner because while he did stretch the truth about the budget, it was not for personal gain but for gain of the company and project as a whole.
